“There’s something about Edfringe that feels wonderfully primal, like scratching an itch in our lizard brains.”
WHO: Rae Binstock
WHAT: “Living your true self is nearly a crime again, so join the OGs of F*ck You Counterculture for a night of radical joy and glitter-encrusted anarchy. A fever dream of gender-bending hippies, freaks and drag queens, led by flowers-in-guns radical Hibiscus and disco diva Sylvester, The Cockettes took San Francisco by storm in 1969. But when they tried to take their acid-fuelled, avant-garde act mainstream in NYC, it all went horribly wrong. A new musical with music & lyrics by Brandon James Gwinn and book by Rae Binstock, exploding with on-your-feet numbers and in-your-face hilarity.”
WHERE: Big Yin at Gilded Balloon Patter House (Venue 24)
WHEN: 19:31 (60 min)
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Is this your first time to Edinburgh?
This is my first time at Edfringe, and I still can’t quite believe it’s real. I’ve been dreaming of this since I was a baby playwright in high school. Edfringe has a global reputation for a reason: it’s not afraid of anything, no matter how unorthodox or extravagant, and it’s proved that with decades of unabashed bizarreness. There’s something about Edfringe that feels wonderfully primal, like scratching an itch in our lizard brains. Performance is this ancient thing we’ve been doing since before we could write or build, a trading of perspectives and spectacle that creates tiny holes in the walls that keep our minds separate from each other. Edfringe is what happens when an entire city embraces the fervour of performance in all its shapes and sizes, in all its many weird and confusing forms. It’s a moment made of moments, each one special and impossible to replicate, a performance of loving performance—and at a time when so much of our art is streamed to us in isolation, it brings everyone together into a big mix of bodies and laughter and ideas. It’s the essence of making something new, the high of sharing it with other people, and the freedom to live in the absolute present—that’s the Edfringe experience I’ve always heard about, and that I can’t wait to be a part of.
What are the big things you’ve learned since 2024 and have you absorbed any of the lessons yet?
The things I’ve learned that transfer into the world of Edfringe and theatre are really all different versions of one deep lesson, which is that there is no such thing as a person who is not valid. There are people who are wrong, who are cruel, who are ignorant, who are destructive, and whose actions hurt others—and yet those people are still people, with the same right to think and experience as anyone else. It’s kind of an unpleasant truth, because human beings are capable of some pretty horrible things, and it feels a lot easier to be able to write evil-doers off as a different type of human. But the fact is that the best and most innocent among us are made of the exact same stuff as the worst among us—and if we’re strong enough to acknowledge that, it opens up a whole universe of possibility, both personally and artistically. Why do people make the choices they do, that separate them in action from the essence they share? Why do we take the feelings and fears of others personally, as though they don’t exist without us? What does it take to change, and why do we want to know?
Tell us about your show.
MIDNIGHT AT THE PALACE is a new musical following the 1960s avant-garde performance troupe known as the Cockettes. A fever dream of gender-bending hippies, freaks and drag queens, led by flowers-in-guns radical Hibiscus and disco diva Sylvester, the Cockettes took San Francisco by storm in 1969. But when they tried to take their acid-fuelled, avant-garde act mainstream in NYC, it all went horribly wrong. Their story—the good, the bad, and the glitter—resonates through the decades to the queers and weirdos of today, and the revolutionary spirit that can never be snuffed out.
MATP was originally conceived of by myself (Rae Binstock) and producer Jay Kuo, after a member of the Nouveau Cockettes (a revival group led by some of the surviving original members) reached out to suggest creating a musical about their history. We spent months developing the concept and the script with Jay’s producing partners at Sing Out, Louise! Productions, and when it came time to choose a composer, I listened my way through tons of generic musical theatre samplings until suddenly I came across the work of Brandon James Gwinn. From the moment Brandon came on board, the spirit of the show surged to life, and we really had something. After a year of working across three time zones (I was in Los Angeles, he was in New York), I had written the book and he’d completed music and lyrics, despite only having been in the same room twice. Our amazing director/choreographer Paul McGill was the last piece of the puzzle. We’ve been casting over the last few weeks, and I can’t express how excited I am to work with this amazing cast and creative team. Edinburgh Fringe will be our onstage debut, and there are so many possibilities on the other side!
What should your audience see at the festivals after they’ve seen your show?
Everyone should go out and see THE MONKEYPOX GOSPEL, an incredibly cool mixed-media piece written by Ngofeen Mputubwele and directed by a good friend of mine, Alex Hare. Not only is the subject matter raw and important, but it’s SUCH a fascinating blend of sources and material and technology. I know I can’t wait to experience it!
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