EFF 2019: final thoughts

The first thing I want to do is formally express surprise at the lack of a freak out throughout my stay in Edinburgh – and as I’ve struggled to catch up with everything since then. Hit with a non-compliant laptop the night before my trip, having to head up there on the overnight National Express, […]

EFF 2019: comedy picks

Last year I wanted to go to at least one stand-up comedy show each day I was at the Fringe; I ended up just going to one (though it was the brilliant Harry & Chris Save the World, so a top choice). I’ve managed to rectify that mistake this time round, seeing the prescribed one […]

Friendsical

It may have been 15 years since Monica, Chandler, Phoebe, Joey, Ross and Rachel last graced the screen together as TV’s Friends, but the hit US comedy has maintained its popularity – and continues to gain new fans, particularly since all 10 series of the show were added to Netflix last year. It couldn’t be a […]

Elton John: Rocket Man Live!

Earlier this year saw the long-anticipated release of the “musical fantasy” Rocketman, a biopic with a difference that stars Taron Egerton as Elton John – plus a couple of weeks ago the man himself marked 29 years of sobriety. His own farewell tour is still ongoing, however Liquid Lunch Productions have come up with the […]

Electrolyte

One of the breakout hits of last year’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Wildcard Theatre return in 2019 for a new run of their acclaimed show Electrolyte at Pleasance Forth. Written by James Meteyard, it features music and lyrics from Maimuna Memon. Electrolyte is a perfect example of the still emerging genre that is ‘gig theatre’; slightly […]

Birth

Three years ago I took a bit of a chance on Theatre Re’s Blind Man’s Song, then last year it was the turn of The Nature of Forgetting – so it was only natural that I headed to Pleasance Beyond to see their new show, Birth at this year’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Once again it has been […]

How to Mend the World (With a Student Play)

If you’re faced with the task of putting on a classic play, it’s understandable to think about what you could do differently – what your production’s USP is. Presenting it in a traditional way is all well and good, but shouldn’t you be saying something new and speaking to the here and now? Only if […]

Unfortunate: The Untold Story of Ursula the Sea Witch

Sixteen years ago, theatre fans were told the ‘real’ story of the Wicked Witch of the West when Stephen Schwartz’s musical Wicked flew onto the stage – and now, thanks to Fat Rascal Theatre, another famous villain has got her chance to reveal the truth behind her legend. In Disney’s The Little Mermaid, Ursula the Sea […]

Parakeet

“This is not about us”, says Brigitte Aphrodite as she introduces the audience to Parakeet – a new piece of gig theatre for which she has written the words, and Quiet Boy has provided the music. It’s running at Summerhall’s ROUNDABOUT performance space and (with the Extinction Rebellion banner still hanging proudly outside the main building) there’s […]

HoneyBee

With her list of ways that she tries to be “enough” (including being thrifty and more environmentally friendly), you might think Kate has got things sussed – but in actual fact she’s doing her best not to show the world that she’s struggling. Part spoken word, part physical theatre, and part group therapy session by […]