Location: Wilton’s Music Hall
Its currently raining that torrential rain I have come to associate with London from my many visits in the past (first time it’s happened since I’ve become a resident) and so I’m staying put. At Wilton’s. Where there is free internet, a roof and warmth.
So I’m updating my blog. Much has happened since my last post so now is a good time to fill you in.
While last weekend was my first official day off, yesterday was the first day I haven’t had to rush around achieving things, like moving house or acquiring waterproof, yet feminine, footwear...
So to celebrate I turned off my both my personal phone and my work phone and slept until I naturally woke up....at 9:30am. Not the ridiculous lie-in I was planning. I felt I should get out there and explore the city. So I hopped on a bus and wandered around Soho, Chinatown and Convent Garden for a bit. They were places I had frequented many times before but it was still a lovely tourist-y way to spend a Sunday.
In the evening I caught the 73 bus to Stoke Newington and teched for the Schadenfreude Cabaret, a comedy night at Ryan’s Bar. This is the brainchild of Garrett Millerick and Louise Ford, one half of Ford and Akram, a double act from The Hut (and I got the gig through teching their show during Edinburgh).
I arrived at 7pm giving me an hour to prep, which was earlier than the 7:30 start Lou had suggested. I’m glad I had that hour, as despite the show being very relaxed and tech-lite, I got that time to get into the venue, make sure I knew the controls and do some last minute troubleshooting. By the time the doors opened at 8pm, I was very relaxed and confident. I had a fantastic night watching the stand up and other comedy acts. By venue manager from Pleasance Hut, Ben, even dropped by to support Ford and Akram and see me at work. The room was packed so he stood near me and my tech box. We shared a lovely moment when the XLR cable dropped out of the standup’s mic (so... that’s the cable that connects the mic to the speaker...essentially) and he reached to plug it in again. Ben turned to me immediately telling me to mute the speakers (if you don’t there’s a hideous noise when the XLR is plugged in – its ugly). But, being the competent tech-type I am, I’d already muted. We giggled that Ben was still trying to be my boss and teacher, and that he thought I would be daft enough not to mute the channel!
But fair play to him, he did help me adjust the mic levels to remove a pesky tinny noise at the start of the gig. I’m never too proud to accept help.
After the night, we celebrated with a beer (my payment beverage of choice) and me, Lou and Garrett chatted. I loved teching Schadenfreude so much, I asked to return for their next gig, and the next and the next. I’m happy to say that they liked my work and are happy for me to do this regularly with them. So every final Sunday of the month, I will be teching Schadenfreude at Ryan’s Bar. I also might be teching for another comedy night on a different Sunday of the month, so all in all it was an incredibly productive night for my career!
On a final note, I’ve realised that a token night off from Britannicus means I can tech for Ford and Akram’s show Humdinger one last time in Camden! I’m so pleased to work for these guys again!
And now the rain has stopped, I shall go home to Lewisham.
Amy
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