Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2008

Matthew Bourne's Dorian Gray

Thoroughly modern Oscar

21 Aug 2008

Although no one would bat an eyelid today, Oscar Wilde’s gothic novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray caused shock and outrage when it was published in 1890. The tale of an impressionable young man who becomes obsessed with his own image, had a little too…

5 Questions: Dance

21 Aug 2008

David WW Johnstone, artistic director of Edinburgh-based experimental arts unit talks about his new show, Aurora Borealis, and why you should be heading to Dance Base to see it What 5 things/people inspire you most in your work? Japanese…

Deca Dance 2008

21 Aug 2008

Whenever you read about Batsheva Dance Company, a few key words come up time and again; adjectives like ‘exuberant’, ‘joyful’ and ‘energetic’. This is thanks, in large part, to their choreographer Ohad Naharin. Drawing together short sections from ten…

Family

Martial arts and B-boy battles

21 Aug 2008

Head spins. Body spins. Spinning hand stands. Spinning kicks. Spinning on one hand. This energetic show from Korea makes outrageous martial arts and breakdance moves look so effortless that you begin to believe you could do it all yourself.

Hitlist: Dance

21 Aug 2008

Deca Dance 2008 A stunning retrospective of works by choreographer, Ohad Naharin and his incredible Batsheva Dance Company. Take your non-dance loving friends and convert them. Edinburgh Playhouse, 473 2000, 28–30 Aug, 8pm, £8–£28. Matthew…

Hitlist: Kids

21 Aug 2008

The Echo Chamber and We All Fall Down Two top notch shows from En Masse Theatre. Journey down into the dark, damp vaults beneath Edinburgh’s Old Town in The Echo Chamber or learn about the colourful characters in two plague-ridden villages in We All…

Office Party

Tasteless delights

14 Aug 2008

Seldom were ham and cheese so well combined in a sandwich as in Cal McCrystal’s interactive version of that familiar titular institution, the office party. The show may be disrupted here and there by its structure, but this seems to do nothing to dampen…

Yasser

An original take on the Middle East conflict

14 Aug 2008

The concept of national identity becomes ever more fragile in the absence of a nation state. A people bereft of the glue that binds modern communities together – whether real or imagined – risk having their identity defined by others, moulded by…

1913 or Nude Descending Staircase

14 Aug 2008

Through the true story of Maria Tarnowska, Russian countess and convicted criminal, this play explores the status and position of women in society, politics and art, in and around the year 1913. Though well researched, the piece struggles to live up to…

5 Reasons To Go See - John Renbourn

14 Aug 2008

1 He’s an axe hero OK, he’s not in the same mould as Slash, but the veteran English guitarist and songwriter delivers an exemplary, dextrous mix of blues, folk, classical and jazz to wow his audience. 2 He’s a Pentangle Renbourn was one of the…

Baldanders

Polish puppetry for adults

14 Aug 2008

Baldanders examines the relationship between a freak show master and his caged beast. Inspired by the fantastical, existential ideas of Edgar Allen Poe, Jorge Luis Borges and Topor, it’s a thorny and enigmatic show that explores man’s desire for…

Beyonce – Stop Punching Robbie!

14 Aug 2008

Being a nursery teacher in Tower Hamlets is no picnic, especially when you have a divorce and the under-fives numeracy skills development programme to contend with. Cecilia Delatori re-establishes the comic potential of the dramatic monologue with…

Bite the Dust

Polish satire lost in translation

14 Aug 2008

First there is the show that should have been. Originally staged in the late-70s, Bite the Dust is a satirical sideswipe at the military mindset. It proved so controversial in Poland that playwright Tadeusz Rólewicz withdrew the performance rights.

Borderline

Repetitive beat poetry

14 Aug 2008

The Stone Roses come on, and over in the corner there’s always one monged fella pivoting off the wall. He starts monkey-dancing closer like he thinks he’s Ian Brown, gurning and chewing his face off with the pills. He’s pointing at you. He’s looking you…

Boys of the Empire

High-camp boy’s own comedy deserves six of the best

14 Aug 2008

This self-consciously silly, satirical stab at the boy’s own adventure wants to be Just William with a nod towards The History Boys by way of Michael Palin’s Ripping Yarns. Set between an English boarding school in the late 1930s, and the newly re-named…

Britt Ekland: Britt on Britt

A Swedish sexagenarian’s exploits

14 Aug 2008

‘Who is Britt Ekland?’ So the former Bond girl and one-time wife of Peter Sellers begins her frank and surprisingly funny whistle stop tour of her enchantingly colourful life. Offering glimpses of the young starlet who entranced the likes of Rod Stewart…

Bully

14 Aug 2008

This gritty one-man show from writer/performer Richard Fry is delivered in rhyming verse and covers a lifetime of violence, loss and homophobia. Fry throws in enough jokes to break up the emotional tone, but this is a serious piece with a strong…

By The Way

On a road to nowhere, for no reason

14 Aug 2008

There’s obviously a lot of talent behind this little two-hander, which follows a pair of friends on a road trip through a dystopian France, where an unnamed plague is killing off everyone’s mothers. The actors are likable and clearly talented, and for…

Christie in Love

14 Aug 2008

Howard Brenton’s play follows the police interrogation of John Reginald Christie, infamous serial killer and rapist. The actors submerge themselves in the roles of the repugnant Christie, an anxious constable (Marco Violino) and domineering inspector…

Confessions and Obsessions of a Thirtysomething Divorcee

14 Aug 2008

In this light-hearted rant about being a thirtysomething woman Xara (Melanie Sherwood) poses questions about love, sex and relationships with a wry sense of humour. With clichés such as dildos, shoes and support pants thrown in, this is a warm-hearted…

Esoterica

No ordinary card

14 Aug 2008

The paradox of a culture that loves to see magic and the sixth sense at work, while refusing to believe in either of them, becomes particularly apparent when, sitting in a darkened room watching one man appear to read another man’s mind, your brain…

Frank Satan In Person

Beguiling and bawdy drinking songs

14 Aug 2008

If you dig Tom Waits, Dean Martin and Hank Williams, then Frank Satan (pronounced ‘Say-tan’) is your man. The long-time alter ego of the Cameo Cinema’s general manager Ian Hoey is back after a lengthy break to regale audiences with a bawdy combo of…

Free comedy

A Pandora's Box of PowerPoint and pointlessness

14 Aug 2008

There is a rebellion at the Fringe this year. High venue costs have caused some artists to take matters into their own hands. Doug Stanhope is charging £7349 for a one-off show in someone's living room and the Free Fringe organisations have brought more…

Frida Kahlo: Viva La Vida

14 Aug 2008

A poised yet gutsy one-woman performance from the talented Gael Le Cornec offers a moving insight into the vibrant life of Mexican artist Frida Kahlo. Avoiding sentimentality, Le Cornec tenderly portrays a woman struggling with physical pain and a…

George Orwell's Coming Up For Air

Funny, tragic stage adaptation of little-known text

14 Aug 2008

What swiftly becomes apparent about this adroit adaptation of George Orwell’s lesser-known 1939 novel is how powerfully it resonates today. Written on the eve of World War II, while the author was in Morocco recovering from an injury sustained fighting…

I Caught Crabs in Walberswick

14 Aug 2008

Joel Horwood’s hilarious play draws on that ever-amusing tendency of adolescents and parents to regard each other as alien life forms, while portraying one volatile friendship in Walberswick. A funky soundtrack, luminous stage and deadpan narration…

I Love You, Bro

Tragedy for the dotcom generation

14 Aug 2008

Johnny (Ash Flanders) just wants to be someone, and online he can be anyone he wants. What starts out as a humorous look at socialising in the digital era swiftly morphs into a dark analysis of our atomised society. After a chance online meeting…

It Ain't All Bollywood

Confused, overwrought look at mental health issues

14 Aug 2008

Part of this year’s InvAsian programme of Asian performance, It Ain’t All Bollywood depicts the trials and tribulations of Kiran, who has descended into an escapist fixation with Bollywood films following the death of her father. As a result, she…

Kiddy-Fiddler on the Roof

14 Aug 2008

At Townsville Comprehensive, teacher Arnold Finkler is falsely accused of molestation and chased by an enraged mob of parents. Included in this pot of madness is a headmaster running away to Thailand, as well as a troupe of Vicky Pollard-ish girls and…

Lie of the Land

Two go mad in the countryside

14 Aug 2008

Him and Her move to the country on her family’s money. Mostly. He contributed, though. He’s not as rich as her, rather lacks her breeding. But he’s kind, and she is trying to civilise him. The important thing is, it’s their house. All theirs. Away from…

Lies Have Been Told: An Evening with Robert Maxwell

Reviled figure rebuffs his critics

14 Aug 2008

The tremendous performance by Phillip York in this one-man show about Robert Maxwell is so impressive you’re likely to find yourself admiring, and even feeling sorry for the once reviled late media mogul. But as towering a performance and uncannily…

Lynn Ferguson – Heart and Sole

14 Aug 2008

Lynn Ferguson’s witty play deals with loneliness, relationships and one woman’s love for a fish named Dave. The star’s effortless talent for characterisation allows her to switch between fish fanatic, brash west coast wifey and timid teacher, mixing wit…

Married to the Sea

Poetic writing tells a coastal tale of loss and decline

14 Aug 2008

A sparse stage and a small cast of three belie the detail in this lyrical tale from the fledgling Dragonfly Theatre. Set against the decline of Galway’s old Claddagh seafaring community, writer/director Shona McCarthy’s first full-length play could have…

Medusa’s Snakes: The Aftermath

14 Aug 2008

Posing the question of what happened to Medusa’s snakes after her death, this play introduces us to Monstrous and Sinclair who, rooted to the decapitated head, plot how to take vengeance for their ‘lady’. The inventive costumes and set cannot compensate…

Metropolitan Cathedral Organ Concerts

New organ put through its paces

14 Aug 2008

Fringe statistics tend to be fairly staggering, but if all the organ pipes on the Fringe were added together, their total would beat the lot. The new organ at St Mary’s Metropolitan Cathedral alone has almost 4000. Built in French style by Matthew…

Miss Sign-On

14 Aug 2008

Every negative stereotype of musical theatre is confirmed in this attempt at satire. The titular diva on the dole is a work-shy luvvie, her agent is a money-grabbing vampire and her gay best friend is sex-starved and superficial. More worrying still is…

Misterioso

Exploring Monk’s elusive mindscape

14 Aug 2008

The often chaotic, always creative and ultimately silent life and times of one of the greatest of all modern jazz giants, pianist Thelonious Monk, is celebrated in this amalgam of music, theatre and video projection from the London-based Theatralia…

More Lives than One – Oscar Wilde and the Black Douglas

14 Aug 2008

Taking inspiration from Micheál MacLiammóir’s legendary one-man show The Importance of Being Oscar, veteran thesp Leslie Clark takes a less sycophantic view of Wildean times. This is illuminating stuff. Clark commandeers the audience, but (among other…

Motherland

Narratives of soldiers’ mothers who bear the burden of war

14 Aug 2008

Motherland is a piece of verbatim theatre, which gives voice to the testaments of women from the north east of England who had children serving in the armed forces in war zones. With the least amount of staging, the individual voices, which are studied…

Opera Shorts

Intimate new work in bite-sized chunks

14 Aug 2008

In its inaugural run of performances, this new opera company provides a showcase of some of Edinburgh’s freshest talent with a set of four 15-minute long operas. The intimacy of such a small theatre helps captivate the audience, and the paucity of props…

Paperweight

Flawed peek into daily office life

14 Aug 2008

Squeezing into one of the tiniest Fringe venues – a modest office in the Assembly Rooms – this two-man show is about as up close and personal as you can get to what’s happening onstage. Arrive early for a seat: you have the choice of a box against the…

Philotus

14 Aug 2008

This is one of only two surviving Scottish plays from the time of Shakespeare. This Fringe production is a rare staging, and its first-ever appearance during the Festival. On its own, that is probably a good enough reason to see it. The key to this…

Please Don’t Feed The Models

14 Aug 2008

Preview-weekend jitters and some ill-judged characterisations hamper what would otherwise be a decent Fringe debut for former international model Sara Standring. She demonstrates some acting versatility, but her attempts to tackle some of the more…

Reasonable Doubt

Confessions in a Sydney hotel suite

14 Aug 2008

Two former jurors reunite in a hotel room two years after a controversial hung verdict in this smart two-hander from Australian playwright Suzie Miller. Both harbour guilty secrets, and sex – initially top priority – is soon shelved in favour of a…

Sideshow: The Weirdest Show on Earth

Electric cabaret with a dark side

14 Aug 2008

This isn’t any cabaret show. This is a circus on acid (or perhaps the poppers that the beautiful freak crowds are into nowadays). This is a late-night step into the realm of nightmares for a dastardly conglomeration of comedic, titillating…

Sister Cities

Death and the maidens

14 Aug 2008

If naturalistic plays set in living rooms are not your bag, then it might be wise to avoid Sister Cities. But, for all its conventionality, Colette Freedman’s black comedy contrives to constantly amuse with crisp, observant dialogue and nicely tempered…

Some People Think I’m Odd

14 Aug 2008

With her twitchy mouth and darting eyes, Jane Frost is compelling as Pandora, a woman who cut up teddy bears as a child and murdered her sister’s boyfriend aged 15. Using Punch and Judy puppets, Frost conveys a world of alienation and delusion, but her…

St Nicholas

All theatre critics are bloodsucking scum

14 Aug 2008

Conor McPherson was clearly settling old scores when he wrote St Nicholas in 1997. Like many of his earliest plays, it’s a monologue and tall tale. This one is told by a successful Dublin theatre critic, a self professed ‘hack and a drunkard’. Bitter…

Stefan Golaszewski Speaks About A Girl He Once Loved

Bold, original show from sickeningly talented young performer

14 Aug 2008

Stefan Golaszewski’s a sickeningly talented young man. Squished into a sweaty attic in the Pleasance and armed with nothing more than a handful of props and some banging techo music, the young London lad is bowling over audiences with his first solo…

Surviving Spike

The taming of the Goon

14 Aug 2008

He was a maverick, a one-off, a free-associating comedy anarchist. So what’s the point in paying tribute to Spike Milligan with a bio-play that is safe, conventional and cosy? The tone of Surviving Spike by Richard Harris has far more in common with the…

Ten Days . . . That Shook the Kitchen!

14 Aug 2008

A magazine article inspires misfit mum Ruth Rich (Ginny Davis) to conclude that a life of playground politics and petty parent jealousy is definitely not where she belongs. Davis’ monologue, presented in the clipped, matter of fact sentences of a diary…

The Bastard Children of Australian Folk: CWQ

Oddball eclecticism from down under

14 Aug 2008

Melting together genres from Celtic to klezmer, the pioneering Australian folk band CWQ present the result of mixing musical traditions from across the world in The Bastard Children of Australian Folk. Exploring and moulding the entire gamut of…

The Bird and the Bee: The Bird

Tales of love and abuse

14 Aug 2008

It almost goes without saying that abusive behaviour visited upon a person in childhood can lead to dysfunction later in life. This idea is explored in this second part of successive companion pieces at the Fringe from Kandinsky, whose earlier work…

The Caravan

Impressive site specific verbatim piece

14 Aug 2008

One of modern Britain’s cruel realities is that, while a US presidential hopeful dominates front page news, the continued homelessness of thousands of UK citizens after the 2007 floods, has gone largely ignored. When this situation is mentioned, it is…

The Gymnast

Harrowing history makes for unsatisfying theatre

14 Aug 2008

This curious collage of movement, speech, sound and lighting FX creates an impressionistic portrayal of life under the Khmer Rouge regime in Cambodia. Opening with a series of statistics and dates, we are bombarded with the major losses and severity of…

The Murder Monologues

14 Aug 2008

There are few things more grating in the theatre than a bad American accent. This set of monologues sports not one but two, with both actors mangling the impact of their respective lines, veering from what initially sounds like a Russian twang to…

The Rebel Cell

14 Aug 2008

Rap is the language of rebellion in Babasword Productions’ dystopian futuristic England. The central dichotomy – change from within the system versus rebellion against the system – is essentially a very simple one, which is dissected down to molecular…

The Riot Showgrrrls Club

Cabaret fun with an anti-porn message

14 Aug 2008

A polemic against mainstream pornography is not what you’d expect from two be-corseted cabaret performers, but as the Riot Showgrrrls say themselves, there’s a difference between taste and morality, and this show aims to celebrate the flamboyant…

The Six Wives of Timothy Leary

Surprising glimpses into a controversial life

14 Aug 2008

It’s a tragedy of our age that the 60s, a period of unparalleled liberation and social progress for ordinary people, is portrayed today as a kind of absurd self-indulgence from which we were all lucky to recover. This piece goes a little way to…

Three Flying Solo

14 Aug 2008

One of three new plays under the ‘Flying Solo’ banner, Annie George’s Noor evokes striking and vivid images in an intimate autobiographical journey. Charting the details of a tempestuous relationship, Noor narrates her miscarriage and despair, each…

Titus Andronicus

14 Aug 2008

The blood and guts-strewn storyline of Shakespeare’s Titus Andronicus is executed here with real flair. Condensing its weighty narrative to a tightly-wound 75 minutes, the play’s themes of rape, murder and race are laid bare in all their savage glory.

Torn Out Pages

14 Aug 2008

In her 60s youth, fear of shame kept child abuse hidden, but now Elaine (Susan McKenzie) wants to find out the truth from her mother’s ghost. While described as a comedy, the piece is in fact deeply moving as, complemented by music and video, each actor…

Transient

14 Aug 2008

Theatre group Goose, Goose, Gander brings a claustrophobic exploration of the fractured geography of postwar Germany to this cramped cellar venue. But, once the novelty of the setting wears off, the narrative overstays its welcome. Despite this, a…

Vincent

Hazy portrait of an artist

14 Aug 2008

Leonard ‘Spock’ Nimoy’s one-man show about Dutch painter Vincent Van Gogh explores the last ten years of the artist’s life, looking into the events leading up to his suicide. American actor Jim Jarrett plays both Vincent and his brother Theo, whom we…

Wanderlust

14 Aug 2008

Sometimes a performance is only as good as the audience that’s watching. This has never been more true than in Wanderlust, in which ten-foot Fraulein Hilda narrates her surreal life story. From her lowly (geddit?) roots, be-stilted Hilda weaves her…

You Don’t Need to Know That

14 Aug 2008

Gonzo Moose presents a farce based on Hitchcock’s North By Northwest, in which an innocent man is accused of an unknown crime. Some exceptional spoof thriller moments arise from the metallic filing cabinets that comprise the set even if, overall, the…

Kristen Schaal - Heart of daftness

7 Aug 2008

Kristen Schaal merges sinister and sweet with terrifying success. Claire Sawers chats to her while hoping she doesn’t do that angry, erotic sheep thing.

Ecstasy

MDMA-fuelled love story

7 Aug 2008

Based on ‘The Undefeated’, one of three stories from Irvine Welsh’s 1996 novel Ecstasy, this piece centres around Lloyd (Jack McGowan), an ageing clubber who wants more out of life than living for the weekend. In the meantime, though, he’s content to…

Festival News In Brief

7 Aug 2008

The Performing Rights Soci ety (PRS) has announced plans to give more new talent the chance to perform in front of a Fringe audience on Sunday 10 August at this year?s Fringe Sunday festivities. A small group of musical types from the worlds of rock…

Five Questions: Paul Foot

7 Aug 2008

A late and dramatic entry to the Fringe programme, Paul Foot brings us a show entitled Off (The Top of/With)* His Head: *Delete One or Both As Applicable. Quite.

Freeze! - Cold comfort

7 Aug 2008

Tom Basden may be an award-winning comic but, he tells David Pollock, that doesn’t stop him from being tormented by a fellow-Coward ‘I just didn’t want to rush a follow-up to the show I did in Edinburgh last year,’ says comedian Tom Basden, current…

Hitlist: Festival comedy

7 Aug 2008

Kristen Schaal and Kurt Braunohler ‘Bona fide kooky monster’ Schaal offers more of her surreal blend of the dark and the utterly wholesome in the company of comedy partner Braunohler.

Hitlist: Festival theatre

7 Aug 2008

The Idiot Colony. Terrifying insight into the penal system that branded women ‘moral defectives’ for crimes such as homosexuality or having children out of wedlock.

John Lewis' Window Fringes

7 Aug 2008

Writer and performer of Ten Days, Festival virgin Ginny Davis, will perform extracts from her show in the front window of the John Lewis store on Leith Street, between 3.30-4pm on Thursday 7 August. Her performance will include a live karaoke version of…

Jonny Woo: International Woman of Mr ‘E’

Moving and darkly comic one-(wo)man show

7 Aug 2008

Moving and darkly comic one-(wo)man show. Jonny Woo, drag queen darling of the London alt.queer scene appears onstage beneath sequined butterfly make-up and various costumes. He knows that the act of wearing a mask is designed to reveal rather than…

New Art Club - Festival virgins

7 Aug 2008

What with the smelly costumes and saunas, it's been a mixed debut week at the Fringe for New Art Club. They take us through the highs and lows of their first Festival pillaging. Reasons to be cheerful - Being accosted by a multi-coloured…

Oh water night!

7 Aug 2008

Happily the rain didn't spoil this year's List Festival Party - if anything it enhanced the tropical atmosphere. Burlesque stilt-masters waded through the crowd as Clarkson & Crouch provoked giggles with their slick comedy, topping off a dazzling…

Take 5: Festival people

7 Aug 2008

The Agent: 'Oh but isn't he just hil-ar-i-ously funny daahling? We're lining him up for his own Friday Night Project series. He's on Mock the Week next month, y'know . . .' The sacred golden comic cash cow's agent coos down the phone. If only she could…

The British Ambassador's Belly Dancer

Shaking things up

7 Aug 2008

Belly dancing, spanking, stripping and politics are the intriguing ingredients of this rags-to-riches tale in which object of media notoriety Nadira Aleiva (who was mistress to the controversial former ambassador in Uzbekistan, Craig Murray) tells her…

The Fooligan

Tall tales by candlelight

7 Aug 2008

Al Seed displays an enviable gift for storytelling alongside a physical prowess to rival Max Wall in this one-man show. A vibrant series of clowning tableaux breaks up this atmospheric tale within a tale, as Seed recounts the exploits of one of the…

The Terrible Infants

7 Aug 2008

Are you sitting comfortably girls and boys? Good, then I’ll begin . . . Les Enfants Terribles’ award-winning theatrical banquet, The Terrible Infants, is a delirious blend of puppetry, live music, twisted fairy tales and physical theatre, populated by…

Waverley Care Fringe Fundraising

7 Aug 2008

Waverley Care, Scotland's leading HIV charity, has launched a programme of events in a bid to raise over £25,000 during the Fringe. Adam Hills will host more than 14 of his rib-tickling contemporaries, including Ed Byrne and Rich Hall, at the Festival…

What the guide books don't tell you about Edinburgh in August

7 Aug 2008

Don't stay out past 3am You may arrive rejoicing in the 5am bar extensions but a night spent witnessing the sweaty, monstrous creeps that emerge after the conservative 2.55am mark will dissuade forever more. And they were the friends you came with.

Wheels of Life

From Russia – via Glasgow – with love

7 Aug 2008

It’s hard to call Wheels of Life, the new production by Sharmanka Kinetic Theatre, a ‘play’ as such. Huddled in the intimate Theatre Workshop venue, the audience is confronted with a macabre toy box of intricate artistic contraptions; a captivating maze…

New tricks - Magic on the Fringe

5 Aug 2008

Conjuring tricks and card chicanery may have long disappeared from our tellies, but as Claire Sawers discovers, the appeal of stage magic has never really gone away. It’s hard to believe now, but during the 80s, Paul Daniels was must-see television.

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest

5 Aug 2008

Dale Wasserman’s adaptation of Ken Kesey’s novel, which celebrates one man’s attempt to subvert subtle hegemonic control, is given a treatment here that few texts deserve. Across the clumsy set, which resembles the whitewashed innards of an inside-out…

Outward Bound

5 Aug 2008

Camper than Kenneth Williams in a tent, Dan Hyde and Michele Flatto seize a school excursion as a backdrop for their patchy culture clash comedy. Part coming-of-age drama, part getting-to-understand-each-other buddy movie, this piece’s humour never…

The Fringe 2008

edfest.tv - video

5 Aug 2008

On 6th June 2008 the Edinburgh Fringe was launched. With over 18,000 performers putting on over 2000 shows, Fringe Director Jon Morgan previews this year's mega-fest.

Office Party

Party On

31 Jul 2008

The medieval feast of fools was an event where established hierarchies were overturned, sexual and social proprieties were transgressed and the everyday laws of the culture were suspended. It’s the subject of academic study all over Europe, where…

Saddle up

31 Jul 2008

As a posse of spoof country and western acts rides towards the Fringe, Allan Radcliffe asks why songs about rednecks, guns and erections make for sublime comedy

Pajama Men - Night moves

31 Jul 2008

Their brand of unique, unhinged comedy has had critics and judges raving about the Pajama Men. Claire Sawers finds that they’re keeping the silly wigs firmly in the bag The voice on the phone sounds impossibly camp. It has a slick and persuasive way…

InvAsian Festival

Culture shock

31 Jul 2008

When, earlier this year, a BBC executive lamented the continued dominance of a ‘liberal, white, middle class elite’ across British television, his words could equally have been applied to Edinburgh in August. For all the Fringe’s variety, the number of…

Polish theatre

Poles apart

31 Jul 2008

Sitting in a picturesque café in the heart of Warsaw – Poland’s capital and largest city – it’s easy to forget the turbulent history that has shaped this country’s place in the world today. The city has long had a reputation as a vibrant playground…

Three Billy Goats Gruff

31 Jul 2008

This is the third year in a row that the very wonderful Theatre of Widdershins has played the Fringe – and, rather appropriately, they’re doing a show all about threes: the eponymous goats, plus a few other fairytale characters such as Goldilocks’ pals…

Wisecrackin’ Mindsqueezin’ Behemoth - Big time

31 Jul 2008

Their first stage meeting involved simulated copulation. John-Luke Roberts and Nadia Kamil now make beautiful music in their Behemoth sketch guise. Brian Donaldson hears about the pair’s celebrity fans and those nasty critics

5 Questions - Andi Neate

31 Jul 2008

One of Edinburgh’s most beguiling singer-songwriters gives us her lowdown on the festivities 5 words to describe your show Original, folk-rock, organic, origamic, neate! 4 shows you’re looking forward to seeing in Edinburgh this August Camille…

5 Questions: 2FaCeD

31 Jul 2008

What five words describe how a 2FaCeD DaNcE show makes you feel? High, energised, happy, wow, sexy. What four things have brought you back to the Fringe? The atmosphere, different venues, further opportunities, the challenge. Name three major…

Adam Riches

A host of he-men and myriad of macho types flex themselves

31 Jul 2008

Last Fringe, Adam Riches introduced us to Victor Legit, the musclebound bully who made a barely honest living as a surveillance officer for the Federation Against Copyright Theft. This year, Victor is joined by a host of other creations out of the…

Andrew Lawrence - Sit tight

31 Jul 2008

He may no longer be the stage psychopath with a killer tune and attitude to match, but Andrew Lawrence is still not exactly a cosy act. Marissa Burgess tentatively meets the man behind the growl Andrew Lawrence is a comedian in a state of constant…

Bale de Rua

Brazilian rhythm of life

31 Jul 2008

Being short of cash can lead to some surprisingly good results. Back in 2004, when Brazilian company, Bale de Rua found themselves without a costume budget, they improvised with paint instead. Covering their skin with bright colours, the effect was…

Barb Jungr sings Nina Simone

Barb’s hymn to Nina

31 Jul 2008

Barb Jungr has turned to the music of Nina Simone for her latest project, following the release of her Just Like a Woman album (a title that also neatly evokes her earlier Dylan project) with this live show dedicated to the woman whose voice and musical…

Barry and Stuart

31 Jul 2008

You may have seen these guys on the telly upsetting everyone from Christians to their female fans when they unleashed the plagues, walked on water, turned staffs into serpents and generally did lots of stuff that it’s in the Bible. Concocting more…

Camille: the Dark Angel

31 Jul 2008

Some festival veterans would appear to be gluttons for punishment, others just seem to return again and again only to grow in stature. Dublin’s Camille O’Sullivan is very much of the latter category and is among the most celebrated and cherished of…

Capoeira Knights

31 Jul 2008

This lively lot are the real deal – 16 athletic performers straight from the streets, or favelas, of Brazil. Capoeira is termed ‘a fight disguised as a dance’ in their native land, and helps to channel energies into more creative endeavours. Featuring…

Clockheart Boy

Mechanical inventions explore life and death

31 Jul 2008

It may not seem the ideal topic to build a family show around, but grief regularly pops its head up in children’s film and theatre. As Nicola Cutcher, co-director of Clockheart Boy says, ‘even The Lion King is about death’. Cutcher and her company…

Cloudcuckooland

31 Jul 2008

When Greek comic playwright, Aristophanes wrote The Birds in 414 BC, he could scarcely have imagined where his masterpiece would end up. Although given his taste for humour and bad behaviour, chances are he would have loved Cloudcuckooland, a new…

Dance Base Presents…

One stop shop for dance fans

31 Jul 2008

Pop open the Dance Base brochure and what do you see? A picture of artistic director, Morag Deyes beckoning you into one of the most striking arts-centred buildings in Edinburgh. And why go? To see what will be one of the more eclectic, stimulating and…

Dirt

Sensitive inquiry into what it means to be an outsider

31 Jul 2008

From the United States comes Dirt, a contemplative monologue that addresses racism. Originally written in German, Dirt tells the story of a 30-year-old Iraqi man who is grateful to live (albeit illegally) in an English-speaking city. Selling roses on…

Ed Byrne - Cry freedom

31 Jul 2008

Amnesty International supporter Ed Byrne may not be sure where he fits in any more but, as he tells Doug Johnstone, this keeps him in material

Felix Dexter - Comedy shuffle

31 Jul 2008

At the RSC he pretended to be the sea and in Edinburgh he sparred with Christian Slater. Leaving the theatre behind for now, Felix Dexter tells Julian Hall that he’s happy again with his first love It’s the first time in over a decade that Felix…

Finished With Engines

Attack Mode

31 Jul 2008

Stephanie Viola and Drew Friedman, draped sleepily about a rehearsal room, don’t look much like wisecracking sailors with the power to blow up the world. It might be the jet lag. The New York-based actors, best known as founder members of the multi…

Five questions - Tall Stories

31 Jul 2008

Armed with two shows – The Gruffalo and How the Giraffe Got Its Neck – Tall Stories return to conquer the Fringe once again Name 5 words to describe the Tall Stories style Physical, visual, musical, comical, universal. What 4 things should good…

Free Outgoing

True-life tale explores India’s traditional attitudes to sex

31 Jul 2008

It was a real-life incident that prompted Chennai-based playwright Anupama Chandrasekhar to write Free Outgoing, which depicts a country’s anger when an Indian schoolgirl is filmed with a boy in her classroom. ‘I heard the girl’s family migrated…

Fringe celebs

Star turns

31 Jul 2008

Joan Rivers, the funnywoman and enemy of Loose Women stars in her play on the ups and downs of ageing, Work in Progress by a Life in Progress. Karen Dunbar, the Chewing the Fat star gets serious in Denise Mina’s A Drunk Woman Looks at the Thistle.

Gavin and Gavin

Irish sisters deliver a personal show that’s distinctly close to home

31 Jul 2008

Irish sisters deliver a personal show that’s distinctly close to home. ‘I’m the feistier, gobbier one. Lauretta’s quieter,’ says Sharon Gavin about her older sister, the other half of Gavin & Gavin. ‘But if you piss her off, she’s the Incredible…

Heartbreak Soup

31 Jul 2008

Spending time in hospital isn’t ideal at any age, but for children it’s even less appealing. It was while working with children undergoing heart and lung transplant surgery, that Laura Lindow became inspired to write Heartbreak Soup. ‘I’m not using…

Hitlist - Festival comedy

31 Jul 2008

David O’Doherty The Irish muso-comic delivers more ribald whimsy with a tiny keyboard and giant talent. The Stand III & IV, 558 7272, 1–24 Aug (not 11), 9pm, £9.50 (£8.50). Previews until 31 Aug, £8.50 (£7.50). Sarah Millican The north-east…

Hitlist: Festival Dance

31 Jul 2008

Dance Base Presents . . . Scotland’s National Centre for Dance welcomes you into another packed programme. Dance Base, 225 5525, 7–16 Aug (not 11), times vary, £11 (£7). Preview 6 Aug, £6. Pericles Redux Californian physical theatre company No…

Idiots of Ants

Internet sensations return with more sketches firmly on the side of silly

31 Jul 2008

A lot of modern comedy dwells on the darker side of life, but that’s not an accusation to be levelled at Idiots of Ants. The London-based four-man sketch act can be placed firmly in the ‘daft’ file, and if you don’t believe us just check out their…

Interrupt

Relationship drama on the dancefloor

31 Jul 2008

The bustle of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe is not necessarily the ideal place to premiere a new piece by a new company. But David Beer, of still wet-behind-the-ears classical/contemporary dance company, Collisions, is letting the experience shape his…

InvAsian Festival

Choreography from across the Continent

31 Jul 2008

There’s no shortage of diverse dance at the Fringe, but seldom do you find it all under one roof. The InvAsian Festival, however, is priding itself on bringing together a wide range of performers from throughout the eponymous continent, and basing them…

Isy Suttie

The homespun revolution continues with Matlock’s character comic

31 Jul 2008

‘It’s called The Suttie Show; I knew I would use that title at some point,’ explains Isy Suttie of the serendipitous naming of her new show.

James Campbell's Shut Up Stupid

Comic plays for kids of all ages

31 Jul 2008

James Campbell is envied and acclaimed across the comedy universe for carving out a triumphant career performing stand-up for kids. While his Comedy Club 4 Kids continues to train young folk from the ages of six upwards in the hard-nosed business of…

Jason Cook

Bringing joy with honeymoons, confessions and midgets

31 Jul 2008

Geordie comedian Jason Cook looks at the Fringe like a month-long Christmas day. In fact, he wants his show this year to be a caring, sharing, warm hug of a thing, where people feel so uplifted, they’ll be crying when they leave. As his alter ego, Herr…

John Pinette

Fringe debut for big talent who appeared in Seinfeld

31 Jul 2008

A heavyweight performer in every sense, John Pinette never imagined he’d be playing ‘a place where I have the best cholesterol in the country’. The 44-year-old Bostonian has been a stand-up comedian half his life and a muffin devotee far longer, earning…

Johnny Candon

Dublin comic finds his theme with a personal story free of sentiment

31 Jul 2008

At last year’s Fringe, Johnny Candon was dancing around in a bear costume for Tony Law’s Revenge of the Dog of Time, but for many years the Dublin-born stand-up has been successfully gigging all over the world. Candon has been a background name in the…

Keith Farnan

Irish comic’s debut shot rips apart America’s attitude to criminal justice

31 Jul 2008

Irish comic’s debut shot rips apart America’s attitude to criminal justice. When Keith Farnan was contemplating his first hour-long show at the Fringe, he wasn’t short of advice from fellow comics. ‘I listened to everyone who had done well and those who…

Lough/Rain

New writing explores themes of love and stoicism

31 Jul 2008

The spirit of adventure brought to the Fringe by the Underbelly has always been about new work, but this year’s programme seems to lean, more than ever, towards new writing, above and beyond the usual array of physical and visual theatre. Notable among…

Lucy Porter

31 Jul 2008

It seems wrong to describe Lucy Porter as a Fringe veteran but with an Edinburgh career dating back to 1995 when she was a finalist in So You Think You’re Funny (the winner that year was some guy called Lee Mack) that’s how she’s now known.

Lucy Porter - Festival veteran

31 Jul 2008

Lucy Porter wanted to be like Kate Adie but ended up being more like Lee Evans. That’s what repeatedly coming to the Fringe does to you. She doesn’t mind though… The Edinburgh Fringe Festival ruined my life. That sounds melodramatic, but it’s absolutely…

Luke Toulson

31 Jul 2008

‘I don’t want to be a testosterone-charged alpha male on stage,’ says stand-up Luke Toulson. ‘I’m very aware I’m an idiot, and generally assume the audience is more intelligent than me.’ It’s self-deprecating talk, but then Toulson has written his…

Lynn Ferguson - Fringe benefits

31 Jul 2008

Never one to do things by halves, Lynn Ferguson is performing not one but two plays at this year’s Fringe. Here are her top four survival tips Take a publicist - Hopefully one that you know/like already. Failing that, steal someone else’s. If you don’t…

Mark Olver - Journey's end

31 Jul 2008

In June, Mark Olver set off by foot from Bristol to Edinburgh, relying on the kindness of strangers to get shelter and material for Ramble On. He tells of the shuddering climax to his fantastic voyage ‘I can see Arthur’s Seat’ I said excitedly as I…

No Place For Dreams

31 Jul 2008

No Place For Dreams is Brief Candle Theatre’s debut production at the Fringe, and artistic director, Dave Shimwell is ‘absolutely thrilled about this great family show we’re putting on.’ The show is set on a mythical volcanic island, where magical…

Obong

Celebration of Nigerian music and dance

31 Jul 2008

It’s easy to lump African dance together into one big melting pot of bright costumes and tribal drums. In reality, not only does each country have a distinct style, so too does each region within it. Hailing from Cross River State in Nigeria, the Obong…

Painting Music Workshop

31 Jul 2008

We all have images in our heads when we listen to music, but capturing them on paper isn’t something many people attempt. Rhuti Carr of Painting Music, however, has made an entire career out of doing just that. Her workshops feature live music, large…

Pericles Redux

Getting physical with the Bard

31 Jul 2008

‘Putting Shakespeare to dance is a dangerous thing to tackle,’ says John Farmanesh-Bocca about his ‘wild retelling’ of Pericles. ‘People are like, “well, are you going to make it a dance or are you actually going to speak the language properly?” We’re…

Reginald D Hunter - Tall tales

31 Jul 2008

Reginald D Hunter is a giant of UK stand-up. But, as he tells Jay Richardson, he’s still trying to escape the sins of his father ‘I have always found Edinburgh intense, in my soul and in my belly. You can’t say there ain’t tension in my shows. It’s…

Rise

Extreme movement meets electronica

31 Jul 2008

Dry ice fills the air while hooded dancers move across a dimly lit stage. Despite the huge, wide space they occupy, there’s something oppressive and deeply atmospheric about Tom Dale’s new show, Rise. All of this is conveyed through a tiny clip on…

Rose Street Ensemble

Eclectic orchestrations from broadminded classicalists

31 Jul 2008

What might a melancholy lute piece by the English Renaissance composer John Dowland and a traditional Romanian folk tune have in common? Not a lot, except that both have been used as the basis of later works for string orchestra. In a fascinating…

Sammy J

The rude puppet show that blew Oz away roasts everything in its path

31 Jul 2008

‘If you put Disney, Les Mis and Queen in a blender, it might sound a little like our show,’ explains Sammy J, the delicately framed Antipodean whose puppet show Forest of Dreams is hoping to charm Edinburgh audiences. ‘That said,’ he continues, ‘the…

Sarah Millican - Credit crunch

31 Jul 2008

Sarah Millican is putting a sad past behind her and profiting from pain. Marissa Burgess pops round for a cuppa and finds that the Geordie comic may not be as dastardly as she wants us to believe

Scaramouche Jones

Quintessential English hero finally arrives north of the border

31 Jul 2008

Millennium Fever took hold at the end of the last century, with some people anticipating the end of the world and others a fresh start. But after two world wars, the demise of the British Empire, and dizzying technological advances, England seemed to be…

Scottish Opera: Cinderella

A fairytale debut at the Fringe

31 Jul 2008

It’s probably safe to say that Scottish Opera is the only name which appears in both the music programme of the International Festival as well as the Fringe. As part of their continuing quest to bring high quality opera to a new audience, the company…

Sean Grant

Curmudgeonly Scots comic with show which pricks a few balloons

31 Jul 2008

Reigning Scottish Comedian of the Year and through to the So You Think You’re Funny? competition semi-finals, Sean Grant only began performing stand-up last summer after a declaration of love. ‘I’d always enjoyed watching comedy, but it never occurred…

Stephen K Amos

31 Jul 2008

Who’s he then? Stephen K Amos is a 30-something actor, comedian and documentary-maker whose Batty Boy involved him going on a journey from his south London backyard to Jamaica in an attempt to discover why homophobia is so prevalent among black…

Take 5: Ways to avoid being flyered

31 Jul 2008

The Sleeve: The incredible hand-less woman! Was it a freak hand-dryer accident? Or a genetic mutation of great Uncle Albert’s short fingers? No it is The Sleeve. Imbued with ancient and mystical powers, The Sleeve should scare off those rogue…

Tales From an Enchanted Forest

31 Jul 2008

Bright lights, big sets and fancy costumes are all very well, but sometimes it’s nice to let your imagination do some of the work. The three storytellers taking part in Tales From An Enchanted Forest are allowing you to do just that. Each day, one of…

The Burma Play - A Comedy of Terror

Burma’s political nightmare, from colonial times to the present day

31 Jul 2008

The Fringe may be brimming with comedians cracking gags at the expense of politicians, but it would be fair to presume that few, if any, have tried out their material under the watch of a police state. The Burma Play, however, was inspired by…

The Cholmondeleys and the Featherstonehaughs

Dance of Death

31 Jul 2008

It’s hardly damning the cast of Dancing On Your Grave to call them a handful of dead-beats. Created by the veteran choreographer Lea Anderson for members of her two cult dance companies, The Cholmondeleys (pronounced ‘chum-leez’) and The…

The Factory

Theatrical technology

31 Jul 2008

A questioning of human nature and love of technology has defined Bristol-based company Precarious in recent years. Both Junction 8 and Druthers explored aspects of ourselves we’d sometimes rather forget, and presented them in a cutting-edge fashion. Now…

The Lighthouse Keeper

31 Jul 2008

‘Clowning has an ageless appeal,’ says Clive Nicholas Andrews, of his new one-man show, The Lighthouse Keeper. ‘When I was a kid I grew up loving people like Charlie Chaplin, Laurel and Hardy and Buster Keaton. I’d call my style clowning with added…

The Meeting - Suits you sir

31 Jul 2008

Three young talents have variously got a boardroom comedy, a sketch show and a student competition to contend with. Our chair Julian Hall asks if there is any other business This year it’s going to be hard for many Fringe-goers to leave work too far…

The Real Daniel O'Donnell Show

Sketch stuff which will cheerily upset fans of the crooning Irish icon

31 Jul 2008

The festival is, as always, packed full of worthy messages with comedy addressing everything from politics to love via environmental disasters. When asked about his Fringe sketch show, comedian Michael Legge replies gleefully ‘oh, it’s childishly…

The Sun Dragon

31 Jul 2008

Following the highly acclaimed Little Red Things, Gomito Productions return with the second instalment in their trilogy, The Sun Dragon. Writer/director, Rich Rusk is excited about the upcoming show, which features live music, puppets assembled out of…

The Wilders

Honky-tonk storytelling with added goatee

31 Jul 2008

As Ike Sheldon, the Missouri-born lead singer and guitarist of the country four-piece The Wilders, likes to say, ‘you can take the boy out of the country, but you can’t take the country out of the boy.’ Sheldon’s got the hillbilly sound in him. He can’t…

Theatre to stimulate the senses

Far Up! Far Out! Far More!

31 Jul 2008

Wanderlust This interactive club event returns audiences to the spirit of 1930s Berlin with its electrifying fusion of circus and cabaret, all administered by a ten-foot Fraulein. Underbelly, 0844 545 8252, 2–24 Aug (not 11), 11.30pm, £9–£10.50…

Tim Minchin - Looney tunes

31 Jul 2008

Not one for being stuck in a pigeonhole, Tim Minchin is a musician, actor, comic and father. Anna Millar meets the man who looks like a scarecrow and is terrifying the world of traditional stand-up comedy

Top 5: Acceptable in the 80s?

Umbrage Swain & The Magical Diamond of Ramtutiti

31 Jul 2008

Umbrage Swain is set to go on the hunt for the Magical Diamond of Ramtutiti. Here he tells us the best (i.e. least horrible) things about the decade that taste, fashion, sense, class and decency completely forgot.

Transgression

Bikers and breakers take it to the limit

31 Jul 2008

Prepare for the ultimate in urban sports, as rival factions clash for control of the concrete jungle using skateboards, BMXs, breakdancing and free running instead of fists. Transgression grew out of the passion and skill of Edinburgh’s ‘urban…

Vincent - Jim Jarrett

Lasting impression

31 Jul 2008

A one-man play about an iconic Dutch post-impressionist painter, scripted by the man best-known for playing a pointy-eared alien would be worth seeing for sheer curiosity value alone. What’s perhaps more surprising is that, since its first production in…

War and Conflict

Theatre of war

31 Jul 2008

There’s always a profit to be made from war. The black market proved lucrative during World War II for the sale of rationed chocolate, coffee and cigarettes, while oil companies such as Halliburton have been kept ticking over nicely by the recent…

We all fall down

Exploring the darker side of storytelling

31 Jul 2008

Over the past five years, En Masse theatre has garnered a reputation for creating exciting, imaginative productions for young people and their families. Their latest show, We All Fall Down, is a tale of two villages – Eyam, where the people are saintly…

Wearing well - crazy clobber for comedic purposes

31 Jul 2008

The Pajama Men are not the only ones who are putting on crazy clobber for comedic purposes. Brian Donaldson reveals some other Fringe comics who’ve had a wardrobe malfunction. The show by Mark Allen is about his uneasy relationship with animals and…

Wil Hodgson - Five questions

31 Jul 2008

With Chippenham on My Shoulder, former pro-wrestler and My Little Pony fan Wil Hodgson once more tackles his West Country heritage. Here, he gives our Q&A an inverted facelock that it won’t forget What five words best describe your show this…

'It’s a comedy colonic!' - David O’Doherty

Edinburgh Festival Fringe

22 Jul 2008

Jay Richardson meets David O’Doherty, the mild-mannered comic whose musical musings and offbeat observations have won him a legion of indie followers. This year he’ll be feeding his insomnia by entertaining kids and adults alike As an award-winning…

Real gone kids - Architecting

Edinburgh Festival Fringe

22 Jul 2008

Fringe favourites The TEAM return to Edinburgh with a reimagining of Margaret Mitchell’s iconic Southern drama. Kirstin Innes caught up with them to discuss everything from Barack Obama to Scarlett O’Hara.

Daddy fool - Pappy’s Fun Club

Edinburgh Festival Fringe

22 Jul 2008

With the spirit of The Monkees and Monty Python coursing through their comedic veins, sketch troupe Pappy’s Fun Club tell Marissa Burgess that cash worries have fuelled their success

Scouting For Girls

Edge Festival

22 Jul 2008

What a rollercoaster ride it’s been for this London-based indie pop outfit since ‘She’s So Lovely’ crashed into the top ten in 2007. Typical of their instantly catchy, mass-audience appeal, the single had four old school friends finally leaving behind…

Best of the rest - Kids shows

Edinburgh Festival Fringe

22 Jul 2008

The Gruffalo. Mouse can scare hungry animals away with tales of the terrifying Gruffalo, but what happens when he comes face to face with the very creature he imagined? Potted Pirates. From the good people who brought you Potted Potter comes this…

Mick Sergeant

Edinburgh Festival Fringe

22 Jul 2008

Touted as the next Steve Coogan, this year marks the first solo show for character comic Lee Fenwick who has previously delighted Fringe crowds as one half of spoof German techno band Die Clatterschenkenfietermaus. For his debut, Fenwick is presenting…