'Ed had to leave the stage several times to be sick...' | Crybabies recall their most memorable gigs

'Ed had to leave the stage several times to be sick...'

Crybabies recall their most memorable gigs

Crybabies – aka Ed Jones, James Gault and Michael Clarke – recall their most memorable gigs as they prepare to bring their spoof wartime adventure, Danger Brigade, to London’s Soho Theatre next month.

Worst gig

Before we were Crybabies, the three of us were in a show about goblins who made dreams. The show was already suffering from a cocktail of unrequited love between cast members and a thoroughly flawed concept.

But things came to a head when Ed became violently ill through substance abuse (three bottles of Leffe) and was forced to leave the stage multiple times to be sick into a poly pocket - the document case, not the children’s toy.

Worst heckler

We did a preview in Brighton to seven people. During the show, two of them started talking, at full volume, about the plot of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. It was almost like they felt we, the performers, should know what happens in the film in order for the show to continue.

They weren’t getting it right either. James has read the book twice and there were some serious gaps in their knowledge. It was also the middle of the day. On a Monday. Never again.

Gig that taught me the biggest lesson

Our final Edinburgh preview fell on the hottest day of the year. It was also in the basement of a pub, next to a working kitchen. And despite it being 70F, people were ordering platters to share.

In the waiter’s brief time on stage, he got more laughs than we did throughout the entire hour. Luckily, our friend manages the pub so we had him fired, evicted and shot. The lesson? Don’t mess with Crybabies.

Worst journey to a gig

We did a preview earlier this year in a dark corner of Hertfordshire. It was one of those pockets of the UK where 4G doesn’t work, traffic laws don’t apply and every corner feels like someone is waiting with a shotgun.

The radio was broken and the only track on Mikey’s iPod was the theme from The Shining. All stress and no laughs make Crybabies want to give up.

Best gig as a punter

As cheesy as it sounds, Bo Burnham’s What was a bit of a gamechanger. We were in the middle of that god awful goblin dream show and seeing him in the Pleasance Grand provided a glimmer of hope. Didn’t do anything to ease the heartbreak though.

Crybabies: Danger Brigade are on at the Soho Theatre London at 7.15pm from January 6 to 11.

Published: 23 Dec 2019

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