Before my penultimate show yesterday, something bizarre happened. I suddenly started to feel sick. While I’m used to feeling nervous before a gig, I have never felt like I am actually going to throw up as I’m about to perform. I also started feeling rather faint.
My mind quickly began running through potential scenarios. One was doing the show and being sick live on stage, then getting my tech to do the quiz while I and audience members who got caught in the splash go and get cleaned up, before making a triumphant return for the end of the show to much disgust. The other was cancelling the show, just as the audience were arriving at the venue.
I had to make a decision. I decided to carry on with prepping the room for the show. However, the room was uncomfortably hot, which is never a good thing if you’re feeling nauseous. I know that all too well from sweaty lecture rooms at uni. I got doors open and the big industrial fan switched on to extract some of the hot air.
Once the room was prepped, I realised I needed a sugary fizzy drink – and a second pre-show trip to the toilet. I did not end up being sick but had another pre-show poo and that seemed to improve the situation a bit. I still wasn’t feeling right. I then got a pint of lemonade and walked up the flight of stairs to where my show is on.
As I was four minutes late for the start of my show, I found my tech and front-of-house staff looking around concerned, thinking that I was locked in the storage cupboard next to the room where my show is. I said I wasn’t feeling right, but let’s crack on with the show. On we cracked and my throat was feeling really weak as I started talking in the mic, similarly to how it has been in some gigs this year. After a few good-sized laughs and sips of lemonade, I settled into the rhythm nicely and it turned out to be one of the best shows of the run. Not a Flaturday, or even a Shaturday, thankfully. I even tried a new joke, which didn’t quite work but still managed to get a big laugh for it going wrong.
I don’t know what exactly was wrong with me. It is possibly due to my stomach still not feeling totally right after a heavy dose of vitamin C the other night to exorcise whatever this cold thing is that has been threatening to develop into something worse this week. My stomach is a bit of a drama queen and holds grudges, as well as other things. All was fine for the thow though, thankfully.
I started to feel faint again after my show, but the old Fringe staple meal of a pizza seemed to sort me out. Whatever this lurgy thing I have is also possibly a contributing factor and I coughed up some yellow catarrh afterwards.
I have one show left of my Edinburgh Fringe 2024. I am currently on 94.6% in ticket sales. If I sell just five more tickets, I will have achieved official sold-out status again for the first time since 2018 and those laurels will be mine once more. I was going to do a bit of flyering before my show to help bump up the numbers. But at the moment, my main priority is to conserve my energy to get through today’s show. That matters more than some official JPEGs. Once my final show finishes, I won’t mind so much if I get ill.