Giraffe – Cellar at Pleasance Courtyard

A neurodivergent, queer Fleabag; Abigail Weinstock’s one-woman show Giraffe is the hilarious tale of the tribulations of a woman who has always felt like an outsider. The play follows protagonist Eliana as she navigates a world that she cannot understand nor bring herself to conform with. Tall with unusually long limbs, she sticks out like a giraffe in a world of zebras, which as she acutely points out, is of course a simile, not a metaphor.                                                                                                                                        

Weinstock has the audience’s attention from the moment the lights come up on her, centre stage, caught planting microphones in her neighbour’s bedroom. Eliana is unconventional at best and her raw vulnerability, messy mistakes, and insane awkwardness have the audience hanging on every word with a kind of morbid curiosity that soon becomes adoration for the character.                                                                                       

The set is minimal; steps covered in fake grass at centre stage act as seats while a garland of green paper lanterns over-head represent the sacred olive tree which gains significance in the final act. Weinstock doesn’t need elaborate set or costume design to compliment her work; she creates impact without adornment. The script is written with raw honesty and reads as a monologue of confessions much akin to the timeless work of Phoebe Waller-Bridge.                                                                                                          

With her semi-autobiographical writing behind the role, Weinstock’s performance of Eliana is so on point that you may find yourself questioning if the plot is fiction at all. In addition to the magnetic Eliana, Weinstock jumps into every other role of the play with such veracity that the stage felt filled with the energy of an entire ensemble. Weinstock is a crafty storyteller whose wit and oddball charm seeps into every moment of production. Definitely a stand-out from this year’s Fringe.

Reviewer: Ella Beckley

Reviewed: 27th August 2026

North West End UK / Theatre Muse UK Rating: 5