Category Archives: EdFestivals 2024

‘ARCADE’ (Venue 26, until AUG 26th)

Posted in 4*, EdFestivals 2024, Rated: Nae Bad by

“Thanks to smart sets, soundscapes and sensory effects, it all feels unsettlingly real.”

Editorial Rating: 4 Stars (Nae Bad)

I was a kid in the 80s and have fond memories of the video games of that era. They might look terribly basic to today’s youth, but at the time they were new and exciting. We played Pac-Man, Frogger, Space Invaders, Donkey Kong and the like over and over, bashing away at the simple controls as we climbed levels and knocked one another off the leaderboards.

So, I was intrigued by the prospect of Darkfield’s Arcade at the Edinburgh Fringe this year. Billed as drawing on the 8-bit aesthetic of the 80s, it offers the chance to “enter the world of the game and choose your own unique journey.” My expectations were quite high. I’ve been to two previous Darkfield productions – Séance and Flight – and enjoyed both. This team specialises in innovative 360 degree audio experiences. Shipping containers are transformed into highly immersive theatre spaces where you find yourself a participant in a Victorian séance, or strapped into a cramped airplane seat as a passenger on an unconventional journey. Thanks to smart sets, soundscapes and sensory effects, it all feels unsettlingly real.

Arcade sticks to the formula with its shipping container venue, but this is a much less passive experience. With Séance and Flight you take a seat, and take it all in. Here, you’re literally at the controls. Each audience member (player) takes their place at a different arcade machine. You’re given headphones and instructions to press a button to respond to yes or no questions and pointed towards the coin slot where you can use tokens, when prompted, if you choose. The room is then plunged into total darkness, and the game begins.

I won’t comment too much on the actual content. Spoilers could influence your decision-making, and indeed by all accounts the story varies significantly based on the choices you make – choices that have immediate consequences. For me, suffice to say I witnessed an unpleasant murder, played guitar in a band and may have inadvertently joined a cult.

The narrative does feel a bit disjointed at times. It isn’t always entirely clear who’s doing what, and why. But – much like the video games of my youth – the ‘why’ doesn’t always really matter. Arcade is totally immersive – characters seem to approach from all directions, barking instructions in your face, or whispering questions in your ear. It’s creepy and disorienting, standing there in the dark trying to decide which voice to trust.

Arcade is not the nostalgia trip you might expect. It’s pitch dark in every sense and there’s little real connection to the retro, 8-bit world of the 80s. But it’s also thought-provoking, creepy fun. If you’ve never been to a Darkfield production before I suspect you won’t have experienced anything quite like it. If you have, you’ll have an idea of what to expect, but that won’t help you pick the right path.

Get your jean jacket coats on and try it for yourself!

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‘OH OH’ (Venue 300, until AUG 25th)

Posted in 5*, EdFestivals 2024, Rated: Outstanding by

“What this duo deliver is a compelling blend of slapstick humour and impressive, effortlessly-executed acrobatics as the duo play games, skip rope and dance.”

Editorial Rating: 5 Stars (Outstanding)

Edinburgh’s Festival Fringe is not a quiet place. It’s loud, brash and in your face. Circus shows, in particular, often arrive in town in an explosion of sequins, feathers and graphic content warnings. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining. I love the pizzazz of it all. And I like to be a little shocked on occasion, it keeps me on my toes.

Compagnia Baccalà’s OH OH takes a different tack. This show is billed as a ‘joyful combination of acrobatics and slapstick’ that harks back to the silent movie era. There are no content warnings here.

I was pleased to spot it in the listings. Some years ago, I saw Baccalà’s Chaplinesque PSS PSS in a small-ish venue at the Fringe. It was an absolute delight of a show and one I often think of when asked about my Fringe favourites over the years.

I was far from alone in loving PSS PSS, so it came as no surprise that they’re now in a bigger venue than when I last saw them – the iconic Udderbelly in George Square Gardens (for the uninitiated; a giant purple tent in the shape of an upside-down cow.) OH OH begins with a spotlight on a sleeping clown, Simone Fassari, the stage otherwise dark and empty. A rope ladder appears from above, and his companion, Camille Pessi, descends to wake him.

These are not modern, red-nosed clown stereotypes. Simone is in relatively subdued attire of shirt, trousers, braces – a shabby chic, Buster Keaton sort of a look. Camille is more vivacious, pixie-like in striped top and tights, flouncing red velvet skirt and shorts, and gravity-defying curly pigtails. While he is hangdog, bemused and (at least initially) slightly downbeat, she is wide-eyed and sparky, her highly expressive face cycling rapidly through curiosity, amusement and pure mischief.

OH OH is a wordless performance, with occasional music effectively used to set the tone as it shifts from exuberant play to fleeting melancholy and back again. There’s little peril in their antics – don’t expect the ‘death-defying’ tricks you might see elsewhere at the Fringe – what this duo deliver is a compelling blend of slapstick humour and impressive, effortlessly-executed acrobatics as the duo play games, skip rope and dance.

Camille is often the scene-stealer, whether clambering through the audience to catch a ball or navigating the rope ladder while playing an accordion – without missing a note. Simone, however, gets some of the biggest laughs as he pivots between irritation and amusement at his show-off companion. They have a competitive, occasionally antagonistic relationship – but there is no heat in their squabbling. Where conflicts bubble up they are quickly resolved and the games begin again.

If I had any concerns that OH OH couldn’t live up to PSS PSS they were quickly dispelled. There’s no radical departure here, the two shows are similar in their timeless look and feel, but that familiarity is very welcome in this case. OH OH is warm, engaging and utterly charming. The audience, of all ages, loved it and the majority gave the duo a standing ovation; a prize not always easily won at the Fringe.

Get your coats on and go see this!

 

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‘At Home With Will Shakespeare’ (Venue 33, until AUG 26th)

Posted in 5*, EdFestivals 2024, Rated: Outstanding by

“Not since the age of Allan Ramsay has Edinburgh enjoyed portraiture of such soaring humility and intimate majesty.”

Editorial Rating: 5 Stars (Outstanding)

I’m standing in the queue for the lavies after the show. It’s a long and slow-moving wait. Behind me another Pip Utton mega fan is waxing lyrical on the master’s stage presence, his timing, his audience work, his gift for telling big stories with little touches. It was a much better review than the one you’re about to read.

We enter to find Mr Shakespeare is recovering from the night before. This is not a specific moment in the Bard’s life. It’s one of those out of time and space encounters which are the signature of the Utton canon. Over the coming hour we will explore Shakespeare’s triumphs, examine his tragedies, extirpate some myths, and excite the green-eyed monster jealousies which (still) pettily peep out from the shadow cast by this huge-legged colossus not of an age but for all time.

Plays about Shakespeare are ten a penny. In fact, there are probably more of them staged at any given EdFringe than actual revivals of the words what he wrote. Who was this man of inky glory? What powered his genius? There are more potential questions with more possible answers than there are moves on a chessboard. It takes a grounded hubris to attempt to scale the towering heights of Shakespeare. It takes the eye of an Olympian climber to identify the swiftest, but surest route up in the time allowed. It takes nimbleness, subtly, and strength to arrive with time enough to spare so as to enjoy the view.

Utton gets Shakespeare the grafter because no other actor grafts like Utton. Utton comprehends Shakespeare the crafter because no other theatrical producer is so reliable in the quality of their craft as Utton. Utton lauds Shakespeare with the gentle, self-mocking laughter of one who has similarly reached the top and managed to stay there.

Nicola Fleming’s direction is fluid, lucid, and candid. Here is the show which comes closest to recovering what was lost when the late, great Rodney Bewes took his final curtain call. Bewes was the gourmet master of the EdFringe potboiler solo show. His genius was to make each performance come alive with an offhand delivery that sent the ball wheezing over the boundary line for six time and again. Utton is similarly loved by his audience and, as I am reminded in the queue for the loos, that relationship is deepening with each successive success.

Not since the age of Allan Ramsay has Edinburgh enjoyed portraiture of such soaring humility and intimate majesty. Not having Pip Utton at an EdFringe is like not having whisky cream sauce on your haggis – it is possible, but the best festival there is or ever was is just better with the work of Pip Utton featuring in the line-up.

Get your doublets on and go see this!

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‘In This Body of Flame’ (Venue 29, until AUG 25th)

Posted in 4*, EdFestivals 2024, Rated: Nae Bad by

“Charlie Grant as Pepys reflects the hubris and nemesis of a superbly talented man going places but treading on important toes as he rises. Grant is a Pepysian’s Pepys.”

Editorial Rating: 4 Stars (Nae Bad)

Student drama is special. Student drama is important. The first appearance of a Stirling University Drama Society (SUDS) production at EdFringe is both special and important, an opportunity to plant a flag and sow a seed. The artistic choices made matter and SUDS’ first choice, to stage a drama centred on the diarist Samuel Pepys is, in my (not especially humble) opinion, an excellent one.

Hands up, cards on the table, I’m a massive card-carrying, club-tie-wearing Pepysian. And why not? Pepys was the confidant of Royalty, a correspondent with Newton, and the saviour of the navy. Pepys was a lover of music, a book collector, and a very regular theatre-goer. Oh, and he also kept a diary – a meticulous record of people and place in his time, a vital record of earth-shattering events, a most honest catalogue of marital infidelity and human weakness.

Sofia Sculati was introduced to the life, work, and world of Samuel Pepys on a recent tour of London. After researching the diarist more, Sculati was inspired to undertake a historical retelling of his adult life. Together with Madelynne Kestner, Sculati wrote and directed an experimental historical drama about Pepys, his diary and the people from his life. Their script is sound, pacy, and absolutely captures the big and little dramas that make The Diary such a compelling read and re-read.

45 minutes is a very narrow time frame in which to fit so much quality source material and there are several moments when less might have been more. The production design is dark, brooding, and bloody – who would have thought the old man to have had so much blood in him? It’s not always an easy fit but provides a springboard for some strong character work. Charlie Grant as Pepys reflects the hubris and nemesis of a superbly talented man going places but treading on important toes as he rises. Grant is a Pepysian’s Pepys. Oliver O’Hare as The General and Callum Edwards as The Monarchy are the commandant Ying and campy Yang buttressing the narrative.

Ailsa Tully and Freya Stevenson are the women in Pepys’ life. Ours is an age with such divergent morality from Pepys’ own, which cannot be a bad thing. So it’s strange that the writers treat his infidelities with such a scolding traditionality. Emilia Finucane as The Plague stole the show, either breaking out of the design or realising its true potential.

Student drama is never dull. The choices are big, bold, rarely precise, occasionally in harmony, often brilliant, occasionally dazzling. Here is a show that needs a few more trips to the tailors. What matters is that SUDS’ collective instincts are demonstrably pointed in the right direction. I’m not the only auld hack in Auld Reekie who will be looking out for SUDS productions in Fringes yet to come.

Here’s hoping that what has been planted will grow into a regular return. For in the maelstrom of the world’s largest arts festival, it is grand to see a fearlessly Fringey production featuring so much local(ish) talent bringing life to new writing. If EdFringe is to survive as the world capital of Fringe Theatre it needs producers like SUDS who can be relied on to deliver something completely different. Get your frock coats on and go see this!

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EdFringe Talk: Don Quixote

Posted in *Written Interviews, EdFestivals 2024 by

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“We evolved the show all the time during the festival,
according to the reactions we got.”

WHO: Tamsin Hurtado Clarke & Scarlett Plouviez: Performer & Director

WHAT: “‘This double act is unmissable’ ***** (WestEndBestFriend.co.uk). With 200 shows and 30,000 spectators a year, Red Nose Company is the most decorated touring theatre in Finland. Now they are back with their five-star show. Join Don Quixote and Sancho Panza on their road trip as they attack all the injustices in the world. ‘Warm-hearted, clever and very funny!’ ***** (ThreeWeeks). ‘If you think you hate red noses, this might just be the show to cure you’ **** (AllEdinburghTheatre.com).”

WHERE: Assembly Rooms – Bijou (Venue 20) 

WHEN: 14:30 (60 min)

MORE: Click Here!

Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

This is our second time to Edinburgh. We came here last year with the same show, received
great reviews and wonderful feedback from the audiences, so it was an easy decision to
return! When we came here last year, we fell in love with the Fringe at once. What we love
most is the TOTAL experience that surrounds you 24/7 – not just the shows but all that buzz.
And because we have to be so fast to put up and take down our show, it means that even
we artists have plenty of time to stroll around and see other people's shows!!!

What are the big things you’ve learned since 2023 and have you absorbed any of the lessons yet?

In our shows the most important element is to connect with the audience. Last year’s gigs
were for us our first in the UK. We evolved the show all the time during the festival,
according to the reactions we got. So this year we're even better than last year (expecting 6-
star reviews 😉

Tell us about your show.

We've been working together as a clown duo since 2012, and together we have created six
shows. We write and direct our own shows. Don Quixote premiered in 2019, and we've
played it over 100 times in Finland. We created it together with director Otso Kautto.
Don Quixote is produced by Red Nose Company, our theatre group.

What should your audience see at the festivals after they’ve seen your show?

The Blind Summit: The sex live of Puppets seems hilarious. I will definitely want to see that
show. Distraction by The Umbilical Brothers is amazingly funny and skilfull. Big
recommendation for both!

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‘Don Quixote’ at Venue 20 until 25th AUG (not 19th)

Posted in 4*, Comedy, EdFestivals 2024, Rated: Nae Bad, Theatre by

“Knockabout slapstick; quick changes of scene, costume, and prop; melodramatic mime; abrupt changes of mood, from absurd whimsicality to reflective melancholy to quickfire gags; all accompanied by live music and song.”

Editorial Rating: 4 Stars (Nae Bad)

The Finland-based Red Nose Company has been entertaining international audiences since 2008, garlanded with many awards for the quality of their productions along the way. This is their second visit to the Edinburgh Fringe with Don Quixote, the evergreen tale of the deluded would-be knight of the title and his faithful servant Sancho Panza.

The story is a four hundred year-old literary classic, exploring the human mind’s capacity for folly. Quixote is a minor aristocrat, driven by too much reading of chivalric romances to believe himself a knight errant. Recruiting a lowly farm labourer as his “squire”, he sets off on a journey, seeking adventure, romance, and a heroic reputation. This framework of soaring delusion being undermined by grim reality is a perfect set-up for what is essentially an extended Renaissance sitcom. Misunderstandings abound, with innkeepers’ daughters being mistaken for princesses; country pubs being mistaken for castles; and most famously, distant windmills being taken for fairytale giants. At every turn in the dialogue, Quixote’s lofty rhetoric is brought crashing down by the earthy, cynical realism of Panza’s wry observations and mockery of his deluded master.

As their name suggests, the Red Nose Theatre perform as clowns – but not the largely silent mime artists one might see in a circus. These clowns speak and there is much interaction with the audience. Timo and Tuukka play all parts, including the two adventurers. As might be expected, there is much physicality in their humour: knockabout slapstick; quick changes of scene, costume, and prop; melodramatic mime; abrupt changes of mood, from absurd whimsicality to reflective melancholy to quickfire gags; all accompanied by live music and song.

A simple set consisting of a pair of red curtains upstage is all that’s needed for a setting; everything else is created by the actions of the two-man cast and the imagination of the audience. One slight drawback with this production is the choice of venue. The Bijou Theatre at Assembly on George Street is situated in The Spiegeltent, that well- known “big top” marquee with a 1920s cabaret-style interior that’s been a feature of the Fringe for years in various locations. Whilst suitably reminiscent of a circus tent, the wooden framework requires numerous fairly wide columns to hold it up, two of which are immediately either side of the forestage. These can cause a few sightline problems from certain seats, so maybe get there early to ensure you get a good view?

The performance I saw was their opening afternoon of a run that will see them here for the full Fringe season. The pace was very slightly on the slow side, but I have no doubt that the show will gather momentum as word gets around. Well worth a visit.

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‘Sh!t-faced Shakespeare®: Much Ado About Nothing’ (Venue 150, until AUG 25th)

Posted in 5*, EdFestivals 2024, Rated: Outstanding by

“There’s nothing highbrow about this production. The premise is simple, and (literally) intoxicating.”

Editorial Rating:5 Stars (Outstanding)

I want to like Shakespeare. He can spin a good yarn, no argument from me there. And I’m Scottish, so having a vague fondness for MacBeth is hardwired. I like a bit of Romeo and Juliet too – but I prefer West Side Story. I like it all dumbed down a little, I suppose. The language barrier is the main issue for me. I get lost in the wherefores and the hithertos, and not in a good way. Pure, undiluted Shakespeare just feels like school to me. I expect to be quizzed on my understanding of it later, and I expect to fail.

So, Shakespeare is rarely on my theatrical hitlist, if I’m honest. But Sh!t-faced Shakespeare is a bit different. There’s nothing highbrow about this production. The premise is simple, and (literally) intoxicating. Each night, one member of a classically-trained cast gets somewhat inebriated before taking the stage. Chaos ensues.

Edinburgh regulars may well be familiar with the concept. Sh!t-faced Shakespeare has been a Fringe stalwart for some years now, and is proudly billed as a “five-star, multi sell-out Fringe phenomenon”. This year, the team have brought Much Ado About Nothing to town, and on the night I attended it was Benedick who’d had a few. Compère Jess, in top hat and sequins, steered the show along, on occasion halting the proceedings with the blast of an air horn to remind the errant thespian of the second rule of Sh!tfaced Shakespeare – don’t mess with the set – and indeed on one occasion to disentangle him from a trellis. She also issued audience members with a tambourine and a gong, with instructions to deploy them to signal that Benedick’s drink might need topped up. Which they gleefully did.

If all of this sounds a bit like an adult pantomime to you, you’re not far wrong. The overblown humour, the posturing, the knowing nods to the audience – many of whom are clearly regular attendees – all set quite a familiar tone. (To British audiences at least – I’m not sure that panto is really much of a thing elsewhere.) The set, too, is reminiscent of the local pantos of my youth. Much less minimalist than your average Fringe show, the scenery looks hand-painted, a cheery, cartoonish backdrop to the tale’s Messina setting. The costume design is traditional, to a point. While the classic period costumes would likely not look out of place on an RSC stage, the exaggerated cod-pieces might.

The sober cast members’ traditional acting skills were also apparent, though quickly overshadowed by adept improv as they reacted to the antics of an increasingly lairy Benedick. The play moved along at pace, if not in the direction its author intended. The plot, after all, is all but incidental and no two performances will be the same. Did it wholly live up to its ‘Fringe phenomenon’ promise on the night? Probably not – some of the more puerile gags elicited more of an eye-roll than a genuine laugh – but it was anarchic, sweary fun. And the audience was along for the ride, the front rows whooping as Benedick kicked his (plastic) empties in their direction.

True Shakespeare purists will hate this show. Please stay away. Shield your eyes, it’s not for you. The rest of you will probably have a grand old time – if you’re in the mood for something unabashedly silly. Get your doublets on and go see this!

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EdFringe Talk: Rory Cargill: Television 1

Posted in *Written Interviews, EdFestivals 2024 by

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“Despite the all-consuming physical and mental battering, I love it here.”

WHO: Rory Cargill

WHAT: “100 years of television in one hour. Comedian Rory Cargill celebrates the centenary of national broadcaster Television 1 in a multimedia sketch and parody show that spans decades of British TV evolution. ‘A blissful 60 minutes of silliness.’ ***** (BroadwayWorld.com). ‘Really well made.’ **** (ThreeWeeks). ‘Truly exemplary.’ (AYoungishPerspective.co.uk). ‘Excellent, professionally slick visual mania.’ (TheQR.co.uk).”

WHERE: Assembly Roxy – Downstairs (Venue 139) 

WHEN: 19:20 (60 min)

MORE: Click Here!

Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

This is my second full run in Edinburgh. Despite the all-consuming physical and mental battering, I love it here. Having the chance to reset and give the show another bash every day is very freeing. It’s a place of kindred spirits too – most of my friendship group I met at previous editions here.

I came as a punter for years before finally taking the plunge with a concept I felt was worthy of a run here at the ripe old age of 32. I wish I’d done it sooner but better late than never.

What are the big things you’ve learned since 2023 and have you absorbed any of the lessons yet?

It’s a marathon, not a sprint. I have not absorbed this lesson but I’m working on it. My show is quite physical so I’m grabbing power naps wherever I can – in parks, pub booths, in the middle of my show, in the middle of other people’s shows. It’s good practice to sleep in the front row of a show so the performer can clearly see not to disturb you.

Tell us about your show.

My show is called Rory Cargill: Television 1. It’s a narrative sketch, character and spoof comedy that parodies 100 years of British television in 1 hour. I do a new show and character for every decade starting from the 50’s, including Blue Peter, Big Brother and How to Look Good Naked.

It’s packed with pop culture references from over the years and combines live and filmed portions that interplay with each other. It’s very silly and high-energy and features some cool tech and AI gimmicks.

It’s written by me and it’s first version premiered in Edinburgh in 2023. This is it’s 3rd version and it’s quite different now – I’ve since attached a main character – a Noel Edmonds parody ‘Beau Creme’ , who hosts the show -and moved it from a more traditional sketch show to something with a narrative arc that connects each sketch.

I’m looking to attach a production company for future outings in London and beyond and am already looking towards Edinburgh ’25 for version 4.0.

What should your audience see at the festivals after they’ve seen your show?

Tom Lawrinson is the funniest standup in the U.K. His show ‘Buried Alive and Loving It’ is his best work yet – you’ll laugh so hard.

Cecily Hitchcock and Jen Nolan are my other favourite stand ups. They’re doing a split bill called ‘Schrödinger’s Yats’ that’s extremely fun.

For sketch – Grubby Little Mitts, Bishops.
For clown – Ollie West and Claire Parry (unfortunately her run is done but check her out in London, my fave new discovery of the Fringe.)
For plays – Chokeslam and Don’t Call me Chinadoll – both by WWWC.

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EdFringe Talk: Window Seat

Posted in *Written Interviews, EdFestivals 2024 by

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“eing one project among many and tapping into this collective experience is thrilling – we rarely get that in everyday life.”

WHO: Cleopatra Coleman

WHAT: “‘I became the Jeremy Clarkson of tits.’ In this tender off-beat comedy, a mother and daughter survey the changes in their lives while waiting onboard a plane. One is getting used to an empty nest, the other to adulthood. They both hold high hopes for the coming trip together but, with their flight delayed, reunion proves more turbulent than anticipated. Like passengers eavesdropping, we overhear a relationship in need of renewal between two women unsure of how to navigate change. Negotiating emotional crosswinds, they surprise each other with a mischievous, zigzagging honesty.”

WHERE: Paradise in The Vault – The Annexe (Venue 29) 

WHEN: 11:40 (60 min)

MORE: Click Here!

Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

This is my first time at the Fringe, both as attendee and as show-maker, although various members of my company have participated in the festival before. What a revelation the Fringe is! Being one project among many and tapping into this collective experience is thrilling – we rarely get that in everyday life. It’s carnivalesque, varied, surprising; you never know what you will find or who you will meet. To quote a friend who regularly works at the festival, Edinburgh during the Fringe is ‘a sexy, pumped up place’. Agreed.

What are the big things you’ve learned since 2023 and have you absorbed any of the lessons yet?

As a 22-yr-old newbie to the scene, developing ‘Window Seat’ for EdFringe has surpassed the rigorous education I longing for. At every stage in the process, but particularly during the festival itself, there has been no other option but to learn and adapt – on the spot. This is hugely exciting and leaves me feeling very lucky.

It’s also great fun. Of course, there’s A LOT of work in putting together a show and finding a public, but fun is what makes it irresistible, to audience and performer. Both in what I have watched at the Fringe and what I have sought to bring to ‘Window Seat’: playful remains paramount.

Maud May and Helen Rose-Hampton, Window Seat’s two actors, have taught me so much. We’re at different ages and came to the project with various artistic, personal and professional experiences, but their openness and their willingness to be challenged has been inspiring.

Other golden advice I keep returning to:
– It’s about doing what you love, being courteous and open, and staying in the game.
– Without fear there can be no courage!
– Never be shy asking for advice. People love to help where they can, especially if you start with a manageable request…

Tell us about your show.

I first wrote and staged ‘Window Seat’ as a university production last spring, at the Burton Taylor studio in Oxford. We were on for 5 nights and were delighted by our audiences. Shout out to the amazing cast at the time: Avanthika Balaji and Marianne Nossair (who is currently at EdFringe starring in ‘Placeholder’ @roselaneproductions and ‘Bucket List’ @showdonttellproductions).

I wanted to tell the story again, to adapt and re-write it, this time casting an age-appropriate duo. The scenario still interested me – mum and daughter at a cross-roads in their lives, forced to sit next to each other – as did the tongue-in-cheek, ever-revolving and highly “fem” mode that ‘Window Seat’ tunes into.

I joined with Nick Yale just before Christmas, co-producer and a student here in Edinburgh, to form Swoop Productions. We held open auditions, and eventually found the wonderful Maud and Helen. The ball was rolling, fund-raising under way, and as rehearsals kicked off, my brilliant peers Hortense Duchemin and Comfort Maseko completed the team as co-producers/marketers.

We would love to bring ‘Window Seat’ to a theatre after the Fringe, to follow on from all the creative fermentation and insights gained here at the festival. It’s a simple (and highly portable) show: two airplane seats will do. The festival has brought us confidence in ourselves and in our audience. Thank you, Edinburgh!

What should your audience see at the festivals after they’ve seen your show?

Where to start!

Playfight – fast-paced and extraordinarily performed by three very talented women. Too absorbed to realise you are crying and then lights are up!

A Silent Scandal – emerging from Trinity College Dublin. Very well-written and Eoghan Quinn masterfully portrays a very conflicted headmaster.

Free Footlights – hilarious, dark, imaginative sketches devised by the young comedians themselves. Especially love Frankie Browne’s!

Dick. – Not afraid to tackle tricky issues and very well acted. We especially enjoyed the story about the sandwich.

Umbilical Brothers – Cerebral, whacky and mesmerising

With All My Fondest Love – a young man’s beautiful exploration into his grandfather’s life

Suitcase Show by Trick of The Light Theatre – timeless multi-media story telling about journeying

Mythos: Ragnarök – Epic norse mythology told through WWE wrestling

Carter Morgan: The Death of Cool – I haven’t yet made it to Carter’s show yet, but after standing next to each other in a queue for several hours, I say GO!

Same goes for Intelligent Bisexual Woman – some wicked comedy coming out of NYC atm!

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EdFringe Talk: In This Body of Flame

Posted in *Written Interviews, EdFestivals 2024 by

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“Performing at an open access performing arts festival is a unique experience because it gives emerging artists the ability to perform and allows them to connect with audiences around the world.”

WHO: Madelynne Kestner

WHAT: “‘Oh good God prepare me!’ were the last words Samuel Pepys dedicated to his companion of ten years, to whom he gave his life and sight: his diary. The stage is the precinct of his mind and all he witnessed, intimately retelling a decade that shaped London. From the Plague to the Fire, and the people that wandered the pages of his journal: fact, memory and fiction dance swiftly, ignited by the light of a candle. The stage is desolate, every word is a step, entrancing you into the consciousness behind the flame.”

WHERE: Paradise in The Vault – The Vault (Venue 117) 

WHEN: 18:10 (45 min)

MORE: Click Here!

Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

Yes, this is my first time at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. The Fringe is unique because it gives a platform to new performs and writers. Performing at an open access performing arts festival is a unique experience because it gives emerging artists the ability to perform and allows them to connect with audiences around the world.

What are the big things you’ve learned since 2023 and have you absorbed any of the lessons yet?

I personally was not apart of the Fringe last year. However, 2023 was a big year for my writing. I am developing my playwriting skills since I primarily focus on screenwriting. In the last year, I began working on smaller stage scenes and developed my writing into this play. A large lesson I learned is the difference between film and theatre. I am very excited to bring our show to a live audience.

Tell us about your show.

In This Body of Flame is an experimental historical drama about Samuel Pepys, his diary and the people from his life. I wrote and co-directed this play alongside Sofia Sculati taking inspiration from his diary entries. Our idea for this show was to meld history with drama. We wanted to showcase how all elements of theatre can create an immersive experience, we focused a lot on sound and how that helps performers and audiences to navigate shows. The University of Stirling Drama Society is a student led theatre group that performs multiple shows year round. As a committee, we decided it was time to take our work to a larger audience and premier our new show. We do not currently have plans to take a further step with this show, however, we are thrilled to see its audience reception and continue from there.

What should your audience see at the festivals after they’ve seen your show?

I think that audience members should go and see plays by other student societies as I believe it’s really important to give a platform to emerging young artists who are trying to step into theatre professionally and supporting them at The Edinburgh Fringe can open so many opportunities to new writing and new performers. A few of our members went to see The University of Edinburgh’s play ‘Slash’ at Bedlam Theatre and we really enjoyed the powerful and professional performances that each of the students gave. It was funny yet dramatic and had us excited waiting for the twist! We are also excited to see PASS (Edinburgh College’s) take on Steph Del Rosso’s play ‘The Gradient’ We wish the best of luck to all the other university societies!

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