The Edinburgh fringe is in full swing and I’m looking for my posters. Which, given the function of a poster, doesn’t bode well for the marketing of my new standup hour. The festival has almost 4,000 shows, all jostling for attention, so bringing promotional material to the city this month can feel like chucking wads of cash into the sea.
This year, my show is called My Apologies to the Chef, so I’ve gone with a photo in which I’m doing a kooky grin as my head is served on a silver platter under a cloche. Hilarious stuff, yes, but I feel apprehensive about the theme – largely because my show includes no mention of chefs or catering. Registration for the fringe typically happens around March, when a show might have included a large section about restaurants, for example, which has since been removed. It’s how you end up with an aesthetic that is far more culinary than is ideal.
The other issue is that grin. Goofy faces on standup comedy posters are passe, I’m told. It’s all about moody lighting and nonchalant poses these days. One of the poster designers behind this cool trend is Jonny Woolley.
“I have always had a pet peeve for comedians doing funny faces on their posters,” he says. “It’s always been such a turn-off for me.”
Oh, no.
“When I started making posters nearly a decade ago, no comedy posters looked cool,” says Woolley. “And I was really influenced by album art and movie posters. I hate when comedy posters are just goofy. There are so many posters of comedians sitting on the toilet. I’m interested in trying to make art for the posters that feels like it could be a more longstanding representation of that show.”
Woolley, who is also a co-founder of the clown ensemble Stamptown, is interested in lending a “legitimacy” to the art of comedy through his designs. In parliament this month, a select committee of MPs called upon the government to recognise live comedy as an art form. As comedy is becoming more businesslike, apparently so is its marketing.
One of Woolley’s clients this year is the musical comedian Jordan Gray, who Jonny tells me is “very hands on” in the design of her posters. Gray wanted her photo (shot by Dylan Woodley) to match her on stage persona – an image of unbridled rock star ego.
“I like having a stupid title and a picture that makes you think that I’m very, very serious about this,” Gray says. “That lack of self-awareness is quite funny.”
Michael Julings, another prolific fringe poster designer, says simplicity is key to standing out at the fringe. So many posters are cluttered with stars, quotes, QR codes and subtitles. While you might think these accolades would sell tickets, it really creates a kind of “patchwork effect” when the posters are presented together, he says.
Every year, the effort to stand out results in small, random coincidences. This year, stand-ups Alex Kitson, Daniel McKeon and Aaron Wood all use Post-it notes as a visual motif in their publicity photos. Two years ago, Julings recalls, six different acts’ posters included dogs for some reason.
“The busier it is, the more it fades,” says Julings. “A good example of this is the most ubiquitous design of last summer, which is the green Charli xcx Brat album cover. I remember seeing all the Mercury nominees in a grid, with all this beautiful artwork that’s been made independent of each other. But the only one that stands out is the block of green.”
It’s hard to equate selling 50 tickets to a fringe show with a multimillion-pound marketing campaign, but the Brat influence can be seen on the streets of Edinburgh this year. An obvious example is Ivo Graham’s direct parody, which says “Ivo” in the same typography with an orange background. Meanwhile, Vittorio Angelone has used text-only billboards to coax passersby with the slogan: “Vittorio Angelone has always denied any involvement in the Edinburgh fringe.”
Fashionable music marketing appears to be a growing influence on the fringe and the comedy industry in general. This is reflected in the rise of comedy nights such as Adam Flood’s Late Night Comedy Rave; Ivo Graham’s DJ sets featuring comedian guests; and Jack Shep’s London comedy night, Wanting to Be Cool, Having to Be Funny. (I am devastated to report that I have not performed at any of these.)
But unlike musicians, comedians don’t seem to mind hiring the same designers and photographers as each other. “Which is good for me,” says Julings. “Unfortunately, I think it’s because of the financial margins and the money that’s being spent at the fringe and the gamble that’s being made.” Performers spend hundreds or thousands of pounds hiring photographers, designers and booking advertising space with Out of Hand, the festival’s main outdoor advertising provider. “Everybody’s looking at each other saying, I don’t want to be the one to do something wrong.”
I can relate to this. I ask Jonny what he thinks of my poster this year, which was photographed by Rebecca Need-Menear and designed by my sister, Robyn Packham, who gave me a 15% discount.
“I think it came out great!” he says.
Phew. Maybe I am cool after all.
• Alfie Packham: My Apologies to the Chef is at Underbelly, Bristo Square, Edinburgh, until 24 August
• All our Edinburgh festival reviews
