It’s hard work out there flyering during the comedy festival. I know, I’ve spent my fair share of time doing it aswell. And there are a lot of comics out there doing it hard.
Last night, as I stood eating my dinner (pizza) outside the Melbourne Town Hall, I noticed someone who was obviously from a show, standing nearby. I politely asked him what show he was in and he launched into a whole spiel about his show. I said “Yeah, I wasn’t really interested in hearing the entire spiel thanks” to which he responded:
“yeah well I wasn’t going to give you a flyer anyway cos you’ve got fuck off written all over you”.
Most of the folks out there flyering, especially the comedians promoting themselves, do their job with great professionalism, courtesy and charm. However people who abuse punters in the street with little or no provocation, are not only doing themselves a harm, they give flyerers a bad name, making punters want to avoid them. Also they give the comedy festival and comedy in general a rotten image. The Melbourne International Comedy Festival is a fabulous showcase for comedy in this city. Let’s try not not to sully it.