Whilst most people associate the Edinburgh Fringe with comedy, they also have a huge selection of theatre to choose from as well, we have a selection of theatre shows to add to your list, part one of three. Part Two here.
Skedaddle Theatre Company
A Brief Case of Crazy
Venue: theSpace @ Symposium Hall., Annexe
Dates: 12 – 24 Aug (not 18)
Time: 21:15 (22:05)
Tickets: https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/brief-case-of-crazy
Following the story of an awkward introvert, A Brief Case of Crazy is a physical theatre play that explores the wonder of unconventional people and the joy they can bring to the world. Set in an office space, the audience witness the remarkable, embarrassing daily life of introvert Thomas who gets dragged out of his comfort zone and closer to his shy office crush Daisy by a magical briefcase. Told through elements of puppetry, dance, object manipulation, mime, and distinct characterisation, Skedaddle Theatre draw inspiration from iconic physical comedy characters such as Mr Bean and Charlie Chaplin to create a trio of ludicrous characters in their own distinct style. With the combination of slick choreography, imaginative physical comedy, and fumbling characters, this show aims to tell a heart-warming story about the ‘little guy’. A must see at this years fringe.
Xhloe and Natasha:
A Letter To Lyndon B. Johnson or God: Whoever Reads This First
Venue: theSpace @ Niddry St (Upper)
Dates: 2 – 24 Aug (not 11)
Time: 2- 10 Aug 20:25 (21:15), 12 – 18 Aug 20:50 (21:40), 19 – 24 Aug 20:30 (21:20)
Tickets: https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/letter-to-lyndon-b-johnson-or-god-whoever-reads-this-first
Drawing on their own upbringings in military families and being taught that the USA was the greatest country in the world, double Fringe First Award winner Xhloe and Natasha’s new show delves into the idealised American childhood and the boys it left behind. In an absurdist two-hander influenced by the 1960s and the Vietnam War, two boy scouts directly address the audience, telling stories, playing soldiers and declaring their admiration for current president Lyndon B. Johnson, a hero in their eyes. With the Scouts traditionally known as a way of preparing boys for military service, and Lyndon B. Johnson notorious for putting young men, barely 18, on the firing line, Xhloe and Natasha explore children’s innocence and relationship with war using their signature style of clowning, physicality and fast pace Fitting with Xhloe and Natasha’s company ethos centred around queerness and gender identity, the show reflects on the androgyny of gender traits that society allows boys to have in comparison to when they become men.
Wild Geese Productions
Dear Annie, I Hate You
Venue: ZOO Playground, Playground 2
Dates: 2 – 25 Aug 2024 (not 12)
Time: 16:50 (17:50)
Tickets: https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/dear-annie-i-hate-you
Based on writer-performer Sam Ipema’s lived-experience of finding she had a brain aneurysm at the age of 20, and ditching her scheduled life-saving surgery until after her All-American Spring Break, Dear Annie, I Hate You is a duologue between Sam and her aneurysm. Visualising her rare brain aneurysm as an unexpected ‘other’ from the subconscious voice inside her head, Sam Ipema’s dark comedy explores the struggles of processing such a diagnosis at an early age, when most people are still figuring out who they are and what they want to do with their lives. She meditates on the events that brought her to the present after deciding that the best thing to do before getting the surgery was to go out with a bang at Spring Break, but intrusive ‘Annie’ had other plans. This is a true story, not necessarily a smart one.
Ellie Brelis
Driver’s Seat: Obsessive Compulsive Disaster
Venue: theSpace @ Surgeon’s Hall, Theatre 3
Dates: 2 – 24 Aug (not 7, 11, 12, 14, 21)
Time: 15:10 (15:55)
Tickets: https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/driver-s-seat-obsessive-compulsive-disaster
Based on writer and performer Ellie Brelis’ lived experience of having obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), the events leading up to her admitting herself into a psychiatric hospital, and the months of intensive care that followed, Driver’s Seat: Obsessive Compulsive Disaster is a moving and meaningful dark comedy solo show. The show finds humour in moments of pain, bravely filling a gap with a truthful representation of mental illness and humanising the journey through medical treatment. The show details Ellie’s experiences of 2020: a traumatic breakup, loss of a loved one, a major breakdown and exploring her sexual identity all whilst living with OCD. Brelis uses her enigmatic delivery and dark comedy to make a uniquely traumatic experience universal, connecting with audiences about the raw truth of the lifelong battle of mental illness
Talkers & Doers
Gogo Boots Go
Venue: Zoo Playground, Playground 3
Dates: 2 – 25 Aug 2024 (not 12 & 19)
Time: 14:40 (15:40)
Tickets: https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/gogo-boots-go
Interrogating the incomprehensible connections shared between women and the way people construct sexuality through first experiences, Gogo Boots Go is a new show exploring the shame people carry through childhood, queerness, womanhood and religion. With fast-paced dialogue and poignant humour, its inspired by co-writers and performers Rosalie Roger-Lacan and Amber Charlie Conroy’s experiences of growing up in Catholic cultures and the intense bond in friendship they share with each other. Gogo Boots Go follows two women who meet in Charlie’s bridal shop and instantly build a rapport as they search for Clelia’s perfect wedding dress, spilling secrets, laughter and desires with a familiarity that defies logic. Over time however, it becomes clear that the connection they share runs more than skin deep, resulting in the realisation that they have crossed paths before. Written as the play the creators wish they had seen during adolescence, the comedy two-hander reflects on those first experiences of sex, love and lust and how these can construct perceptions of sexuality growing up.
Recent Cut Backs
Hold on to Your Butts
Venue: Pleasance Courtyard, Forth
Dates: 31 July – 26 Aug 2024 (not 12 & 19)
Time: 14.00 (15:00)
Tickets: https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/hold-on-to-your-butts
With the ethos of taking parody seriously, Recent Cutbacks’ Hold on to Your Butts is a theatrical recreation of the epic action film from Steven Spielberg. With the use of only two actors, Natalie Rich and Matt Zambrano, and a Foley artist who creates the sound effects live on stage, they recreate each scene and perform every character (including the dinosaurs) between just the three of them. Through comedy, physical theatre and inventive use of simple props – from cardboard cut-outs, traffic cones and muffin tins – they aim to present the game-changing CGI of the iconic film live and in low-fi.
Florencia Iriondo
Meet Me in Buenos Aires
Venue: Underbelly Bristro Square, Daisy
Dates: 31 July – 11 Aug 2024
Time: 19.15 (20.15)
Tickets: https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/meet-me-in-buenos-aires
A musical storytelling journey that spans four continents kickstarted by receiving a box of cassette tapes of songs she recorded as a teenager, Florencia Iriondo’s one woman show looks at how love morphs through family, place and time and explores how to be a modern woman in a relationship without letting it define her. Based on her experiences from her birthplace in Buenos Aires Argentina as well as her time in New Zealand, Dublin and New York, the show blends original songs with Tango, Irish folk and a song played entirely with toy instruments, with anecdotes and stories of life changing moments.
TS Crew:
No Dragon No Lion
Venue: C ARTS, C venues, C aurora, Main House
Dates: 31 July -25 Aug (not 5,6,13,19,20)
Time: 13:50 (14.40)
Tickets: https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/no-dragon-no-lion
Re-creating the classical New Year Lion Dance and Chinese Opera as contemporary performance, live beatboxing and film music replace traditional Asian percussive music in an intensely physical performance that fuses Kung-Fu, dance-circus, martial arts, parkour and puppetry. With a cast of eight physical performers and two beatboxers, No Dragon No Lion is a 50-minute spectacle that breathes fresh life and gives a cheeky nod to tradition whilst poking fun at stereotypes, and uses no props except stools and a large woven lion’s head mask. The show returns to the fringe festival following its appearance in 2023 (C venues) and its Asian Arts Award-winning run in 2022 (Dance Base), and was granted the honour of being the opening act at New York Times Square New Year’s Eve 2023.
Purple Tape Productions
Party Girl
Venue: Summerhall, Cairns Lecture Theatre
Dates: 1– 26 Aug 2024 (not 12 & 19)
Time: 21.20 (22:20)
Tickets: https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/party-girl
Exploring the impact of mental illness on family and challenging traditional feminine behaviour, children’s entertainer Fairy Sprinkles is trying to keep it together at a party whilst the rest of her life is spinning out of control. A stand-up comedy gig paired with a live music concert, Party Girl is a rollercoaster of outrageous storytelling vignettes interspersed with original rock songs which tackle themes of class politics, alcoholism and childhood innocence. Singing through the juxtaposition of her glittery day job and the painful reality of her life, where caring for a bipolar mum is beginning to drain her sense of identity, Fairy Sprinkles welcomes everyone to the party with a cracked smile as she gifts audiences their very own pointed party hats.
Dutch Kills Theater Company presents Wolf 359’s
Temping
Venue: Assembly George Square Studios – The Cubicle at Buccleuch Place
Dates: 3 – 25 Aug 2024
Time: Every 90 mins from 10.00 until 20.30 (50 mins – 70 mins)
Tickets: https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/temping
Contrasting the anonymity of recording births and deaths in Excel spreadsheet with furtive moments of human intimacy, interactive show from Dutch Kills Theater and Wolf 359 examines mortality, capitalism and the value of a human life. Sarah Jane Tully, a 53-year-old actuary, has gone on vacation and the audience member steps in to cover for her. As they update her spreadsheets, they realise her job involves calculating the life expectancy of strangers. Meanwhile, an intra-office romance is spilling out of the printer, the phone bleeps with recorded messages, emails land in the inbox, and all the inner life of Sarah is there for anyone who has access to her cubicle and computer. Temping is a show with no performers, just an audience and the ether.
John Rayment
Timeless
Venue: theSpace @ Surgeon’s Hall, Haldane Theatre
Dates: 12 – 24 Aug (not 18)
Time: 10:50/18:30 (11:40/19:20)
Tickets: https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/timeless
Based on research by Scottish writer Brian Coyle into a rare form of amnesia which removes the ability to form new memories, Timeless is a moving and humorous look at how memory loss affects the whole family. After developing anterograde amnesia following root canal surgery in 2008, Martin finds himself waking up every morning still believing it’s that same day over a decade ago and rendered unable to retain new information. As he struggles to adjust to his reliance on his wife Tracy, and only being able to remember his daughter as a child, the man still full of The Knowledge* from years as a London cabbie is forced to contemplate how our memories define and shape us.
Comments are closed.