“Vulnerability is contagious.”
WHO: Sadiq Ali
WHAT: “Two timelines collide in this bold fusion of dance and circus, offering a fresh perspective on HIV. When Grace receives a diagnosis, she is transported back to the 80s alongside Michael, a gay man navigating a very different reality. Their journeys unfold through striking choreography, Chinese pole and aerial artistry. Sadiq Ali Company, makers of five-star, award-winning The Chosen Haram, return to the Fringe with their new show Tell Me, part of the Made in Scotland showcase. ‘Stunning, soulful, a total triumph’ ***** (PinkPrinceTheatre.com). ‘Poignant tale of sex, revelry and glistening abs’ **** (Guardian). MadeInScotlandShowcase.com”
WHERE: Dissection Room at Summerhall (Venue 26)
WHEN: 19:00 (65 min)
MORE: Click Here!
Is this your first time to Edinburgh?
Not at all. Edinburgh has been a huge part of my journey as an artist. I’ve performed here with previous work, premiered projects here, and this is actually my third time being part of the Made in Scotland programme, which still feels surreal.
What makes Edinburgh special is that nowhere else in the world gathers so many artists, audiences and industry professionals in one place. You can see work that completely changes the way you think, stumble across something extraordinary by accident, and have conversations in queues that lead to your next collaboration.
As an artist, it’s exhilarating and exhausting in equal measure. As an audience member, it’s one of the only places where you can watch circus, theatre, dance, comedy and cabaret all in the same day. I think the best festivals create curiosity. They encourage people to take risks on work they might never normally book, and that’s where the magic happens.
What are the big things you’ve learned since 2025 and have you absorbed any of the lessons yet?
This year has taught me that making ambitious work is about letting go of perfection. Tell Me has had an outdoor life, an indoor premiere, touring performances and now another major redevelopment before Edinburgh. Every time we’ve shared it with audiences, it’s told us something new.
I’ve also realised that vulnerability is contagious. The more honest we’ve been throughout the process, the more generous audiences have been in return. That’s reinforced something I’ve believed for a long time: theatre doesn’t need to provide answers, it just needs to create the conditions for meaningful conversations.
Have I absorbed those lessons? I’m trying. Like most artists, I still want everything to be perfect before anyone sees it. Edinburgh is a good reminder that sometimes a show only becomes what it’s meant to be because audiences are invited into that journey.
Tell us about your show.
Tell Me is written and directed by me, Sadiq Ali, and produced by Turtle Key Arts.
The company has grown organically over the years. I work with collaborators I trust deeply, bringing together performers, designers and creatives who are interested in using circus as a storytelling tool rather than simply spectacle. We build work through devising, so everyone in the room contributes creatively to the final production.
Tell Me had its first life as a large scale outdoor production, premiering at the Norfolk & Norwich Festival before touring with Without Walls and partners around the UK. The indoor version then premiered earlier this year at The Lowry before touring to MimeLondon at The Place, Worthing, and Manipulate Festival in Edinburgh. Those performances became a laboratory for the version audiences are now seeing at Edinburgh Fringe, which has been substantially reworked and expanded since then.
We’re hoping this is only the beginning. The ambition is for Tell Me to continue touring nationally and internationally, reaching audiences who may never expect to encounter a story about HIV through contemporary circus.
What should your audience see at the festivals after they’ve seen your show?
Firstly, I’d say seek out as much contemporary circus as you can. It feels like an unusually strong year for pole, which makes me incredibly happy. I’m especially excited to catch work by Yvonne Smink and Dusk, Night, Dawn, because it’s rare to see so much of the discipline represented in one Fringe.
I’d also encourage people to take a gamble every day. Pick one show you’ve never heard of. Read one sentence of the blurb, buy a ticket and trust the festival. Some of the most influential performances I’ve ever seen have been complete accidents.
Finally, support work that’s trying to say something. Whether it’s circus, dance, theatre or cabaret, festivals survive because audiences choose curiosity over familiarity. That’s where you’ll find the pieces that stay with you long after August ends.
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