“Our connections with each other need to be strong and central.”
WHO: Elspeth Furini
WHAT: “Interactive storytelling with audience participation and improvisation about loss, community, our human need for connection, and the pain and humour of the journey. We tell the story accompanied by music and song, teaching several songs to “the village” audience. Our songs spring from our deep work engaging with communities, supporting well-being and positive mental health through song. Our show is an intimate gathering together to weave laughter and soul work through the old ways of music and story. Have fun, sing and walk this path with us!”
WHERE: Greenside @ Nicolson Square – Fern Studio (Venue 117)
WHEN: 11:45 (45 min)
MORE: Click Here!
Is this your first time to Edinburgh?
It’s been 38 years since I Iast performed at the Edinburgh Fringe so it’s a long overdue return. A lot of life has happened since then but composing, singing and performing has been a constant creative outlet. Following two musicals that were performed at the Brighton Fringe in 2016 and 2018, I was determined to bring a show to Edfringe. We’ve been here a couple of days and it’s clear the Fringe experience is very different from the mid-1980s….bigger, busier, more produced, slicker, but the excitement and buzz feels very similar. It really is great to be back here and taking part. We just hope we can get people to come and see the show!
What are the big things you’ve learned since 2022 and have you absorbed any of the lessons yet?
I’ve learned to slow down and keep things simple. The value and joy of connecting with people and sharing our common humanity is something I think we were all reminded of over the pandemic. It was especially true for me in my work as choir leader for Cascade Recovery Choir in Brighton supporting people recovering from addiction. Our connections with each other need to be strong and central and our latest show deals with this through a simple story rooted in universal themes and archetypes, backed with original music and song.
Tell us about your show.
The show has grown from a song I wrote which the show is named after, Who Walks This Path, that was a central part of my work with the recovery choir during lockdown. It’s a song about our feelings of loneliness and isolation that make us feel cut off from each other, while all the time there are people waiting to support us and walk with us, who share the path we walk on. It’s about not being alone if we can reach out and if we allow ourselves to be seen.
The song has been performed many times by the choir and I have run workshops on it with community groups and for International Women’s Day at the Brighton Dome.
Around this song the story of a young woman emerged who had to face loss and suffering and find a way of being in the world. We tell the story with a number of songs exploring the same themes which I have written over the last few years. All the music is acoustic and unplugged. There is something simple and direct and intimate in this medium that brings us closer to our audience. The Fern Studio at Greenside at Nicholson Square adds to this intimacy. And did I mention the audience joins in with the singing? We teach the show’s title song at the beginning of the performance. It’s about all of us being connected.
What should your audience see at the festivals after they’ve seen your show?
This is a tough question as we’ve only just arrived so haven’t seen many shows yet. We saw Dirty Words today at The Pleasance which I’d definitely recommend seeing. It touches on some of the same themes as our show, as well as looking at how language is used to create divisions and control. There are great looking shows at our shared venue too. We’re looking forward to seeing Torch Ensemble’s The Climate Fables as it combines fairytale, storytelling and possible end of the world scenario, so big important themes there!
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