Shake a Bucket!

We've kicked into fundraising mode at PBHSW Towers (can I call it that? I shall...), which means putting on shows for people to come along to (the next one is on Wednesday 26th June at the Hackney Attic and you can find out more on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/events/506287976086030/ and buy tickets here: http://bit.ly/pbhffswfr) and making stuff for people to buy (look out for the PBH's Free Fringe Spoken Word Album, available to download sooooon).

Why're you fundraising? Isn't it all free?!

 Ah, that old question.  Glad you asked - here are some answers:

1. As you probably know, the Free Fringe does not charge its performers anything to perform (giving opportunities to so many performers, many of them finding their feet for the first time at a new level of performance in arguably the biggest arts festival in the world!), but there are costs involved, and we're hoping that, by holding fundraising events, we can raise enough money to mitigate them.
   
   (These costs include printing the free-to-the-public Free Fringe Brochure, which details all the FREE shows you can come and see with us during the Edinburgh Fringe.  Apparently printers ink actually costs, gram for gram, somewhat more than rocket fuel.  Who knew?!)
   
   
2. It's a great way to raise the profile of a) PBH's Free Fringe Spoken word; b) the Free Fringe in general; c) the spoken word genre in general.
   
   
3. The live shows are a fantastic opportunity for performers to practise their show, their audience rapport, their hosting skills, and the all-important "holy crap we need to turn this over fast" mojo before they hit those mean Edinburghian streets and stages.  The album's a good chance to work out which tracks work really well and are strong enough to pull an audience in by themselves.
   
   
4. Ironically (wait for it), spoken word doesn't appear to be taken as seriously as comedy.  No, hold on, that's not quite it...
   
   It's maybe more like this: by the time you're taking a show to Edinburgh, you'd be hard-pushed to call spoken word "just a hobby" for you, even if you don't get paid for it that often.  The fundraising activities are a means for us to get together, to remind not only the general public (what's "spoken word"? why is it different from stand-up? why isn't it the same as theatre? what's the point? isn't it just reading aloud? poetry's boring/ elitist/ meaningless in this day and age! etc.) but also ourselves that what we spend all this time and creative (and administrative) energy on is not trivial or frivolous, but is meaningful, and worth breaking even on, if possible.  It's about stamping our endeavours in the eyes of others (and ourselves) as worthy of pride and attention.
   
   We're worth shaking a bucket for instead of being self-effacing about, in short.
   
   

So that's (my very personal) taken on why... :)

Okay, how can I help?

I'm even more glad you asked that! :D  Simply:

• Come to the shows (London, Manchester, Luton, and wherever we find ourselves next);
• Buy the album;
  
• Tell your friends;
  
• Pitch some cash our way when we get some kind of online donation/ kickstarter thing going/ when you next see us;
  
• Tell people you've only vaguely met;
  
• Seriously - tell everyone.
  
  

And, as a reminder, you can follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/pbhspokenword; like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PBHSpokenWord; and read this here ongoing blog, which will continue from now until the end of the Fringe (and probably a wee bit afterwards...).

And if you've any queries about any of this, do get in touch with us on pbhspokenword@gmail.com.

Cheers,

Fay Roberts

(PBH's Free Fringe Spoken Word Director)