I recently caught up with Nick Payne’s Constellations and was in awe of both the writing and actors’ technique. The Human Ear is another tightly written piece that relies on the two actors working extremely closely together. This is a Paines Plough production and is an example of the very high standard of most of…
Read more The Human Ear (Roundabout at Summer Hall, Monday August 10th 2015) *****
Having learnt my lesson from previous years, I booked most of the shows each day in one venue. Today was the start of my Northern Stage at Summerhall day. The first show was a monologue about a horrific fire which took place in August 1978 at the Cinema Rex in Abadan, Iran. The story is…
Read more Cinema (Northern Stage at Summerhall, Monday 9th August 2015) ***
It was the end of my third day and I’d had two late nights, so why not a third? This is a piece by Luke Barnes who is an exciting young playwright and the author of Chapel Street and Visitor. Barnes’ writing and Middle Child’s energetic performance is thoroughly entertaining. The production is…
Read more Weekend Rockstars (Underbelly, Sunday 8th August 2015) *****
Rebecca Perry performs this monologue with humour and some song. The show does what it says on the tin (title in this case). The show is the story of a girl (Joanie Little) working in a coffee shop because she can’t get a graduate job. Joanie has got a degree in Anthropology and puts that…
Read more Confessions of a Redheaded Coffeeshop Girl (Gilded Balloon, Sunday 8th August 2015) ****
Excellent. I got my own drum and had enormous fun playing it. I’m not sure that my playing made any difference, and I was certainly off the beat for much of the hour, but I had great fun. Drum Tribe is from South Africa and as well as an immersive experience, the music was sensational.…
Read more Drum Tribe (Gilded Balloon, Sunday 8th August 2015) ****
Wasted was the first thing I saw on my third day at the Fringe. Today, the Sunday, would be a Gilded Balloon, Bisto Square day. At first, when we entered the theatre, I thought that the production might be an experimentation with immersive theatre in a tiny space. The audience is invited into the nightclub, to…
Read more Wasted (Gilded Balloon, Sunday 8th August 2015) ****
I really enjoy these late shows where you have no idea who will be on the bill. As I usually do, I aimed for the front row, where there were several spaces. This was good luck, I thought, considering that the queue had been so long. It soon became apparent that the compare was…
Read more Late Show (Pleasance Courtyard, Saturday 8th August 2015) ****
This show is funny in parts with some ouch moments. It seemed relevant to go to a show about Bush and Blair on a day I had seen two other show based on political figures as diverse as Boris Johnson and Tony Benn. The audience is welcomed into the theatre by Heartbeat (Nicola Blackman) and…
Read more When Blair had Bush and Bunga (Pleasance Courtyard, Saturday 8th August) ***
What a brilliant idea to fuse Beckett and Tony Benn’s writings. Indeed, the title says it all. This is an exploration of the life and writing of the politician Tony Benn, but with a Krapp’s Last Tape theme. The narrative is told with lots of humour. There’s also some sadness as it is clear that the…
Read more Tony’s Last Tape (Pleasance Courtyard, 8th August 2015) ****
Testament is a beatboxer and rapper who fuses together hip hop and Blake. It feels like a very odd combination at first, but Testament is so charming and engaging that he takes you with him in a complex performance. Here we have Testament’s own personal story, an analysis of Blake’s poetry, as well as the…
Read more Blake Remixed (Underbelly, Friday 7th August 2015) ****
Julie Raby 