It’s time to go out, out!

Have we lost the impetus to go out, out?  With 24-hour entertainment delivered to us in our homes via mainstream broadcasters and streaming services, we don’t even have to put our clothes on to enjoy ‘live’ performance-based events. 

Additionally, with the rise in the cost of living, it’s no wonder that people are saving themselves and their pennies for the big-ticket shows – which is killing the regional circuits for theatre, comedy and music. This doesn’t bode well for those of us providing community-based entertainment which provides the essential building blocks for encouraging and developing new talent.

I want to produce more live shows but long gone are the balmy pre-Covid days when I could take risks. I’m still looking for the many shirts I’ve lost over the last three years…

That said, our nights in Brighton and Amsterdam are thriving largely because they are built around community. Funny Women Brighton Nights at Komedia is our longest-running pro night curated and produced by my colleague Kate Stone. It regularly sells out (always on the last Saturday of the month) and is a valuable showcase for Brighton residents to see a range of established and newer acts in a brilliantly run venue.

Our Funny Women Live in Amsterdam night at Volta is a blueprint for our brand of community entertainment and is run completely by volunteers with any income ploughed back into our creative development programme. Expertly managed by Roxy Jimenez, our Amsterdam chapter has gone down in Funny Women history for where Lara Ricote (pictured), who won the Funny Women Stage Award in 2021, first emerged.  She went on to win Best Newcomer at the Edinburgh Fringe last year.

Plus we are going truly Continental with the launch of our new Funny Women night at Cou Cou Comedy in Paris launching next week on Tuesday 21^st February, and watch this space for news about London and Dublin.

Our regional community programme provides those all-important live experiences for comedy lovers who either want to perform or watch. Live ‘grass roots’ comedy is essential for developing and encouraging new talent and we celebrate this with the annual Funny Women Awards, very much the ‘beating heart’ of everything I set out to create with Funny Women  – registration opens 1^st April for the 2023 Awards.

So, please make the effort and go out, out!  There’s nothing quite like the live experience and, chances are, you’ll be able to say that you saw your favourite band or comedian way before they were ever ‘on the telly’!  

All of our events are listed here and for more information about the Funny Women Awards check the link here.