Category Archives: Theatre

Reviews of theatre work.

‘The Kids Always Win’ (Venue 24, until AUG 25th)

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

“Strong stage presences, very funny and excellent with kids”

Editorial Rating: 4 Stars (Nae Bad)

We arrived at The Patter House early and I had time to witness a crime against humanity. £6.80 of His Majesty’s Pounds for one of the worst pints of Guinness I’ve ever had in my life served in a plastic cup. This was not the fault of the lads behind ‘The Kids Always Win’. I had to suffer that pint. It is only fair readers understand the things I suffer for my art.

But what of the show? The concept is simple. A game show – spinning around deep audience participation – where, you’ve guessed it, the kids always win.

Tom and Max are strong stage presences, very funny and excellent with kids. Numerous kids get up on stage and they are all made to feel at home.

The games are gleefully funny (I was thrashed by my eight-year old). There are switcheroos, goalposts are shifted and adults are thrown curveball after curveball. There are a nice few running gags throughout. My two are experienced Fringe goers now and they enjoyed this show both commenting on how fun it was and how much they laughed. The show was also about 50 minutes long rather than an hour. This is not a criticism. For kids from 4-8 this is probably the ideal length – other performers who aim their work at children really should know this.

The kids loved the result and I won’t spoil a small surprise every kid will love towards the end. Admittedly, there were a couple of moments that didn’t quite land as well but that is to be expected in any show that relies entirely on audience participation. Overall this was a grand wee show that deserved the full house and deserved to be at a bigger audience. Just the sort of silly, puerile, crackers show that the Fringe needs for kids. No, it isn’t massively deep. No, it doesn’t really have a core message to connect with our core. It was a good old fashioned kids show that had them laughing throughout. And there is nothing wrong with that. Quite the opposite.

Come for the gameshow. Stay for the raucous interaction. Get your coats on and go see this.

 

‘Back to Black: The Music of Amy Winehouse’ (Venue 53, Aug 13-24)

Posted in Theatre by

“John Gardner wrote more James Bond novels than Ian Fleming. Similarly, we can hope to see Beau performing as Winehouse for a longer duration than her subject,who was, unquestionably, one of the most expressive contralto singers since Marian Anderson.”

Editorial Rating: 5 Stars (Outstanding)

She was an icon. She was a legend. She was gone from us far too soon. It is all but impossible to stroll through the popup bars and cafes of EdFringe24 without encountering the music of Amy Jade Winehouse (1983 – 2011). Her legacy of sound and song bends the fabric of musical space and time. The Winehouse catalogue is among the most accessibly, unashamedly classical set of jazz numbers in the known universe and, like her life, fits all too easily into an EdFringe hour’s worth of stage traffic.

Brighton-based Reine Beau Anderson Dudley has been performing as Winehouse for almost five years. John Gardner wrote more James Bond novels than Ian Fleming. Similarly, we can hope to see Beau performing as Winehouse for a longer duration than her subject,who was, unquestionably, one of the most expressive contralto singers since Marian Anderson.

Night Owl Shows do exactly what is stated on the tin. Yes, there’s a formula. Yes, there’s an uncomplicated lightness of touch. BUT, most importantly, there’s an unabashed reverence for and unashamed deference towards the music showcased and those who created it. Night Owl staged over 239 appearances at EdFringe19, receiving 7 five-star reviews and 5 awards with over 100 sold-out shows during the run. There is no mystery to their success. They’re chuffing brilliant at what they do and what they do is pure entertainment done proper.

Reine as Winehouse is neither a fawning parody nor is it a lifeless caricature. It is a sincere love letter. It is a gem set in a glittering ensemble of heavyweight talent in her backing band. Reine breathes life into each number with pitch-perfect audience work as well as lively banter and badinage with her onstage colleagues. The only thing thing that’s missing is an atmospheric smoke machine to counterbalance the tear-jerkingly accurate mirror being held up to a lost legend.

Get your unvented double-breasted thrift store coats on, do try not to throw them on the floor, and go see this!

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Monkeys Everywhere (Venue 33, Aug 11-13, 15-20, 22-25)

Posted in Theatre by

“Riotous, clever, sensitive, hilarious – a genuine pick of the Fringe”

Editorial Rating:  5 Stars (Outstanding)

My youngest is a fan of monkeys. Monkey daft. If it is simian, she is agog. If it not, she generally is, well, erm not agog. It was inevitable then when I threw the the Fringe Guide at the Young Team that Monkeys Everywhere would come back circled. A delayed start to the Fringe for us but we trooped off to the Pleasance and were jolly pleased we did.

Garry Elizabeth Starr swings onto stage through his makeshift bedroom of scaffolding (hardcore IKEA work this). A grown man swinging and rolling around scaffolding like an Olympic gymnast (narrowly missing his bonce a few times) wasn’t what I expected but it was an explosion onto the stage which continued for the full hour. It wasn’t immediately clear to me why he was dressed as an extra from Blackadder II but it all added to the bonkers charm of it all. More men should wear ruffs.

Starr is a master of his art. Children heckle, run onto the stage, cause mayhem and this involvement seems only to add to Starr’s humour. One begins to suspect the little terrors are actually on the payroll in some way or other. It takes huge skill to ad lib as much as Starr did in the show I went to whilst sticking to the thrust of the show and hanging it all together.

My children, and and the vast ranks behind me, were howling and hooting. Adults were too. The running theme throughout the show is Starr’s mental health and he uses the idea of controlling the myriad monkeys as a metaphor. This leads to a few moments when all of the audience – big or small – are forced to think deeply. Then, just as you are pondering, something hilarious happens or Starr gets a phone call from the Prime Minister of Theatre.

This show is what children’s shows should be about. Showing them the utter joy of theatre. Taking them away from the day-to-day. Making them bellylaugh but also making them feel and think about big things. There is a lot of laughter – how could there not be? After all there is magic, physical comedy, magic, toilet humour, poo flinging and clever, constant audience participation that smashes any pretence at a fourth wall. There is though a serious edge. This is difficult terrain in an adult’s show. It is harder again for children’s shows. Starr skips along that tightrope.

If a good kids show includes jokes that sail over the heads of the little darlings, a great kids show makes adults and kids think alike. Some of the younger ones won’t get the metaphors and that is fine… they’ll giggle away. Others will and that’s good too. After all, the only thing more exhausting than having monkeys everywhere, is trying to pretend they’re not.

Riotous, clever, sensitive, hilarious – a genuine pick of the Fringe.

Go for the monkeys. Stay for the bananas. Get your coats on and see this.

‘A Montage of Monet’ (Venue 236, Aug 9-10, 12-17)

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

“An aged-up Stephen Smith plays the eponymous artist with all the power and emphasis that can be mustered by a younger actor playing an old man.”

Editorial Rating: 4 Stars (Nae Bad)

This is a very engaging and thoughtful show presenting the life, loves, and art of the legendary French impressionist painter, Claude Monet. As we are shown, the great artist’s private life was certainly full enough of drama, crisis, and angst to justify a play. This production, a piece of well-crafted new writing by Joan Greening, takes us on a journey to Belle Epoque Paris and beyond, offering much entertaining insight into the bohemian world of these creative types whilst shattering a few myths about what drives their urge to paint.

The small, black box Mint Studio of Greenside @ George Street is simply transformed into the artist’s world by means of a few props and we see Monet’s instantly recognisable works projected onto a blank canvas standing on an easel. An aged-up Stephen Smith plays the eponymous artist with all the power and emphasis that can be mustered by a younger actor playing an old man. Two characteristics of this production give it a very intimate feel. The lighting is deliberately kept fairly low – much at odds with the bursting colour of Monet’s canvases, but subtly encouraging introspective focus on the man himself. Secondly, the monologue is quietly underscored by original piano music by Joseph Furey playing in the background. I’m not usually a fan of incidental music in theatre, but this gently melodic accompaniment adds a wistful backdrop to Monet’s tale.

The human story behind the legendary paintings is often fascinating and revealing. Monet was no saint: an aesthete, but no angel. The roller coaster of his love life often belies the tranquillity evoked by his art. His relationships with fellow artists were often complex, whilst catastrophic events in his own life often threatened his very ability to create his works. Spiced with moments of humour and wit, there are also many surprising revelations concerning the stories behind some of his most celebrated images. No spoilers here, but I’ll never look at his famous Water Lilies paintings in the same way again, having been told how the subject matter in his garden pond at Giverny was so beautifully arranged. There was even a word of warning for us critics in learning how the name of the genre Impressionism arose from some laboured mockery by an infamous and now largely forgotten journalist.

Of the many solo shows on offer at the Fringe, a number are always biographical dramatisations of some historical person’s life: often a literary or show business figure, or more rarely, an artist. The problems inherent in representing an artist’s life on stage include: the sedentary nature of their work; talented individuals leading often dull and uneventful private lives; and the difficulty of making drama from the creation of still-life in the shape of a canvas or sculpture. In a different show I saw earlier this week, we watched an actor physically recreate a painting brush-in-hand as she spoke to the audience in character as the artist in question; very talented and skilled, but not great theatre and more suited to the radio. This production does not make the same mistake and is thus well worth going along to see.

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Jess Carrivick: Attention Seeker (WIP) at Venue 236 until 24th AUG (not 11th or 18th)

Posted in 5*, Comedy, EdFestivals 2024, Greenside, Rated: Outstanding, Theatre by

“…a must-see for anyone who loves comedy; it would also serve as a masterclass for those who hope to bring a one-hander show to the Fringe.”

Editorial Rating: 5 Stars (Outstanding)

Regular readers of this site will know that I’ve got a bit of a thing about solo shows this year. They’ve been one of the mainstays of the Fringe for decades (especially one-woman shows) and are becoming a genre all of their own. The quality of such shows can be highly variable, but this one is the best I’ve seen this summer by a country mile.

Jess Carrivick is a self-confessed “almost” ex-child TV star nepo baby and in this show she tells the story of her life. In a whirlwind of character vignettes, multiple costume changes, bits, skits, and sketches, she whisks us on an absurdist journey which showreels her first ten years that peaked with BBC TV sitcom stardom in the noughties. Apart from one genuinely tearful episode this is a laugh-a-minute romp, see-sawing between hilarious observations on the mundanity of post-fame life and peeks behind the barbed wire curtain of celebrity telly.

As both performer and writer (2021 BAFTA Rockcliffe shortlist), Carrivick pulls off a tour de force in the small black-box Mint Studio, part of the Greenside @ George Street venue. An experienced improv and sketch comedienne, she’s one of those confident and engaging performers it’s impossible not to like. In several silent routines, she has the audience in stitches of laughter with her range of facial expressions and stares that speak a thousand words. A brilliant caricaturist, she evokes a number of showbiz and “civilian” stereotypes with mercilessly effective style and aplomb; regularly complemented by her own deprecating self-criticism. In some gently merciful and non-embarrassing audience participation, she effectively gives a little stage skill coaching to those punters keen to join in the fun. A skilled performer to her fingertips, Carrivick even manages to entertain whilst getting changed behind her costume rail.

At 45 minutes, this is an ideal piece of quickfire entertainment to squeeze in between other shows as you sample the delights of George Street. It’s a must-see for anyone who loves comedy; it would also serve as a masterclass for those who hope to bring a solo show to the Fringe.

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‘Spy Movie: The Play!’ (Venue 33, Aug 9-12, 14-19, 21-26)

Posted in 4*, Comedy, EdFestivals 2024, Pleasance, Pleasance, Potterrow & Teviot, Rated: Nae Bad, Theatre by

“The ensemble cast of four keep the laughs coming at a whirlwind pace. “

Editorial Rating: 4 Stars (Nae Bad)

This hilarious spoof homage to the Bond movie franchise is a fast-paced satire which sends up pretty much every scene from Dr No to The Spy Who Loved Me. But you don’t need to be a fan of Ian Fleming’s 007 to appreciate the quickfire wordplay in this show, which bears the same relationship to the genre it parodies as Blazing Saddles does to westerns, or Police Squad does to 1970s TV cop shows. The premise of the show is that what you’re seeing on stage is a pitch to an audience of Hollywood movie producers to get the script turned into a film. The farcically disastrous goings-on are reminiscent of The Play That Goes Wrong; and two of the cast members you see were in that very show.

The protagonist of The Greatest Spy Movie (N)ever Made is Jane Blonde, who has 24 hours to save the world and likes her martinis “shaken, stirred, and jiggled”. Along the way, she must contend with the global criminal network EVIW, which stands for Every Villain In [the] World (just think about how a cockney would pronounce the word “evil”). From the first moments we are treated to merciless skits of scenes that are the hallmark of every classic Bond movie you’ll have seen: the opening credits sequence; the briefing from M; a chase down a ski slope; a trans-European rail journey; a car chase.

The ensemble cast of four keep the laughs coming at a whirlwind pace. Jo Hartland plays Jane Blonde with cool panache (though she refuses to dye her hair blonde), whilst the versatile Emily Waters tickles the funny bone playing character roles ranging from M (pronounced “mmm”) to super-villain Mr Lovely. James Watterson doubles as spy novelist Ian Flemish and American secret double agent Randy Lust. The irrepressible Matthew Howell plays just about everyone else and certainly gets to wear the greatest variety of hats as he darts seamlessly from role to role.

Using a minimal set consisting of a pair of curtains, the pseudo-cinematic action is irreverently created by some highly co-ordinated and inventive use of props, always with the tongue planted firmly in the cheek. The show’s publicity warns of loud sound effects, flashing lights and lasers, and smoke/haze, all used to create a lively sense of anarchic slapstick. This is also probably the only show in Edinburgh this season that makes use of an actual flying helicopter.

Staged in the Beneath auditorium at the Pleasance Courtyard, the show runs for nearly the whole of this month, excepting Tuesdays. Starting at midday, it’s an ideal laugh-a-minute show for all of the family. It’s already selling well, so Get Your Coats On and go buy your tickets!

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Beryl Cook: A Private View at Venue 33 until 25th AUG (not 12th or 19th)

Posted in 3*, Pleasance, Pleasance, Potterrow & Teviot, Rated: Nae Bad, Theatre by

“Well written and immaculately performed and produced”

Editorial Rating: 3 Stars (Nae Bad )

The name of the late Beryl Cook (1926-2008) will be familiar to many people of a certain age. Labelled as a “naive” artist by the British art establishment, she was very well known for her works depicting plump, extrovert ladies and gentlemen enjoying themselves in pubs, at picnics, or on hen nights and the like. Her instantly recognisable personal style was so popular that she made a fortune in reproduction rights from greetings cards. A shy and private woman who shunned publicity, Cook had no formal training in art and took up the brush in her thirties and was entirely self-taught.

Cook is played by the veteran TV, film, and theatre actress Kara Wilson, who also wrote the script. Wilson met members of Cook’s family whilst researching her subject to shed light on this intriguing and enigmatic figure. No mean artist herself, this is Wilson’s fifth “painter play” as a writer, and she skilfully portrays Cook creating one of her most famous works Ladies’ Night whilst siting at a table full of paint pots and brushes.

The show successfully previewed twice earlier this year at the King Alfred Phoenix Theatre in Hampstead. As Cook/Wilson paints, she regales us with amusing anecdotes arising from the artist’s personal world: for all her shyness, Cook enjoyed a drink or two in the pubs of Plymouth, amidst their often rowdy clientele of hen nights, male strippers, and the drunken, tattooed sailors of the Royal Navy. Such a play clearly appeals to a certain demographic and looking around me, I spotted a number of ladies and gents who might well have been escapees from one of Cook’s wryly observational works. Performed in the Attic auditorium at the Pleasance Courtyard added an air of authenticity to the show, creating as it did the ambience of an artist’s studio.

There is, perhaps, a PhD thesis waiting to be written by some postgraduate Theatre Studies student on the subject of One-hour One-woman Shows at the Edinburgh Fringe; nowadays surely a major genre all of its own in the Festival calendar? This show was a fine example: well-written and immaculately performed and produced. It differs from many in this category in that it features a painter, rather than the ever-popular 19th century lady novelist, or the contemporary angst-ridden sex confessional. However, it’s a rather sedentary production; albeit necessarily so, as its protagonist paints whilst we watch and listen to her talk. One hesitates to opt for some cheap shot about “watching paint dry”, but apart from the visual aspect of the developing canvas, there isn’t much to see here. Script-wise, it is more of a radio play than a theatrical drama.

That being said, its target audience lapped it up and shows such as this are an agreeable way to spend an hour on a weekday afternoon. The paintings created live by Wilson during each performance are all on sale, with contact details available upon leaving the auditorium at the end of the show.

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‘Dylan Mulvaney: FAGHAG’ (Venue 17, Aug 8-13, 15-20, 22-25)

Posted in Theatre by

“The stories of Dylan’s hopes and Dylan’s demons told from an ultra kitsch Barbie Dreamhouse.”

Editorial Rating: 4 Stars (Nae Bad)

So much has been said about Dylan Mulvaney, positive and less positive. Now it’s Dylan’s turn to speak. The TikTok sensation who triggered the great Bud Light boycott of 2023 has one or two stories to tell and… here’s the not-at-all surprising bit… it turns out Dylan Mulvaney is a fantastic storyteller, a gifted raconteur, with a sharp eye for crowd-pleasing, as well as a firm grasp on staging. Most importantly, this is a pacy show that rarely drags.

These are the stories of Dylan’s hopes and Dylan’s demons told from an ultra kitsch Barbie Dreamhouse. They are told with candour, with charm and with grace. There is ever so much auld-fashioned politeness blended right through Dylan’s onstage demeanour. It’s the velvet glove beneath which is that steel fist which has single-handedly done so much to demolish entrenched views of identity. Armoured in a constantly shifting wardrobe of pretty little numbers and Molotov Cocktaildress here, unfiltered is the voice that is challenging the world to build back better in the words of the President whom Dylan interviewed at the White White House.

Mulvaney has a creditable list of musical theatre acting credits which are evident in this lively, entertaining, heart-tugging storytelling cabaret. There are plenty of highlights and highnotes, but we are yet to see this being confidently and unfailingly struck each time. Mulvaney is yet to relax into the starring role and perhaps this is a reflection of a deeper personal disquietude and uncertain hesitency.

Although human themes and human values are central to this show, it is also the unfolding story of Dylan’s relationship with God (alongside a mother who never seems to quite understand). It is, unsurprisingly, a complex relationship with ongoing troubles the unfolding of which will say much about the Catholic (big C) and catholic (small c) church in the 21st century.

Here’s a show that is as much a cultural phenomenon as it is a sparkly spectacle. You need to have gone so you can say you have been there. Get your best coats on and go see this!

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‘The Italians in England’ (Venue 53) until 24th AUG (not 11th or 18th)

Posted in Theatre by

“…enjoy the fast-paced verbal and visual humour on display, which has more in common with Blackadder II than The Comedy of Errors“

Editorial Rating: 5 Stars (Outstanding)

This bawdy and highly enjoyable comic romp at TheSpace @ Surgeon’s Hall (Fleming Theatre) is one of the funniest shows you’re likely to see this festival season. The Action Theatre company use a professional cast of ten – large for a Fringe show – to bring to Edinburgh a project that originated in Turin.

The show, spoken in English with pantomime Italian accents, is set in 1572 when a troupe of foreign actors visit the court of Elizabeth I to perform a play-within-a-play called The Jealous Old Man. With the wildly improbable and chaotic plot, period costume, melodramatic acting, and some characters wearing half-masks, many will recognise the dramatic genre as Commedia dell’Arte: the Renaissance theatre tradition that flourished in Europe in the time of Shakespeare. But you don’t need a degree in Theatre Studies to enjoy the fast-paced verbal and visual humour on display, which has more in common with Blackadder II than The Comedy of Errors.

The characters in this sex-comedy are familiar stock types: Pantalone, the foolish old cuckold with an unfaithful young wife; predatory and lustful young men with an eye for the ladies; the Captain, a boastful braggart with feet of clay; the Doctor, the pompous host and master of the house in which a farcical dinner party is held; and a gaggle of male and female servants, some of whom are buffoons, others perhaps wiser than their masters.

There are many very fine performances in this show, which draw laughter from the audience by making skilful use of melodramatic irony and innuendo. George Mouskoundi’s unmasked face, highly mobile eyebrows, and ranting braggadocio are ideal for the sword-waving Captain. Ina Lark and Simona Bisconti both have the electric eyes required for the smouldering temptresses they play. Aimee Hislop and Juliet Turnbull keep the action engaging by breaking the fourth wall with many a knowing glance at the audience. Samuel Wright, with his towering physique and wide eyes glaring through an almost infernal half-mask comes across like some sort of slapstick Beelzebub. Kuluk Helms gives Miranda Richardson a run for her money in her portrayal of a loopy Queen Elizabeth. (Apologies to those actors I haven’t mentioned due to lack of space – you were all great!)

This is a very entertaining show with live music played on stage and some fine singing, including close harmony. At 50 minutes long, the time flew by and the sustained applause at the end was well deserved. The only fault I would pick is the choice of venue: the Fleming Theatre is a lecture auditorium with a very shallow rake for the seating. You’ll need to sit near the front for a good view if you’re on the short side.

I’ll end by saying that the show’s director, Rupert Raison, is giving a talk about Commedia and Half-Mask theatre in the Symposium Hall at the same venue for one day only on 18th August at 11am. If you’re a theatre geek like me, maybe get yourself along to that, too?

‘Aude Lener – Love Reboot’ Venue 53 until 24th AUG (not 11th)

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

“Wanna feel loved? I’m no magician; I’m just French.”

Editorial Rating: 4  Stars (Nae Bad )

As a regular visitor to the Fringe for some years now, I’ve always had a soft spot for single-handed shows. So often the preferred vehicle for solo female performers, they can frequently take you by surprise, drawing from the almost infinite well of personal imagination and experience, unhindered by the theatrical presumptions inherent in a full-cast play. This slick, energetic, and well-staged production is written and performed in English (with occasional forays into Française) by the French film and TV actress Aude Lener.

Part stand-up comedy, part pop-philosophical treatise, part scatological cabaret, Lener delivers a wryly amusing exploration of a single woman’s life as she realises that the pursuit of love is slipping through her ageing fingers. As she wearily notes with a particularly gallic take on her situation: “Wanna feel loved? I’m no magician; I’m just French.” There is physical action a-plenty as Lener presents us with a rapid-fire series of vignettes enacting her somewhat crazy social and family life. These include a rather clever whiteboard presentation; much skilful use of a banana as a visual metaphor (oh, how the ladies in the front row giggled); the funniest rendition of Amazing Grace I’ve ever heard; and the recurring ghostly presence of her Aunt Madeline, who is dead but won’t lie down and keeps intruding into Aude’s life like an escapee from some grand guignol show at a seedy theatre in 1950s Pigalle.

Lener herself is something of a dramatic phenomenon. Her demure movie star face is elastic enough to quickly contort into a thousand visual caricatures to suit as many different voices, some her own internal monologue, others those of relatives, friends, and a succession of would-be lovers. With her pacy and emphatic delivery, she packs much observational humour, wit, and physicality into this 50-minute whirlwind of a show. Maybe it’s a cliché of national stereotyping for me to say that Lener’s French accent imbues her comedic insights with a philosophical authority that just wouldn’t be there if it came from a British actress? But it does.

So if, like me, you’re looking for something a little different to seek out in a small black-box studio theatre and won’t lose sleep if you never again see yet another angst-ridden portrayal of Emily Brontë or Mary Shelley, get yourself to TheSpace @ Surgeon’s Hall (Theatre 3) to laugh along with this quirky little gem.

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