“I’ve discovered that I am really interested in entertaining audiences.”
WHO: Claudia Fielding
WHAT: “With the 2026 Mascot Grand National rapidly approaching and her shell-suit sporting dad indisposed, reluctant Ella must fill Eddie The Egg’s incredibly big boots in this heartwarming, hilarious story about one extraordinary race for glory. Written and performed by Best Solo Performance nominee (The Stagey Place) Claudia Fielding, with direction and music by Anna Rastelli, the pair returns to Edinburgh debuting this wacky comedy about family tradition, legacy and the love of The Game. ‘Fielding is the oddball left field droll hero we all need in our lives’ (FringeReview.co.uk). ‘A writer-performer to keep tabs on’ (Everything-Theatre.co.uk).”
WHERE: Playground 3 at ZOO Playground (Venue 186)
WHEN: 13:25 (60 min)
MORE: Click Here!
Is this your first time to Edinburgh?
This is our second time taking a brand new show to Edinburgh, having completed a run in 2024 with my debut solo show Never Get to Heaven in an Empty Shell. Despite feeling like our first foray into the festival was a success in many ways, such as performing at Pleasance, garnering several 4 star reviews and meeting lots of lovely likeminded people, we feel so much more prepared to tackle the fringe this time around. We took 2025 off from festivals, focusing on creating rather than performing, honing the writing and zoning in on what our ethos and prerogative was as creatives. Now in 2026, we bring A Costume Drama, a heart-warming and hilarious story about one extraordinary race for glory, with themes of family, legacy and tradition, prioritising the entertainment of the audience with a feel-good and light-hearted show.
What are the big things you’ve learned since 2025 and have you absorbed any of the lessons yet?
I’ve discovered that I am really interested in entertaining audiences. Despite having success with other plays I have written and performed, I felt a bit bogged down and burnt out by focusing on ideas and concepts that ultimately were a bit depressing. In order to fully give myself over to a production, I wanted to fully believe that what I was performing would have a positive impact on those watching, and whilst shows revolving around hard to talk about subjects are extremely important, my direction over the past 12 months has shifted into lightening the darker days of my audiences. We shall see after performing at this years’ festival whether the content of the production being less intense also equates to less burnout after the run, hopefully absorbing this period of self-discovery as a creative since the last time we brought a show to Edinburgh.
Tell us about your show.
A Costume Drama is written, performed and produced by myself, Claudia Fielding, with direction, composition and sound design by Anna Rastelli. We are a two man band, having met at Royal Central School of Speech and Drama where we both studied for a degree in Writing for Performance. We originally collaborated on a short form piece of theatre called Let Sleeping Dogs Lye, about two holiday reps based in Mallorca selling feminine hygiene care products for a company named Bush, pronounced like lush. We found out we worked really well together, with similar creative mindsets and we’ve hit it off ever since, collaborating on two other productions aside from our current project. Whilst we are performing two previews in London, A Costume Drama will be making its debut in Edinburgh and we are so excited to hear audience feedback and really hone this play down to its essence, ideally bringing it back to London after the festival for another run.
What should your audience see at the festivals after they’ve seen your show?
We are part of the Emerging Edinburgh roster with Chloe Nelkin, so it’s been great to get to know all the other productions taking a show up to the fringe for the first or second time as early career creatives. Racists, Recessions and Revolutions is part of that list and one I’m excited to see, performing in the same venue as us. Anna had previously seen The Pitch during a run in London and thoroughly enjoyed it, so I am excited to catch that one up at Pleasance this year!
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