“I have presented 122 shows, performed in 33, directed 42, and written 15. The rest I’ve either produced, co-produced or presented (There is a difference!) I’ve had 5 West End transfers one of which reached Broadway, An Olivier award and a couple more nominations… all of which shows that EdFringe can be a place where you can launch theatre and reach the skies… which is reassuring.”
WHO: Guy Masterson
WHAT: “Olivier winner Guy Masterson directs the phenomenal Sam Blythe in his legendary solo of Orwell’s allegorical masterpiece, returning for its 30th anniversary. Blythe assiduously inhabits every quadruped on the farm: Boxer, Clover, Napoleon, Snowball, Benjamin, Molly, Muriel, Moses, dogs, sheep, hens, cows, ducks, cat – and Squealer is a tour de force! The political power of the work is undeniable and its inherent warning as shockingly poignant today as ever. I mean, it could never happen to us, could it? ‘Animal magic! Not to be missed!’ (BBC Radio). ‘Some shows are more equal than others!’ (Times).”
WHERE: Studio One at Assembly George Square Studios (Venue 17)
WHEN: 13:00 (75 min)
MORE: Click Here!
Is this your first time to Edinburgh?
This is not the first time I have “done” Edinburgh. It is, in fact my 30th (but for Covid 19, they would have been consecutive)… That makes over 2.5 years of my life spent in one of the most exciting places on Earth during Fringe time… That’s a lot of adrenaline! Over which I have presented 122 shows, performed in 33, directed 42, and written 15. The rest I’ve either produced, co-produced or presented (There is a difference!) I’ve had 5 West End transfers one of which reached Broadway, An Olivier award and a couple more nominations… all of which shows that EdFringe can be a place where you can launch theatre and reach the skies… which is reassuring. A good festival for me is when the weather is dry throughout (very rare!), all my shows sell plenty of tickets and I go home having not lost money for myself or the shows I present (which is also rare!) and where I reconnect with the many ex colleagues and friends I have made over the years in the Assembly Club Bar… A “great” fringe is where one or more shows hit big, there’s a bun fight for tickets and a shark fight between London producers! There’s been a few of those along the way. I’ve gone from “The Next Stephen Berkoff” in 1994, to ‘Prince of Edinburgh’, to ‘King’, to ‘Legend’ and now to ‘Leg End’. I’ve vowed never to come again, yet I’ve always come back. I’ve vowed I’ll never work with friends again, yet I can’t help myself… and I’ve lost nearly 3 times as much as I have earned – yes, I took the time to calculate that – and yet EdFringe remains unparalleled and unparalellable… and important and vital and I still want to be a part of it… even as it becomes harder then ever…
What are the big things you’ve learned since 2024 and have you absorbed any of the lessons yet?
I learned last year that punters are taking fewer risks with their money. Strong Show titles and big names and 5 star shows… also that people don’t really read reviews, only clock the star ratings… which is why they should be banned… and yet, as a producer, I’d be insane to leave them off my publicity!
Tell us about your show.
ANIMAL FARM – SOLO – was the 3rd show I brought to Edinburgh in my second festival in 1995. I adapted it from the book. Like my solo UNDER MILK WOOD from 1994, I opened it at the Traverse earlier in the year and brought it for the festival so Edinburgh audiences had a heads up which helped shift tickets… Both shows sold out before the Fringe started. I was totally spoiled. Both shows went to the West End and toured around the world. I brought both shows back to the Fringe periodically over my 30 years culminating last year in two 30th year performances. I vowed last year that I would never perform ANIMAL FARM at Edinburgh again – but with authoritarian politics on the rise around the globe, rarely has Orwell’s masterpiece been so relevant… So I recast it… I saw the brilliant Sam Blythe in METHOD IN MY MADNESS at Assembly 24 and invited him to take the reins… So I am now presenting BOTH shows at Assembly this year…Hopefully Sam will enjoy longevity with this title and galavant around the world with it as I did, while my aching bones enjoy some relaxation!
What should your audience see at the festivals after they’ve seen your show?
This is a little difficult as I have not had time to look at the programme yet… as I am in Martha’s Vineyard directing THE SHARK IS BROKEN for JAWS 50… so I can only recommend people I know who are coming and who have always been BRILLIANT – like Pip Utton in KING LEAR (He’s older than me, so he got their first… (besides, I never want to learn another solo show again… my brain can’t take it!) He’s at the Pleasance;. And David Calvitto in I SEE YOU WATCHING by John Clancy; TILLY NOBODY AND DREAMSCAPE both produced by Andy Jordan; Arthur Hull’s FLOP; THE MARRIAGE OF ALICE B TOKLAS BY GERTRUDE STEIN… all at Gilded Balloon. REUBEN KAYE (what would Edinburgh be without a taste of him IF he’s coming?) Nigel Miles-Thomas in SHERLOCK HOLMES – THE LAST ACT; HAMLET with New York Theatre Project; Trish Lyons in BUZZ, all at Assembly Fest:. The brilliant Kayla Boye in SHAKE IT AWAY; THE ANN MILLER STORY at The Space; and Mike Blaha – INTERNATIONAL JOKE at Greenside. There are many more I could recommend if I had the time…
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