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Brief Encounter With ... Producer-Writer & Actor Zach Lee

Zach Lee is the producer-writer and one of the main actors in Two Brothers and One World Cup, which is running at the Underbelly @ The Cowgate at the Fringe Festival. This is his first festival offering, and it combines true footballing passion, World Cup wonder along with the story of two brothers.

How did the idea come about?

On 6 March, I was playing football with my two year old daughter when the idea hit me like a ton of bricks; write a World Cup themed show. Within two hours the opening song to our production was in the bag and I was completely obsessed with the project.

My next thought was its structure. I’ve always been interested in getting an audience more involved, so this was my next choice; let the audience choose the sequence of events. This allows them and the actors to experience something unique and fun at each performance.

Why bring it to Edinburgh?

I’d been so excited about the idea during the first seven days, that I checked with trusted pals to gauge their response and make sure I wasn’t just dreaming about the project (I’m the first to admit, I can get carried away). Responses were 100% positive. So I thought, OK, let’s crack on, and why not make this the launch of a brand new company whose main ambition is to have a right good laugh; for us and for our audience.

So, at this point, Edinburgh soon sprang to my mind; why not tie in two of the biggest events on the planet? The Festival seems to be the perfect launch pad, and performing the show there just seemed to make perfect sense.

As a new producer, what have been the challenges?

I learned very quickly that the Fringe Festival can be a money sucking pit. Fortunately, I’m the son of a Scotsman and a frugal Northern mother, which gives me all the spendthrift attributes that I knew I would need. But how can you raise money as a first time producer? The answer seemed to be in the content of the piece and in my sheer enthusiasm to never be deterred by naysayers.

So with the money raised and from being a tight arse, the project was all looking good. One big problem, though, could I write a blinding script? Only time would tell on that one.

Two Brothers and One World Cup is running at Cowgate @ The Underbelly, 5-29 Aug at 13:40.

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