No Recession for Funny Business

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No Recession for Funny Business

A lot of companies may be feeling the credit crunch, but for Christchurch entertainment troupe The Court Jesters business is booming.

Due to record attendances at their late-night improvised comedy show SCARED SCRIPTLESS the Jesters have, for the first time in the show’s nineteen-year history, added a second weekly performance on Saturdays at 10pm.

“Ever since we changed the time to 10pm we found a huge surge in the numbers attending,” says Court Jesters Manager Kirsty Gillespie, “and now that it’s cheaper than the movies for most people (tickets are $12 for students and $15 for adults) Scriptless almost always sells out.”

Temporary measures such as using a second venue to house the increasingly popular show “proved that there was a much greater demand out there” and a more permanent solution began to be discussed. Following the highly successful season of THE EARLY EARLY LATE SHOW, the decision was made to expand Scriptless to two shows a week.

The upswing in business has not been limited to the Jesters’ weekly show. “We expected that with the dreaded ‘R word’ (recession) around, bookings for corporate entertainment might drop,” says Gillespie, “but the last few months have been some of the busiest we’ve had.” Similarly, three of the Jesters are taking their improvised show PULP WILLIAM to Auckland as part of the NZ International Comedy Festival, with the production earmarked to tour the country in 2009.

The Jesters are reportedly “buzzing” about the opportunities and eager to take to the stage, with the first “Saturday Scriptless” at 10pm on Saturday May 23.

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