REVIEWS Archives - Page 191 of 341

Leaves on the Line – theSpace @ Surgeons Hall

15Aug

By Ella CatherallNo Comments

Scotland

Leaves on the Line – theSpace @ Surgeons Hall

I, like many English people who’ve moved to Edinburgh but still have family down South, am very familiar with the trainline between Kings Cross St Pancras and Edinburgh Waverley. This show focusses primarily on the lives of six people on one of the trains covering this route, as they all attempt to get up North for various reasons, such as hill walking, going to a hen do or (ironically) visiting the Fringe. This feels like a quintessential, quirky Fringe show. It fits perfectly into the shorter run time and limited space characteristic of Fringe shows, never feeling limited by these restrictions but also never feeling like the show is too small or unambitious. This is a perfect fit for the Fringe when viewed from every dimension. The highlight of this show is its score. Equal blends...

15Aug

By Anna ChiariNo Comments

Scotland

Hungry – Roundabout at Summerhall

At the centre of the Roundabout tent, a minimal and effective installation by Paines Plough's production to gather the many pilgrims of the Fringe in a circle, a culinary drama unfolds that uses the metaphor of food to investigate themes such as identity, emotional dependence and cultural appropriation. Although playwright Chris Bush's new play sins by an excess of verbiage, the pièce takes flight thanks to the naturalness and communicative energy of the two lead actresses. An encounter-clash between the insecure and fragile chef Lori, played by Eleanor Sutton, and the grumpy and recalcitrant Bex (Melissa Lowe) at the two extremes of two kitchen trolleys that clash, drift apart and grow closer as their relationship progresses. Of romance, affection or passion there is very little, rele...

15Aug

By Louise BalaguerNo Comments

Scotland

Speed Dial – Pleasance Dome

Vibrant colours, retro telephones and upbeat music, this show screams 70s – and dare I add Scooby Doo, in the best possible way. There is mystery, characters chasing after each other frantically (yet in a wonderfully choreographed manner), riddles, lurking figures and even stage fog, just to add that little extra bit of spookiness. Yes, this show is one that sucks you in from the very beginning. When a university Professor’s daily routine is disturbed by the ominous ringing of telephones following them at every turn, they are plunged into a spiral of puzzles to find their missing daughter. Making up this vibrant comedy-thriller that is Speed Dial, we find, alongside The Professor (Hamish Lloyd Barnes), The Dean (Tullio Campanale), Flora, the daughter (Genevieve Sabherwal), The Groundsk...

Baxter vs The Bookies – Gilded Balloon Teviot (Wee Room)

15Aug

By Roger JacobsNo Comments

Scotland

Baxter vs The Bookies – Gilded Balloon Teviot (Wee Room)

Our hero William Baxter justifies the chequered life of an inveterate gambler by bemoaning the fact he left school at fifteen with no qualifications, but proudly pointing out he’d made an ashtray in woodwork. This is just the first of many bon mots and one-liners in a one-man play adapted from Roy Granville’s book. One could be forgiven for thinking the role had been written especially for Andy Linden, an actor instantly recognizable (Harry Potter, Count Arthur Strong, to name just two from a long, long line of film and TV credits) his lugubrious face and earthy London tone enabling masterful storytelling. The play was split into five ‘episodes’ each with a twist at the end, Andy playing other parts beyond Baxter; Jeff Armstrong (a bookie so morose that ‘if he ran a funeral parlour peo...

Temping – Assembly George Square Studios

15Aug

By Ben PearsonNo Comments

Scotland

Temping – Assembly George Square Studios

Temping is like nothing else I’ve seen at the Edinburgh Fringe, being more of an interactive experience than a show. The premise is simple, you have been brought into the company to cover some shifts for an absent employee. I was led into my new office, an excellently decorated set inside a cargo container, and told that the owner of the office, Sarah Jane, had left an instruction message for me. Throughout the hour, I had to complete various tasks, primarily changing former employees’ statuses from active to deceased, as well as answer phone calls and emails, each instructing me on how to proceed. The genius of the show though, is that many of these emails are not scripted. If I replied to an email, I would get a response to it. In a way, it is like you’re improvising. The general script...

Looking For Me Friend: The Music of Victoria Wood – Assembly Rooms

14Aug

By Caroline WorswickNo Comments

Scotland

Looking For Me Friend: The Music of Victoria Wood – Assembly Rooms

Victoria Wood is one of those northern comedians whose expressions find a way into your life, without you really even knowing it. ‘Seventy-two baps Connie, you slice, I’ll spread,’ her joke on how the British deal with the funeral of a loved one. She had a way of looking at life and finding the humour in people’s day-to-day existence. Even though it is six years since she died, she still has a loyal following, and her sense of humour runs through people like the message in a stick of Blackpool rock. As a northern lass and fan of the late Victoria Wood, I went along to spend an hour in the company of other fans who appreciated her and to enjoy reminiscing about her very funny material, but also the amazing skill she had in creating these amusing tunes. Paulus is a f...

Troy Hawke: Sigmund Troy’d – Underbelly Bristo Square

14Aug

By Roger JacobsNo Comments

Scotland

Troy Hawke: Sigmund Troy’d – Underbelly Bristo Square

What would Jan Molby do? For those too young to know, Jan Molby was a Football Colossus who played for Liverpool, represented Denmark internationally (33 times), and artfully opened up opposition teams with passes defying accepted physics. All without ever moving more than a few yards from the centre-spot, pre-dating the Work-From-Home ethic. For ‘Football’, substitute ‘Comedy’ and you’ve Troy Hawke, the nattily-attired squadron heartthrob from 1930’s Biggin Hill, the chief contrast being he takes us on a voyage covering distances that would’ve given Jan digestive issues. Quite how he took us from a disgruntled online fast-food customer in Sidcup to Sigmund Freud’s exploitation of the Coca plant via Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, Bernard Arnault, Gucci, and an exploration of imposter syndrome is ...

14Aug

By Anna ChiariNo Comments

Scotland

Pauline – Pleasance Courtyard

Pauline is a pure example of storytelling where the words, voices and testimonies of three generations of women meet and confront each other in what turns out to be a moving and necessary memoir for all contemporary women. An all-female story, with a strong feminist character that always remains intimate and never aggressive. A veritable exposé of human nature, of what it means to be a woman, of weaknesses, insecurities, sins even, and of the great moral strength that such a gender role seems to bring with it, the play lays bare three characters, three women who are different but bound together by blood and art, by a love of storytelling and telling. An excavation in the memory of the actress, alone and unique in this one-woman show, who seems to want to cling with all her might to what s...

14Aug

By Peter KinnockNo Comments

West Midlands

Les Misérables – Birmingham Hippodrome

Theatre critics can sometimes be very useful. Take Sheridan Morley, for instance, who, in the mid eighties, was almost the only voice amidst a tsunami of naysayers to have something nice to say about Les Misérables. Nearly every other critic slammed it with lines like "a witless and synthetic entertainment”. The show proved them wrong and continues to prove them wrong and at 38 years it is undoubtedly one of the most successful theatrical achievements in world history. I hadn’t seen the show since 1986 but it has been with me ever since so reuniting with it last night at the Birmingham Hippodrome was like meeting a long lost friend and a long lost friend who looks and sounds a lot brighter and vibrant than the passing years would suggest. It really is a stunning price of work. The plot tr...

14Aug

By Gemma PrinceNo Comments

London

Dolls & Guys – Camden People’s Theatre

Part of the Camden Fringe festival which marks its 16th year, Dolls & Guys explores a dystopian world where women in a shop wait to be picked by the one and live happily ever after. Directed by Julia Sudzinsky and written by Sabean Bea and Alanna Flynn, the story focuses on five characters, Juliet, Lucy, Soraya, Maggie and Billie and explores their struggles to navigate love, life and dating. As we see the group break up and reunite as male customers (all played by Nicholas Pople) come through the door, one thing that remains the same are their friendships. We see how the characters bond over their shared experiences when the men are not around and was undoubtedly the highlight of the show. The awkward but intelligent Juliet (Sabean Bea) and her heart-warming interactions with tomb...