It’s half-term…normally I’d just work through it, or at least keep myself busy especially as it’s the February half-term and the year has only just got going. This time around, though, I’m going to treat myself to a couple of days off, simply because last week felt pretty ridiculous. Maybe launching two brand new solo plays in the same week was a bit much. The first one, the new Harvey Greenfield show, certainly stumbled a bit in its first ever public performance (fortunately in front of a small audience of friends) in London, but it settled by the second night. In February, any new show is very much a work in progress but there’s enough there to suggest it'll be a winner once it’s all honed in. A few days later, I launched another new show, this time in Leicester at a festival there. Big audience, I changed tact halfway through realising the vibe of the room wasn’t quite a good good fit…they clearly needed something louder, so that’s what I was happy to give them. Proper seat of the pants stuff, having to effectively rewrite a new show on the spot, but i’ve been around long enough now to get away with it.
In between those shows, I also performed the original Harvey show (also in Leicester) and had a lovely time…there’s definitely a point where you think…why write a new show when the old one still works so well? But that would be too easy. That was performance 81 of that piece, I think. I also spent a glorious day filming with the brilliant Neil Oseman, reprising Harvey G for the camera.
I also rehearsed (as a drummer) with Josie, Dylan and Gaf for a new little side project, great fun but one which may stay very much on the side considering how much Fred’s House have in the diary for me.
And of course, all the teaching. So much teaching, 7 days a week. We have a new student showcase gig booked in for 30th April at the wonderful Portland Arms in Cambridge which is exciting.
Everything is exciting, isn’t it? All of it. Too much of it?
Nah, but I did welcome half-term with open arms, a can of beer and then the fear of having to do some basic DIY around the house…