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Theatre, Reviews and Miles Fielder

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Anne Boleyn

Anne Boleyn

Howard Brenton's iconoclastic historical drama is a hands-down crowd-pleaser

(4 stars)9 May 2012

You can see why the original Globe theatre production of Anne Boleyn sold out, and why Howard Brenton’s iconoclastic re-imagining of Henry VIII’s second wife was subsequently sent on a tour of the UK: the show is a hands down, no-arguments…

Jus’ Like That!

Jus’ Like That!

Recreates Tommy Cooper's final performance

(4 stars)16 Aug 2011

Eschewing a biographical narrative, this show about stage magician and comedian Tommy Cooper simply recreates his final performance in all its balmy, cheeky glory. It’s a crowd-pleasing celebration of the utterly unique variety show talent, and Clive…

The Wright Brothers

The Wright Brothers

Conquest of flight given lively treatment

(3 stars)16 Aug 2011

An interesting subject is given lively treatment in this show about American bicycle manufacturers-turned-amateur aviators Wilbur and Orville Wright’s conquest of the skies. The story of their protracted attempts to construct a powered flying machine…

You Once Said Yes

You Once Said Yes

Exhilarating interactive experience

(4 stars)12 Aug 2011

This one-on-one interactive show is initially – and purposefully – disconcerting, but it swiftly becomes utterly thrilling, mysterious, funny and finally really quite sweet. It begins at Underbelly Cowgate, where single audience members are equipped for…

2401 Objects

2401 Objects

Remarkable neuroscience story

(3 stars)8 Aug 2011

This piece of devised theatre tells the story of the man with the most famous brain in the world, Henry Molaison, or patient HM as he became known to the international medical community that studied him for decades before he died. Molaison was born in…

Wondrous Flitting

Wondrous Flitting

Absurdist parable that doesn’t quite work

(2 stars)8 Aug 2011

Inspired by Edinburgh College of Art teacher Ed Hollis’ book The Secret Lives of Buildings, Lyceum artistic director Mark Thomson’s first play for the Fringe since his much lauded Moving Objects is an absurdist-realist parable that doesn’t quite work.

One Night Stan

One Night Stan

Excellent one-man show based on life of Stan Laurel

(4 stars)8 Aug 2011

This excellent one-man show written and performed by Miles Gallant dramatises the life of Stanley Jefferson aka Stan Laurel of Laurel and Hardy fame. With his partner taken ill on the penultimate week of their 1954 UK tour, Stan looks back on his…

One Under

One Under

Energetic piece of devised theatre based on London Underground

(3 stars)8 Aug 2011

Inspired by interviews conducted on the London Underground, this energetic piece of devised theatre looks beneath the sweat and stress of the cramped carriages to unearth the inner lives of people travelling on the tube. Their stories are variously…

Too Middle Class for Chlamydia

Too Middle Class for Chlamydia

Fairly pedestrian – not to mention misogynist

(2 stars)25 Aug 2010

Curiously, this one-man show in which a young middle class lad recalls the variously difficult girls he’s been romantically involved with is delivered as a comic monologue, though the material is probably better suited to a stand-up routine. A few…

Frances Ruffelle: Beneath the Dress

Frances Ruffelle: Beneath the Dress

Cheeky, sexy and surprising cabaret-esque show

(3 stars)23 Aug 2010

Given Ruffelle’s showbiz background – she’s the daughter of London theatre school founder Sylvia Young and a Tony Award-winning star of West End and Broadway musicals such as Les Misérables and Chicago – it’s unsurprising that her cabaret-esque Fringe…

The Hunchback of Notre Dame

The Hunchback of Notre Dame

Critical commentary on mankind's hypocrisy

(4 stars)23 Aug 2010

Writer/actor Pip Utton follows his challenging one-man shows Adolf, Chaplin and Bacon with another deftly scripted and vividly performed drama, this one about Victor Hugo’s deformed Parisian bell-ringer. Taking the form of a monologue delivered by…

Naked Live and Never Again: My Last Discourse on Dramatic Method

Naked Live and Never Again: My Last Discourse on Dramatic Method

Witty monologue about an acting guru

(4 stars)23 Aug 2010

Andrew Hawkins (son of veteran British actor Jack, star of Zulu and Ben Hur) gives a terrific performance in this witty monologue. Hawkins plays an acting guru named Jack Treadwell who, having had enough of coaching celebrities and politicians, is…

The Flat

The Flat

Spirited if amateurish production

(2 stars)16 Aug 2010

The typical domestic dysfunction endured by a group of young people sharing a flat in London explodes into something altogether more disturbing with the arrival of a new flatmate, an apparently shy Goth girl who has some serious anger management issues.

At Home with Mrs Moneypenny

At Home with Mrs Moneypenny

Smart and funny

(3 stars)14 Aug 2010

Mrs Moneypenny is a former investment banker who writes a column for the Financial Times. She is a staunch defender of bonuses for the likes of Fred Goodwin, an attitude that will appeal to some tastes and not to others. Whether you find that sweet or…

Running on Air

Running on Air

Charming road show in a camper van

(4 stars)12 Aug 2010

Your ticket for this site-specific show directs you to the rear of the Pleasance Courtyard, where a bright orange French VW camper van is parked in the corner. Writer and performer Laura Mugridge turns up in welly boots and a flowery summer dress…

Up 'n' Under

Up 'n' Under

Enjoyable revival of John Godber’s lively romp

(3 stars)12 Aug 2010

Yorkshire playwright John Godber’s crowd-pleaser is celebrated with a new production marking its 25th anniversary, directed by the author himself and starring celebrity-turned-actress Abi Titmuss. It’s the story of five disillusioned working class lads…

The Fragility Of X

The Fragility Of X

Blurring the boundaries of behaviour

(4 stars)12 Aug 2010

You could be forgiven for assuming that a play about the relationship between a single mother and her autistic teenage son would be very worthy and pretty heavy going. The Fragility of X is those things (in a good way), but it’s also incredibly funny…

Meow Meow - Feline Intimate

Meow Meow - Feline Intimate

Cabaret will never be the same

(4 stars)12 Aug 2010

The former star of La Clique, who counts David Bowie among her fans, strips away the mystique of cabaret in this riotous postmodern deconstruction of her art. That’s literally the case when during the first few minutes of the show she’s interrupted by…

Call Mr Robeson

Call Mr Robeson

Inspirational story of legendary singer

(3 stars)12 Aug 2010

Having suffered a setback by losing his voice during the world premiere run of this show in Edinburgh three years ago, writer and star Tayo Aluko subsequently took it on tour around the world. This year the monodrama about the life of African-American…

The Virtuous Burglar

The Virtuous Burglar

A clever and lively performance and beautiful design: a winner

(4 stars)11 Aug 2010

This splendid production of Dario Fo’s farce is a joy from start to finish. When a cat burglar breaks into an apartment he unwittingly precipitates a crisis involving himself, his suspicious wife and three adulterous couples. It’s a clever pastiche of…

Lovelace: A Rock Musical

Lovelace: A Rock Musical

Respectful tribute to the Deep Throat porn star

(4 stars)10 Aug 2010

This rock opera goes a long way to rescuing its subject, Linda Boreman, from the ignominy of being forever associated with her screen persona, Linda Lovelace, and the 1972 porn film Deep Throat. The film made history for being the first to become a…

Hamlet for Girls

Hamlet for Girls

A swift, nicely performed, play about juggling work and relationships

(3 stars)10 Aug 2010

Invoking the procrastinating Danish prince for this intimate drama about two couples juggling work and relationships is a neat conceit. It’s nicely performed, too, by a charismatic cast. The crosscutting between various combinations of characters…

Clint’s Reality

Clint’s Reality

A spirited performance but somewhat lacking script

(2 stars)9 Aug 2010

Here we have a Simon Cowell-alike suffering a meltdown after it emerges that his latest talent show was rigged. Things come to a head in his luxurious flat, from where Clint is sure he can manipulate the truth to his own ends. The performances are…

Beautiful Burnout - knockout collaboration a success on all fronts

Beautiful Burnout - knockout collaboration a success on all fronts

Raging bulls come to the Fringe

(4 stars)8 Aug 2010

The new play about aspiring young boxers by Bryony Lavery (author of last year’s Kursk and Tony award nominee for Frozen) is a heavy-hitter in more ways than one. It’s a co-production between the National Theatre of Scotland and Frantic Assembly that…

Pedal Pusher is a journey inside riders’ heads

Pedal Pusher is a journey inside riders’ heads

Physical theatre show takes on the Tour de France

(4 stars)8 Aug 2010

This very, very physical theatre show does justice to the toughest sporting event in the world, the Tour de France, with a muscular production that’s quite exhausting, in a good way, to watch. It tells the story of the decade-long battle between top…

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