Fringe: Doctor’s orders – a fun show for the fans
The wonder of the Edinburgh Fringe is that is has something for everyone.
There’s musical productions, there’s high drama, there’s Shakespeare, there’s comedy acts, and, for someone like me who loves his TV and film, there’s parodies of Harry Potter, Game of Thrones, and, in this case, Doctor Who.
Any Suggestions, Doctor? is an improvised Doctor Who adventure, performed by six young actors with sharp minds, and a shared passion for all things Time Lord and Gallifrey.
As you queue up to get it, a cast member hands out cards, which the audience have to suggest the title of an adventure. The title is later pulled out of a hat at random.
As for the Doctor… you’ve got a choice of five, as an audience member throws a dice to pick an actor. If they get a six, they get to choose who takes the role. The audience then suggest a location for the story, and from there, clapping and cheering decides where the TARDIS will land.
On Thursday night, Harry has chosen as the Doctor, in an adventure entitled The Absorbaloff in the White House, and set in the Australian Outback.
The set up is simple – a TARDIS console prop, a police box frontage, and a variety of other odds and ends which the cast have to work with.
We were entertained by talking kangaroos, an American President from Yorkshire, a secret base, TV series monsters the Zygons, and a joke about a paving slab.
Harry’s Doctor was akin to Matt Smith in his performance, and there’s so many references thrown in that the hardcore fans will enjoy, and don’t detract for the more casual viewer.
A word too for the team on the sidelines, producing that electronic radiophonic soundscape that Doctor Who always had, in sound effects and music.
If you’re a Doctor Who fan (the correct term for an aficionado, not a Whovian), then Any Suggestions, Doctor? is a must see. If you’re a casual viewer who understands and enjoys the basics of the series, you’ll enjoy it.
Any Suggestions, Doctor?, Pleasance Dome, 1 Bristo Square, 7pm.
