A Lol -along – a Luc Valvona, Laughing Horse @ The Counting House, 1 to 25 August 12:45am, Free
Luc Valvona spoke about his upcoming show:
“I tend to carry my ukulele with me most of the time, and I happened to have it with me when I went to see a late night free show last year at the “Free Sisters”. Unbeknownst to me and the rest of the forty strong audience, it was the night off for that particular show and, twenty minutes in, nothing having happened and the whole audience still sat waiting, I thought “shame to waste such a lovely audience” So I approached the stage with my ukulele…
“In the middle of the stage was a typical stand-up set-up; one microphone on a stand, and to my surprise, it was switched on and ready to go! I had to play with my uke under my chin to play through the mic, but all the material was there as I’ve been singing funny songs for years. I entertained the crowd for forty minutes and then grabbed a pint glass from behind the bar and held it out as everyone left, as you do with free shows. I counted it up afterwards and I had made about fifty pounds. That made me think “I’m going to do this properly next year – with flyers and everything!” And here I am.
“So what’s different this year apart from advertising it as my own show? Well, I have more instruments with me this time, to add variety to the set, which I’ve also had time to plan this year. A full hour of my favourite songs with little jokes and stories in between. My songs cover a wide variety of subjects such as; what would happen if the rich gave all their money to the poor, why older women make better lovers, and horticulture.
“With my many years of experience composing, I like to think that the songs I play will be pleasing from a musical, as well as a comical point of view. In my set I do include a story about a comedian who told me why he hates musical comedians. I’m confident that this is a show that would please him. I’m not quite a traditional musical comedian, perhaps more of a musician who plays comedy.
“I have also just finished writing a full length stage musical, which may find its way to the fringe in a year or two. At least one of the songs from that show will be included in my show this year.
“When I’m not at the Edinburgh fringe, my day job is a fairly unusual one – sand sculpture. While I do get booked for many corporate gigs and music festivals, most of my work is done in London on the south bank of the Thames by Gabriel’s Wharf. The beach there is seen by thousands of tourists every day, and I like to build myself a sand sofa to sit on and then play my songs to the public for their loose change. As an advertising platform it’s amazing as it’s seen by so many people, so hopefully a few of them will come and see my show!
“I’m still trying to work out if there is a way of using sand sculpture to promote my show while in Edinburgh, without adding the cost of several tons of sand to my already stretched budget. If I discover any sand left out for roadworks or building, I may have to take advantage of that.
“During the Fringe I will be out and about promoting my show on a daily basis, and you may even find me playing an impromptu show with my ukulele wherever I can find an audience.”
