We’d like to explain why we’re keeping the registration fee for the Funny Women Awards. In past years there has been some industry comment about our decision but we would like to emphasise that we don’t charge people to perform and we have no intention of exploiting anybody- this is the antithesis of what we strive to achieve. We use the administration fee to allow us to book quality venues and provide a support structure with constructive feedback for participants, which helps us to achieve our objective of helping women find and develop their voice.
When we introduced the fee in 2011, we were not aware of the ‘pay to play’ controversy that swept New York and caused such consternation in the live comedy scene. We were following in the footsteps of other arts based competitions which charge a nominal registration fee to cover some of their administration costs and enlist the commitment of the entrants.
Funny Women was set up in 2002 to create a safe a supportive space for any woman who wants to try and express themselves through comedy in what is still a male-dominated industry. Quite a few women choose the Funny Women Awards as their very first gig, and we are proud to offer a friendly and supportive environment for them to perform. We have never had a complaint from any entrant in the Awards about having to pay the small fee, and have many testimonials from entrants about how they feel their talent has been nurtured by Funny Women, as well as the opportunities and introductions they have benefitted from by entering the Awards.
The £15 we charge acts to register for the Funny Women Awards gives us a very small fund which is ploughed back into the organisation of the competition: paying comperes and venue hire fees, promoting the shows, producing print, regularly updating the website and crucially, being in constant contact with any entrant who wants assistance or advice. After VAT is taken out and we’ve donated £1 to our beneficiary charity (which is Refuge in 2013), there isn’t very much left over. Plus, if you book an introductory workshop after you've registered, you get the full £15 off of your booking fee.
Whilst the Funny Women Awards is a crucial part of what we do, we have developed other parts of the business to include creating an online comedy community, and actively promote www.funnywomen.com as a platform for aspiring female comedy writers to showcase their work with feedback and assistance on an on-going basis. We review and recommend as many female comedy shows as is possible, and support as many women’s groups, festivals and initiatives as much as we possibly can with our resources.
Funny Women promotes both brand new and established female comics through our regular London and Brighton Nights, has trained hundreds of women through our ‘Stand Up to Stand Out’ workshops, and supports charitable causes through our ‘Comedy Challenges’ – in 2012, our 10th Anniversary year, we raised over £40,000 for women’s charities.
We are proud of all we have achieved and have big, BIG plans for 2013 to get as many talented women involved in our activities as possible. There are so many women who are still too nervous to give comedy a go – and we want to make sure that we can help them find their voice through humour. The registration fee helps us to do just that.
Pictured: Busby Berkeley gave a whole new meaning to women supporting each other!
