Here is the place to write a Show Report for your venue, detailing as much information as you can that might help shows there in years to come. Include things such as dimensions of stage, passing traffic, good spots to flyer, useful promo, tech equipment, ambient noise; anything that will help give shows a good idea of the venue before they arrive. **Please include your show number so we can confirm your show report is in the right venue forum**
Pinned a message.
Show report for Burrito n' Shake 2022. Show number 718: "Out Out". This was our first time taking part in the Edinburgh Fringe festival and we were very happy overall with the venue that PBH were able to offer us. The staff were very friendly and supportive. Only glaringly obvious issue was the sound from the kitchen. With the venue kitchen being located where it was, even the most attentive and aware staff members couldn't help but make noise as they moved in/around/out of the kitchen. There seemed to be staff moving in or out of there at least 4 times per performance and between the movement and sound of this, it was really difficult not to draw the audiences attention away from the performance. I just gave a lighthearted warning at the start of the show that any background movements and noise weren't part of the play and while lots of audience members told me at the end of shows that they barely noticed the noise, I think they were being just a tad too nice haha. The stage was a decent size for what we needed (ie: enough room for a relatively static 2 hander play). Very little depth but makes up for this is width. Tech wise, we didn't need to use anything bar a Bluetooth speaker which we brought ourselves so cant really comment on the tech side of the venue too much. Very poor wifi down in the basement where the stage was though so that might be worth noting for future performers. The ceiling lighting set up for the stage was basic and did exactly the job it needed to of lighting our actors so we were happy with that. The venue location was fantastic and definitely helped us get in last minute audience members some days. We based ourselves at the start of the Royal Mile so that we could point at a nearby hotel and say 'it's just the turn before that building there, you walk straight down and can't miss it!'. Would definitely recommend future performers flyering in a similar spot as this worked really well for us footfall wise too. Pt. 2 to follow
Pt. 2 of show no. 718 report: I didn't expect flyering to be one of my highlights of the experience but since our play was about a girl's night out, we got our actors in costume to flyer and basically danced and laughed around the Royal Mile which worked great in enticing people to come over to us to see what our show was about. Basically, by making flyering fun and throwing our personalities into it, we got plenty of people smiling and wanting to chat to us about our show. Overall, we had a lovely experience in this venue and putting on a PBH show, however, this wouldn't be the right venue for someone who's performance/act is more on the serious and dramatic side I don't think. If you can encorporate a joke about the background noise during your set, this venue could work super well for you but I wouldn't really recommend it for future theatre pieces unless the frequency of staff moving in and out of the kitchen was reduced.
Show report for Burrito n' Shake 2022. Show number 328: "Artificial Incompetence". GENERAL STUFF: Dimensions of stage: The stage was probably 3-4m wide and 2m deep. I had to set up a fairly large projector screen and projector for my show, both of which fitted in perfectly fine - though I did have to use one of the seats on the front row for the projector. Technical stuff: The sound was good in my shows, I had no issues with the mic and PA not working etc. The lighting was okay - it lit the stage from the top down, as well as the audience - it would have been more ideal to have a light shining on performers faces, though this is really a minor point. Capacity: I think the capacity of the venue was about 50 - though my show for the most part fluctuated around 20, though I had a completely full house on the last performance - I would say that having a full venue made the kitchen issue worse - I'll talk about that in a bit. Storage: I managed to store my projector screen behind a bunch of stuff that was sitting in the corner of the performance room. There wasn't much space there, and it wasn't particularly secure, just hidden. Good areas to flyer: Southbridge and the Mile seemed to give the best results, the nearer to the venue the better. Venue requests: posters were allowed anywhere in the venue, and staff were very friendly throughout. MY SHOW: How it went: My show went very well, much better than I was expecting. As I said above, I managed to average about 20 people a day for the first 6 days, and then had a full house on my final night. I pulled in 690 over the 7 shows, which is far more than I was expecting. I didn't have any major technical issues and got a lot of great feedback, which was really lovely as it was my first fringe. As mentioned above, the main issue during the show was that staff had to walk through the stage area with stuff during the performance as the kitchen is on the right of the stage.
This was manageable when the audience wasn't full, as they would just walk through the empty seats in the crowd, but when it was a full night, they'd have to cross directly in front of the performers. I suppose this wouldn't be the end of the world for a stand-up show, but as mine was a sort of comedic science lecture, it did prove to be a little distracting (though it didn't lead to any disasters!). I would say on average 3 or 4 people would walk through during the 45 minutes a show would take. The kitchen was also very noisy, particularly when the door was propped open on hot days. What worked well for me: Personally, mentioning to people that my show was science comedy about AI got some really good interest - many people were actually very interested in learning. I actually pulled in a lot of my crowd from the blue book, which shows how immensely helpful it is! What would I different?: Not much really - maybe do a slightly longer run, and push the boat out a little bit more with adding more interesting science content. I think I underestimated how much science people actually want to see, so maybe next time I'll be a little bolder. All in all, I had a really fantastic experience doing a show at the fringe, and would love to do it again next year if I get the opportunity, and I want to say a massive thanks to all those involved with the PBH free fringe for making this all possible
A bit late to the show - me and new technology are not exactly good friends! Show report for Burrito N Shake 2022: Rik Wolters is Too Gay (show 235). The venue has a reasonably sized stage space, perfect for stand up comedy. Being next to an active kitchen wasnt the most ideal, but Id incorporated it into my act by day two! However, the kitchen staff having a blazing row on my final night was pretty off putting!! The venue staff were lovely. Chatty and friendly. The tech for my show is basic, one mic, one mic stand - thats stand up comedy for you! Numbers-wise, it was a strange year really. The train strikes didnt help matters, nor did the bin strikes! But Id say that overall it was pretty busy. My show itself was great fun! I even got random reviewers in and was offered further work by a comedy booker who came along! I was also venue captain. I did find several acts failure to engage in the group, or to even bother to show up for the get in (or communicate this) to be pretty disappointing. Also, the act who constantly untethered and then moved the chairs on an almost daily basis failed to adhere to the dont be a dick ethos. Overall though, we had some fabulous acts in the venue, with lots of energy and enthusiasm. With regards to the room layout it would have been preferable to layout the room against the opposite wall, but this wasnt possible due to the built-in benches against the wall, and all the venues storage items that were being stored over there. The bench was broken too, so was never in a usable state. Hopefully if the venue can move a few things around, the layout can be improved for 2023 (and beyond).
Totally forgot to upload this until re-reading the ethos and conditions... Sorry. This was written fresh in Sept, but never figured Discord out, then forgot. Show report for Stolen Table Comedy Party at Burrito N Shake. A comedy mixed bill, sometimes a walking tour, sometimes games, sometimes immersive theatre, once or twice something not in the venue at all. Slot was 0030. Full run. PT 1: POSITIVE We had a really great time at Burrito N Shake. Tricky slot to flyer for, but the venue never minded us pulling people in from the restaurant. Meant we ended up with decent audiences (8 our smallest and almost 50 our biggest, averaging about 30 depending on what we were doing that night). The staff were sending people down to us during the show too which was great, so we were half-full+ every mixed bill night. Cant thank the them enough! They were also fine with us running late, as we were the last show and they were open until 5am. Went on for as long as it was fun, and the audience kept milling in (lots post-club). Venue staff also directed people elsewhere when we ended up sick at the end of the run. Venue was accommodating of us doing different kinds of shows in and out of the room itself - a lot of others wouldnt have put up with our nonsense. Flexibility of the room was great for this - more space than chairs so you can push the rows back to embiggen the stage (but turning them round and arching them a bit wouldve been better for us). Storage was great and the venue was accommodating of us leaving stuff, as were both of our lovely show neighbours. We didnt need help with the get in, but they always offered!
PT 2: NEGATIVE We did have some issues with the kitchen. Staff were helpful though and when we asked them to avoid coming down during shows they did as best they could. Noise was tricky as theres no door (large stairs down from the restaurant) and people going through to the toilets, but it was mostly not loud enough to disrupt. Slight issue with a PBH senior sour our relation with the venue by demanding performer discounts just before one of our shows To confess - WE PUT THE FOILS ON THE LIGHTS! Let them up initially as thought it would help others, but after they got taken down wed change them round each day. My only recommendation for shows here in 2023 - get some foil and card to stick to the lights if you like your audience in anything less than full hospital waiting room brightness. Mostly faultless. Perfect for big weird shows like ours. A good black box space.
Very Very late show report which will be brief as much has already been said. I was confused on the use of discord haha. But hopefully this helps as people get their venues this year. Show Report for A lady Does not Scratch her crotch at burrito n shake. A comedic solo theatre show. 15:45. 17 day run. show 626. The people in this venue are super nice, they are working really hard and have wild shifts that last many hours for the entire month, so always be extremely kind to them (as you should be anyway, but it's a small team working long long hours, so extra kind maybe because of that).
Not done lol, as I said not good at discord. The venue itself is a good size. It has a lot of noise in it. I think for a serious theatre show it would be a difficult space. Mine was comedic so i was able to incorperate the ins and outs of the kitchen staff and the people coming to the bathroom. but in a very serious piece could be hard. The first day was rough, but the venue was responsive when we asked that they not walk across the front of the stage. I would recommend if you can warning your audience of the amount of activity, people in and out, noise from the kitchen, otherwise I think it distracts them more. The venue also allowed people to bring alcohol in despite them not selling it, which I think was helpful for audiences. It's a good place for flyering on the mile and then right outside the venue. Sometimes I would just wander around that block (the street, I know block is not a term used in the UK, but I'm not sure of a better term for it). It draws a lot of people, and I would announce it upstairs often. I feel like for the time of my show I had pretty good audiences. Smallest was 5 (last monday I think) and biggest was around 30. Tech wise, the sound is fine, lighting is not really a thing in the venue. The lights are all the way at the stairs, so I had a little blackout at the end, but it's just turning off the lights.
Show report for "Alexander Klaus, the One-Legged Shoemaker Man". I'm breaking this into a couple of sections, because Discord has a length limit. This was a one-man theatre piece, 12-19 August 2023, every day at noon. My timeslot was previously filled by Angela Legg's puppet show for kids, "The Good Egg," which ran through 11 August. I'll get back to Angela in a sec. 12 noon is a good time for theatre. The evening, Fringe-wide, is all but given over to comedy, because that's what the throng is looking for (they are drinking at that point). Noon was a good timeslot -- my crowds were a little weak Tuesday-Thursday, but good on Friday-Saturday-Sunday. (Overall, my numbers ran from 2 to 22.) === The room (this is for the 2024 people) ==== (Hi 2024 people, you've got this! Break a leg!) To get oriented: Burrito'n'Shake is on the WEST side of the street, (which runs roughly north-south). The restaurant area is at street level. The venue is downstairs in a finished basement, a long room that runs north-south. The basic layout of the room in 2023 was as follows (it may change, if the seating is reconfigured in 2024): WEST wall: NORTH end - door to the toilets. SOUTH end - door to the kitchen. The performer is in the 3-4 meters between those two doors. The amp and the PA system (and the single electric outlet) are on that wall as well. SEATING: 30 seats or more, all facing the performer (WEST). EAST wall: behind the seating -- this is where the guys upstairs come through, to bring down bags of supplies to the kitchen (onions, lettuce, etc.) and bring up pizzas. The toilets are single, narrow rooms -- nothing big enough for a wheelchair (remember, stairs). But one of them is longer than the other two, so it can serve (kind of) as a dressing area. It has no coat hooks on the wall -- this would be a great request for 2024. Another request for 2024 would be to oil the hinges to the kitchen door, which was really squeaky.
Show report for "Alexander Klaus, the One-Legged Shoemaker Man". part 2 === And some notes: === SOMETIMES the guys forget to close the kitchen door, and kitchen noises can be distracting. Over the course of my run -- AS I MADE FRIENDS WITH THE GUYS (and bought food from them!!!) this got better. They're really sweet, and being their friend will take you a long way. They are thoughtful. They're proud of their food. They are NOT your enemy. (This is where "Don't be a dick" becomes very important. I lunched daily on their veg & rice bowl, after my show.) The key to managing kitchen traffic is to be SURE there is a clear, unobstructed path for the guys, along the east wall, leading from the staircase (north) all the way to the kitchen door (south)-- and BEHIND all the seating. They'll follow it, if it's clear, and obvious. Again: they are NOT your enemy. You need to work with them. I spent a few minutes every day straightening up the chairs, and making sure that the path was there, before my show. And over the course of my run, the restaurant noises got quieter. There's still the street outside, when a bus or an ambulance passes by. We all do what we can. === And my show === So I did it, I worked without a mic. Yes, really. Angela did too, and her performance showed me right away, that this wouldn't be a train wreck. She had a continuous music soundtrack playing quietly through her entire hour (she would segue into song frequently, with the soundtrack as her accompaniment), and the music trained the audience's ear to listen to IT, and not to the occasional noise from the kitchen, or from upstairs. So you CAN work without a mic in the space. And I was nicely reviewed for it, too -- basically, for overcoming the venue. Granted, my voice is bigger than Angela's. But the audiences showed minimal distraction, and some even said that the noises worked, for my story (it's an urban historical fantasy).
Show report for "Alexander Klaus, the One-Legged Shoemaker Man". part 3 Lighting? If you have lights, bring them, and figure out the single outlet. Otherwise, don't include light-ING in your plans. This is a downstairs room, and it's lit less well that your average living room. I just made my entrance, and began. The room is like playing to a dimly lit restaurant/cabaret space. It's a trifle noisy, but everyone is paying attention. They're there to see you. You'll get over the fact that it's not a sound-proofed black box theater, somewhere 10 minutes into your first performance. I had a great run, and frankly learned a lot. === Flyering pre-show === After getting into costume I went upstairs to flyer the passersby from the restaurant doorway (again, be considerate of the guys, who are moving hand trucks of beans and rice in). I didn't bother much with my own flyer just then (that would be a totally random shot), I concentraed on the Wee Blue Book. Giving those away was the easiest job I've ever had in my life (and I am 67 years old). ESPECIALLY when someone with kids walked by? Just say "And there are CHILDREN'S shows" and the parents break out of their resting bitch face, smile, and thank you sincerely. (I, too, was a parent of small children once -- believe me, free stuff for kids? Amen.) Now and then someone would smile and say they already had the book. They knew they were in a special club, and both of us got a little happier with the world for a moment. So I gave out the Wee Blue Book for roughly 10-15 minutes before my show, welcomed anyone who was coming in to see mine (and directed them downstairs), then turned off my phone at 11:59 sharp and headed down. (My character had a limp and used a cane, so coming down the stairs took the full minute, and collected the audience's attention.)
Show report for "Alexander Klaus, the One-Legged Shoemaker Man". part 4 Oh and one more thing: we had a table of flyers upstairs, and a table downstairs. I straightened out both tables every day, before my show. Flyers are on slick paper, and they slide EVERYWHERE, including all over the floor. This, and occasional napkins and coffeecups, make the venue look trashy. I policed the area every day. (The guys upstairs do not do this, downstairs. This is OUR job.) And somehow, non-PBH flyers spontaneously appeared among ours. I never saw this happen -- they just... materialized. You will take a certain satisfaction from throwing those away, daily. === So, long story short === This venue grows on you. And over your run, you'll learn a LOT about performing in conditions that aren't exactly West End, or Broadway. And the critics will come! I had two of them, and I only ran for eight days. Remember, everyone is there to see YOU, and everyone knows that this is Fringe.
Show Report on Serious Nonsense for Terribly Grown Up People 10:45 am 5th -27th - 22 performances, no days off Room Capacity ~40 Average Audience 12 people I really liked this room and had a great time at Burrito n Shake - It's a great central location with a lot of passing foot traffic. The room is a basement space, large and rectangular. The set up we used had a wide stage against the wall with all the doors in it. The room has some sound bleed issues from upstairs and the kitchen which comes off the space from behind the disused bar, but I didn't need amplification to be heard in the room. Others have already described the room layout so I won't repeat that but my key takeaways from this venue are - The room is hot and humid. 1 or 2 fans next year would make all the difference to keeping it comfortable. -Light levels are low - a couple of lamps or builders lights which can be angled would easily would be good but it was light enough to see and work by - I would re arrange the room so that the staff walkway was at the back of the room that way the audience is not distracted whenever someone comes downstairs/crosses the back. Whilst this does lose the benches as potential seats, I think i would help more shows than it hinders. I would very happily use this venue again.
We used some little LED lights which I hung from the pipe overhead during our performance and then took home to charge up each evening after our show.
I'd also agree that the staff using the kitchen were very good about walking around the back of the seating area, but only if we made a very clear pathway for them, and blocked off the shortest route through the performance area with a bench. Free Fringe venues don't get much better than this.
Shows 74+75 pt1 Show Report 2023 Burrito N Shake MY SHOWS 74 and 75 (Good Egg and Screwed) Good Egg Sat 5th- Fri 11th at 12pm - One-woman musical puppetry childrens show Screwed Sat 5th- Sat 12th at 10pm - One-woman poetry, singing, tap dancing, comedy, unique brand of performance art 18+ show I planned my shows almost bang on the 55min mark but I would suggest planning it a bit under to allow time for audience to arrive a bit late and to make payments/chat when leaving, and being less stress to set up and clear up fast I was lucky the shows before me always finished early allowing me time to set up my props. AUDIENCE I did 2 solo shows each day for about a week at the start of the fringe, both in the same venue. On the Monday (first Monday of the fringe) I didnt get audience for either of my shows, it was 241 tickets on the paid fringe that day which may have had an impact. Disregarding that sad day my audience size averaged 8 for Good Egg and 11 for Screwed. My smallest audience size (apart from the zeros) was 2, and my biggest was about 20. There was a couple of times that very drunk people came to my shows (yes even the childrens show!), I had some odd stories to tell from this fringe! FLYERING I wanted a low-pressure fringe, I didnt register either show in the big edfringe book so I was reliant on the wee blue book and flyering to get people in. I flyered a bit on the mile and mostly outside the venue. In future I would consider hiring someone to flyer as I think it would pay off because I was very tired. I didnt have proper flyers until the Tuesday (because of vista print failing on their delivery promise but I did get a full refund at least) - I suggest order flyers well in advance or locally!
Shows 74+75 pt2 Show Report 2023 Burrito N Shake THE TEAM The other performers and staff at the venue were all amazing, such a nice bunch, super supportive, genuine friendships and connections were made. As someone doing solo shows as a one woman band I felt very welcomed and part of the fringe bubble (side note - please PBH get a bigger venue for the launch meeting thingy next year! I did not enjoy standing in the corridor of Tang Dynasty waiting for my badge!) THE ROOM Very central location was great! The Burrito N Shake basement (which people told me not to call a basement cos it sounded unwelcoming) so downstairs room It was an experience! Very noisy and hot. Occasionally people working would walk straight across the stage area despite a walkway being left around the back I soon learned to warn people of the constant disruptions before starting the show. I WOULD URGE FUTURE YEARS TO HAVE THE STAGE ON THE OPPOSITE WALL TO WHERE WE HAD IT - Yes benches would be behind the performance space but that would be far better than having the kitchen door one side of the stage and the toilet door the other which was constant distractions to what was happening on stage. Lighting was basic, getting proper lighting for the stage area would make a huge improvement. There were speakers which I could attach my mac to play audio tracks. There was a mic which I used for Screwed but for Good Egg my lapel mic wouldnt work so I had to go without as couldnt hold a mic as well as my puppets. I struggled to set my sound levels right, for Good Egg. There was plenty of space for me to tap dance and set up my props, I couldnt get over how big the space was (after performing in probably the smallest fringe venue ever last year!) I wish I wasnt so reliant on so many props, I will keep it simple for future years. I used a sum up card reader. Standing near the top of the stairs worked to get a signal. I had a lot of fun and I would perform here again Thank you for having me PBH!
A Political Breakfast @ 09:30 Full run with Harun Mucho'd Overall success In main book/app In Wee Blue Book No flyering Room facing the wrong way. Much confusion as to why. Turn everything 180 No interaction with staff as venue only open for business @10:00! Hot! Well suited to panel show.. Central so better thank Clerk St but 0 atmosphere. Overall happy to return. A dehumidifier would help!
Movie Magic @ 19:30 Space: Burrito N Shake is a very nice fast food in the the start of Southbridge. Very nicely located next to the Royal Mile. The VC was a bit shit, but what can you do . My overall experience was very positive. Stuff were always friendly to me and ready to accommodate any need we might have, and approachable. The space was good size for about 50-60 people. I would definitely recommend it. PROS: In the city centre, excellent location. Friendly stuff in general. Good space. THINGS THAT WILL NEED IMPROVEMENT: Kitchen staff had trouble passing by, so sometimes they would pass in front of the show. Sometimes is was really noisy with the kitchen being next to the stage. Lighting was a bit difficult to work with. The downstairs room looks like a kitchen basement. Communication between performers regarding the setup of the room. HOW TO IMPROVE THINGS: The setup of the room should be completely different. If we could have some black curtains to isolate the space, that would be great. I have uploaded two pictures OLD PLAN and NEW PLAN that show how the space was setup this year and what would be the ideal setup next year.
Show report for #21 - Ancient Coins from Forgotten Kingdoms This was a family-friendly, non-wacky show about history and coins, some jokes but mostly straight up nonfiction. The venue was perfect and I got good crowds throughout, despite not having anyone else besides me to flyer and doing two shows. I did register for the official fringe so I was in that guide as well. Big thanks to Che Burnley for letting me use his video projector and screen! It was dark and very warm in the basement. I bought a fan for 25 pounds at PoundSaver down the street, and gave it to the venue at the end of the show. Hopefully it will still be there next year but if you don't see three or four, why don't you buy one too! You'll be very glad it's there. My one press review this year called it "the fringiest of fringe venues" lol The agreement was that we would keep a path open along the back for the staff to use, since their takeaway all comes through that room. The only time I saw a problem was when some of the performers moved chairs and benches into that back row path, presumably to fit in more people. If you do that, the staff WILL walk across your stage, they have no choice. And if you still think it's a good idea, then please FFS clear that path again after your show. It's the least you can do, otherwise, the next show will be disrupted through no fault of their own.
Show report for Awkward Question Time 6:15pm 5th-27th
Location is fantastic, close to The Tron, Blair Street, Royal Mile and Niddry St. high levels of foot traffic outside. Audience numbers were consistent and good for the whole run. Staff were helpful. The downstairs space is big and chaotic, a walkway was needed for the staff to walk through the show to and from the kitchen, and random people walked down the stairs for the toilet at regular intervals. Mine being a panel show we could make light of the random things happening, and it worked well in our favour, but I can imagine this could be problematic for other types of shows. I echo Magicalexis recommendations above on how to improve the room layout for next year.
Couple of pic I got pre show from the bottom of the stairs
hello Shakers! Is this group active for the new year, or has everyone moved on?
Still here.
Yep. I'm at Burrito n Shake with Chris O'Brien for A Political Breakfast (9.30am).
Having the stage face the toilets this year is better, but the small LED light attached to the ceiling is not enough to make anyone particularly visible.
Show Report: Serious Nonsense Time: 12:00 Genre: Family/Spoken Word Avg Audience 15, Smallest audeince 3 Largest Audience 40 Donation to Free Fringe 190+ Gift aid This show had a really succesful run at Burrito n Shake this year. Returning from previous year, but an hour later, this show was a collection of poems for all ages with a strong influence of Roald Dahl, Hilaire Belloc and Spike Milligan. This timeslot and location worked well for the family audience being close to the mile and lunch options as well. The playing space was along the bench side of the wall which is a strong improvement on last year. There was only one day where it waas even worth considering more seats. the space is wide as well with an aisle running at an angle between two banks of seats something like this. Seats Seats Seats / / Seats Seats STAIRS. This setup worked fairly well but people kept trying to cram additional chairs in and that restricted access and fire escapes. Having a clear place to expand/extend seating next year would make it a more efficient venue space. Lighting in the space is bad but the additional lighting panels and the spotlight made it much better. Adding the curtains at the back worked well - I was wondering whether some command hooks etc might be worth using next year to improve this even further? I think we could have been better about tidying as we went along. The space was getting pretty unclean by the end and just factoring in 5 mins of litter picking in between shows and not leaving flyers down there would have made a huge difference. Venue Staff were lovely and I left them a box of chocolates to share to say thank you.
Harun & I ran A political breakfast... with no available breakfast! Central.. room much better turned around.. good crowds who didnt complain about the venue heat. The gigs I chaired went well & were not impacted by any minor interruptions. Staff are lovely. Harun may have more to add This room works well for panel shows. Not ideal for some deeply personal story.
I had Tinder Tales at 20:45. The room was full several times. The romm was fine. The time slot was a little early but this was due to the theft of Legends! There is no passing festival traffic so all the audience came from WBB, PBH App & main App as I registered late. The room was grand & suited a lively show.