British Comedy Guide

2014 Edinburgh Fringe

Lewis Schaffer: Success Is Not An Option

  • Comedy (stand-up)
  • 7:45pm (50 mins)
  • 31 Jul; 1-11, 13-18 & 20-24 Aug 2014
  • Heroes @ The Hive
  • Free (pay what you want) / £5
Lewis Schaffer: Success Is Not An Option. Lewis Schaffer
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Venue

313: Heroes @ The Hive

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Monkey Barrel Comedy

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Be prepared. Lewis Schaffer isn't. An hour of your life you'll never get back. A lifetime of his completely wasted. Star of Resonance FM's Nunhead American Radio. 'Disconcertingly terrific. Compelling, unique and most of all unpredictable' (Bruce Dessau, BeyondtheJoke.co.uk). 'An hilarious, cathartic, exhilaratingly appalling experience' **** (Kate Copstick, Scotsman). 'The logical conclusion of all stand-up comedy' (Daniel Kitson). 'A skilled, masterful and above-all, eye-wateringly funny guy. If you consciously choose not to see him, don't bother coming to the Fringe' **** (Chortle.co.uk). 'Unlike anything else on the comedy circuit.' (Time Out). www.pay-what-you-want.info

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Featuring

Reviews

Press articles

Top 22 free shows in Edinburgh

The free part of the Edinburgh Fringe just gets stronger and stronger, and here are London is Funny's top recommendations...

London Is Funny, 1st August 2014

Paul Merton on why he never goes to see other shows (Link expired)

Kate Copstick's diary.

Nick Mitchell, WOW247, 28th July 2014

The Lewis Schaffer three minute interview

Lewis Schaffer was one of the top comics in New York City, as house MC at the Comedy Cellar and the Boston Comedy Club in Greenwich Village. According to his website, it all came crashing down on him when he moved to the UK. So this Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Schaffer is making the worst of a bad situation.

Martin Walker, Broadway Baby, 1st July 2014

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My Edinburgh Festival Fringe show for 2014 is called Success Is Not An Option. My show will not be a success because:

1. I'm using the same business model as last year, which didn't work. Under the Heroes of the Fringe "Pay What You Want" model, punters can pay £5 for tickets in advance or come in free at the door which makes absolutely no sense. As of today, I have sold nine tickets. Nine.

2. Most reviewers don't like to go to free shows because they cannot be guaranteed a seat, and that can mess up their viewing schedule. And they don't get something that regular people are paying for for nothing, which is the whole point of being a reviewer.
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3. This is my seventh consecutive year at the Fringe and I have gained zero traction. 22 years in comedy and I am still doing these poncy shows in dingy subterranean bars.

4. There is always some American comic nobody has ever heard of riding into town, selling out every night and then leaving the country once the festival is over. Leaving is always sexy. My ex used to tell me "You used to chase me!" and I'd say, "You used to run?.?" I've stopped running. I'm not leaving the UK. I am stuck here with a knackered act, two kids, and nobody chasing me.

5. You could have seen me in London where I do a weekly show at the Leicester Square Theatre and two free shows a week at ?The Rancho Grill at any point over the past five years, but you haven't, and I know you haven't, so you're not going to make me a success in Edinburgh either.

6. If my show is a success, I will have been a failure in predicting its failure. If my show is a failure, I will have just been a failure. So no matter what happens, I'll have been a failure.

7. I have waited until three weeks before the festival to send out a press release, and have no promotional budget to pay a PR to tell me that this level of self-flagellation in a press release is a terrible idea.

Performances

Date Time Venue
31st Jul 2014 19:45 Heroes @ The Hive
1st Aug 2014 19:45 Heroes @ The Hive
2nd Aug 2014 19:45 Heroes @ The Hive
3rd Aug 2014 19:45 Heroes @ The Hive
4th Aug 2014 19:45 Heroes @ The Hive
5th Aug 2014 19:45 Heroes @ The Hive
6th Aug 2014 19:45 Heroes @ The Hive
7th Aug 2014 19:45 Heroes @ The Hive
8th Aug 2014 19:45 Heroes @ The Hive
9th Aug 2014 19:45 Heroes @ The Hive
10th Aug 2014 19:45 Heroes @ The Hive
11th Aug 2014 19:45 Heroes @ The Hive
13th Aug 2014 19:45 Heroes @ The Hive
14th Aug 2014 19:45 Heroes @ The Hive
15th Aug 2014 19:45 Heroes @ The Hive
16th Aug 2014 19:45 Heroes @ The Hive
17th Aug 2014 19:45 Heroes @ The Hive
18th Aug 2014 19:45 Heroes @ The Hive
20th Aug 2014 19:45 Heroes @ The Hive
21st Aug 2014 19:45 Heroes @ The Hive
22nd Aug 2014 19:45 Heroes @ The Hive
23rd Aug 2014 19:45 Heroes @ The Hive
24th Aug 2014 19:45 Heroes @ The Hive

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