Always on
This project successfully funded on 31st August 2025, you can still support them with a donation.
Help bring Time Bends to the Edinburgh Fringe!
Edinburgh, Reino Unido
Aim
Help us bring our debut queer love story to the Edinburgh Fringe!
WHO ARE YOU?
Hello! I am William Oliveira, a Portuguese and English Literature student at the University of Edinburgh, and the founder of Bleeding Cowboy Company.
We are an Edinburgh-based independent theatre company, making our Edinburgh Fringe debut! We're performing with theSpaceUK from the 11th to the 22nd August this year, and putting on my original production of Time Bends (which I'm also directing), a cross-generational story about two men who fall in love.
I'll leave our little synopsis here for you:
'More than twenty years ago, literature student David met an older man called Michael in the bar of an independent cinema. They spoke for an hour, developed a genuine connection, and never met again.
Twenty years later, sitting in the same cinema bar with his wife, David sees a man that looks very familiar. In that moment, David goes back to the afternoon he could never forget.'
OKAY...
Thanks.
WHY SHOULD WE TRUST YOU?
Great question. This is my first Fringe rodeo, but it isn't the first time I've put on a piece of theatre before. I've been acting since I was a little boy, and this is the third production that I've written and directed.
We've put on Time Bends before with the Bedlam Theatre Company, and got a very nice four-star review from The Student, Edinburgh University's newspaper. We just about know what we're doing.
More than anything, I'm most proud of the work we did with Edinburgh University's Pride Society – holding a joint jazz night, we managed to raise £660 towards Pride Society, promoting queer culture and community within Edinburgh.
From the beginning, we've set out to make a piece of art that can make us all feel a little bit less lonely, and to bring us all closer together.
This was such a fun night. I'd love to keep holding events just like this.
WHY DO YOU NEED OUR HELP?
Great question. As you're probably aware, the Edinburgh Fringe isn't for the faint of heart, or anywhere near affordable for independent artists.
Year after year, it gets more and more difficult to create original art for audiences, as even locals are priced out via absurd accommodation costs, pricy venue hire, necessary promotional and administrative costs that add up to a fortune. To give you an idea (and to be brutally transparent), we're covering the costs of:
- VENUE HIRE - £1675
- REGISTRATION FEE - £300
- MARKETING - £750
- ACCOMODATION (we're actually very lucky it's this low!) - £500
- LONDON REHEARSAL SPACE (also very lucky with this!) - £400
- STAGE MANAGEMENT AND COSTUME - £650
- TRANSPORT - £700
- MISCELLANEOUS (BORING) COSTS (E.G. INSURANCE, FOOD) - £500
This isn't even everything. I've left out a few things here to save me (and our team) some privacy.
Basically, we're unlikely to cover all of our costs via ticket sales whilst paying our artists and workers fairly for the production. Which isn't ideal. Right now, I'm paying for almost everything out of my own savings (and student overdraft...) and trying to hold on until September. This, unfortunately, isn't sustainable for me or the team.
To be honest, there's a big part of me that feels deeply guilty to ask for money.
The economy is stagnant, international companies are taking enormous risks to bring their shows to the Fringe, and it goes without saying that the shocking events in Gaza are far more important than our little play. Our problems are, whilst real, very much first-world Westernised problems. If it was a choice for you to donate between an international aid charity and us, I would implore you to donate for charity. But, if you have the means to be generous, we'd love your support.
Basically: please help us. But only if you can!
CAN WE LEND SUPPORT WITHOUT GIVING YOU MONEY?
Yes, please. Buy tickets for our show, and support us on social media! Tell your friends about Time Bends, invite your girlfriend or sister or mum etc. to the show along with you, and follow our Instagram! I'll leave a little link here with all of our stuff. Anything you can do or give, whether monetary or otherwise, honestly makes the world of difference.
https://linktr.ee/time.bends.fringe
Thanks for your patience, and for hearing out our story. We can't wait to get to Edinburgh, and hopefully see you there in the audience or out on the Royal Mile.
Hopefully, fingers crossed, we can tell a story that you won't forget.
Love, Will ❤️🙏
Funding method
Keep what you raise – this project will receive all pledges made