High Standards
Which might be the explanations which folk give to support their belief that the greatest chance to see stand-ups in Edinburgh is in the Festival? One argument is the volume of shows which are happening.
Rather than the usual handful of standup gigs, there are loads throughout the Festival.
But my argument is that quantity doesn't necessarily mean a high standard. In my time I have seen hundreds of stand up comedy gigs during the Fringe, and most of these were terrible. I have left a number of performances after being there for as much as half an hour without even feeling the temptation to smile, never mind laugh. Simply because a standup show is part of the Fringe does not guarantee that it's likely to be hilarious.
I attend countless comedy gigs all year round, and in my experience there are far less truly dreadful shows being staged at other times of the year.
Occasionally you're able to acquire cheap comedy tickets during the Festival as there are loads of two-for-the-price-of-one deals on. All this genuinely means is that when you take advantage of a 2-for-1 promotion, it means you pay the same price to see a show as it would at any other time of the year, because at the Festival all of the ticket prices double. I will go for stand up evening at my local standup place any day.
A lot of folk think that the best time to enjoy stand up comedy in the capital of Scotland is during the Fringe each summer. I'm in the minority who doesn't agree with that statement. Enjoy the fringe if you get the chance, but remember it's not the whole story. Sometimes the warm up acts somewhere else will be more entertaining.
A prime argument which folk offer for attending the Fringe is that we can catch the best known comics, and get to watch the rising stars in standup while they're still relatively unknown. My personal experience differs.
The most renowned comedians' gigs always end up being sold out in advance of the stage where you have actually found out they're performing, so you're less able to see them perform in relation to any other time of the year. In addition the belief that you'll have the opportunity to catch the rising stars being released upon the world: in truth, I suppose it is feasible, however you're more likely to see someone that offers twenty minutes of pretty entertaining jokes, and thirty-five minutes of rubbish.
However, they had a great write-up since the journalist merely had time to stay for the beginning of the performance.
