It is festival season and that means that in the next month there is so many great comedy festivals to look forward to! This month we are looking at some of the great shows that you can see at the Edinburgh Fringe. So take note because we are going to give you all the information you need for just a handful of some of the great shows happening this year!

ComedySportz / The Totally Improvised Musical

Location:   Laughing Horse @ The Three Sisters – The Live Room (Venue 272)

Dates: Aug 3rd-16th

Time: 13:45 / 18:45

Price: Pay What You Can

Ticket Link: https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/comedysportz / https://freefestival.co.uk/show.aspx?ShowID=8105

Hello! Tell us about yourself? 

We are CSzUK and as a company, we’ve been performing improv comedy since 2001. We do a mix of family friendly and not so family friendly shows across loads of different genres and we love being at the Edinburgh Fringe. A lot of our players own cats but that isn’t a prerequisite for joining the troupe, we’ll accept anyone who has cute animal pictures to share*.

How did you come up with the name of your show that your taking to the fringe?

ComedySportz is comedy as a sport – not about sports and The Totally Improvised Musical is a musical that is totally improvised. We tend to save all of our imagination for the stage!

Tell us all about your shows!

ComedySportz is a competitive improvised comedy show where two teams go for gold with gags and games inspired by the audience! There’s a referee on hand to ensure a good clean match and the audience decide who deserves the points at the end of each round. It’s fast, fun and family friendly. This year we’re joined by more guests from other ComedySportz teams than ever before, which is something that we’re really excited about. We love bringing ComedySportz to the Edinburgh Fringe as the audience gets really involved and we often see families come back time and again.

Each Totally Improvised Musical is the opening and closing night of a brand new comedy musical, with live music, laughter and maybe even dancing …though we all have dodgy knees. We take a title suggestion from the audience and go from there to compose the songs and the story on the spot. The titles we’ve had so far have all been weird and wonderful and led to shows about a prison escape where no one wanted to leave, tube drivers who dream about being West End stars and hobbits taking on greedy land developers. Our first show was meant to be in March 2020 and then lockdown happened. Luckily, by the time we started we could all just about fit into our cast T-Shirts!

Both shows are part of the Free Festival. We have always believed that shows should be affordable for audiences but sustainable for artists so there are a couple of ways to get a seat. You can guarantee a seat with Pay What You Want ticket starting from £5. Once those people are in, any remaining seats go to everyone else and those that can afford to do so are asked to make a donation at the end.

What other acts are you looking forward to seeing at the fringe?

There are some great improv shows we always enjoy like the always fun Improv Cage Match, Murder Inc. and the brilliant Baby Wants Candy. This year though we want to discover new shows and surprises – that is what is best about the Fringe. The chaotic, the creative and the totally unexpected. We’re going to try and see something in every category and try not to plan so much. Though we do already have tickets for Daniel Kitson’s WIP show.

Have you done the fringe before? What are the key pieces of advice you have been given or would give to new groups or people performing at the fringe. 

This is our sixteenth year at the Edinburgh Fringe! Our advice to new performers is the same that was given to us all those years ago. Giving the audience a good time has to be your priority. Yes, the fringe is a market place for acts to get noticed, but if you’re worrying more about reviewers or agents than the audience, you’re not going to give your best shows.

Favourite one liner you have done in a show and why?

We once did a scene that was full of fart jokes when Prince Edward and his family were in the audience. They seemed to enjoy them.

What have been some of the most unique and different comedy shows you have seen this year and why?

Sex, Lies and Improvisation is a brilliant show that reminds you that improv doesn’t always have to be funny. It can be dramatic and powerful too. We saw Terry Wogan Screams, a delightfully offkilter game show at the Leicester Comedy Festival and we loved the beautiful shambles of Edy Hurst’s Comedy Version of Jeff Wayne’s Musical Version of HG Wells’ Literary Version (Via Orson Welles’ Radio Version and Steven Spielberg’s Film Version) of the War of the Worlds. Just saying that title out loud is a joy.

Talk us through your daily routine for a day at the Fringe

We have a flyering roster so we alternate who gets a lie in. Most mornings we wonder if this is the day we’re going to walk up Arthur’s Seat and then decide we’re going to have another half hour in bed instead. Once we’ve had some breakfast we head to the venue and the Royal Mile for a spot of flyering then sneak off to The Piemaker. We’re doing a few guest slots and we try to see shows in the gaps when we can. Then we have our shows. After that we try to watch something or head somewhere for some food, sometimes even something healthy. Other times though it’s nice just to head back to the flat and chill for a bit – especially with so many shows that we’re doing.

What is the best way to enjoy yourself at the fringe?

See and do as much as you can. Which doesn’t mean do everything! We’ve seen people nod off in shows on hot days in small rooms when they’ve just overdone it. Mostly just be open to trying something new.

Best thing about performing at the fringe?

Performing every day in front of some of the best audiences in the world. It just makes you a better performer, surrounded by other fantastic acts from all over the world. It is exhausting and inspiring and total fun.

The most challenging thing about performing at the fringe?

Wanting to see all the great shows that inevitably are on at the same time as ours. 

What would be your top three items every performer must take to the fringe?

Comfortable shoes. Sturdy shoes. Just a really good pair of decent shoes.

What’s the secret to successful flyering? 

Be enthusiastic but polite and get your pitch down to the bare essentials – we’re fun, we’re family friendly and we’re free. “Award-Winning competitive comedy” helps – especially when it is true – or just explaining the show as quickly as possible; for us it is “two teams, one ref, no script, lots of laughs!” But above all be nice and give people a positive reason to remember you.

Who would be your ultimate dream audience member?

The one that donates enough to cover the cost of our accommodation this year.

If people want to find out more about you where can they follow you on social media?

We’re on Facebook (cszmanchesteruk), Instagram (search cszmanchester and totallyimprovisedmusical) and both Twitter and Tik Tok using @ComedySportz_UK!

And Finally in three words – Why should people come and see the show? 

They’re really good.