FRINGE REVIEW: “Six stories”

Six Stories – Venue 43: theSpace @ Symposium Hall – Amphitheatre – 10.40pm IN THIS stunning performance presented by the Korean Cultural Centre, Korean band WeMu forged together different instruments and rituals, combining tradition and modern music to break down shamanic customs into “six stories”. Each song was introduced by one of the band members…

Read More

FRINGE REVIEW: “Tom Lucy: Melt”

Tom Lucy: Melt – Venue 33 – Pleasance Courtyard – Upstairs – 9.45pm TOM LUCY delivered a very funny, very slick show. His material covered various issues facing a sensitive young man in his 20s, from father issues to appreciation of fine furniture to later life circumcision. There was a lot of family-centred material throughout,…

Read More

FRINGE REVIEW: “Friendsical”

Friendsical – Venue 20 – Assembly Rooms – Music Hall – 7.55pm THERE is likely no television show as universally known as Friends, so it was very ambitious for the actors of Friendsical to step into these beloved roles. The cast were introduced onto a replica Central Perk set as they twirled umbrellas in a…

Read More

FRINGE REVIEW: “Angel by Henry Naylor”

Angel by Henry Naylor – Venue 24: Gilded Balloon Patter Hoose – Other Yin – 4pm I’VE been very lucky at this festival and have seen some wonderful productions and now, having watched Angel, I can say that any further productions will have to be extraordinary to better it. Angel tells the story of a…

Read More

FRINGE REVIEW: “9 Circles”

9 Circles – Assembly George Square Studios – Studio Two – 1.30pm THE title is structured around the nine rings of Dante’s Inferno. Watching this gritty, hard hitting, and at times raw and troubling production leaves you rattled. That’s good theatre in my book. The play is based on a US serviceman called Steve Dale…

Read More

FRINGE REVIEW: “Bloke and his American Bantu”

Bloke and his American Bantu – Assembly George Square Studios – Studio Two – 11.30am IT IS hard for productions to get noticed at the Fringe in a crowded field of 3,300 – it’s rather like being a solo soprano in a multi-hundred populated Welsh bass choir. Combine that with being allocated the death slot…

Read More

FRINGE REVIEW: “Taiwan Season: Light of Life”

Taiwan Season: Light of Life – Assembly George Square Studios – Studio One – 1pm IF YOU don’t know what a “diabolo” is, I’ll give you a definition: it’s an “hourglass-shaped top that is balanced and spun on a string stretched between the tips of two sticks”. Doesn’t sound that exciting and seems to offer…

Read More

FRINGE REVIEW: “The Black Blues Brothers”

The Black Blues Brothers – Assembly Rooms, Music Hall – George Street – 4.45pm SET in an Art Deco bar and scored to the music of the Ackroyd and Belushi film The Blues Brothers, this is a show that combines circus tumbling, music, dance, and comedically-timed miming. It’s fast paced and furious. The five Kenyan…

Read More

FRINGE REVIEW: “I’m with stupid”

I’m With Stupid – Gilded Balloon Teviot, Billiard Room – Bristo Square – 9pm JEEZ, where to start with “I’m With Stupid”? I suppose the first thing to say would be that if you are someone who listens religiously to Kermode and Mayo musing on films, then this will be right up your street. In…

Read More

The show will go on thanks to Fringe funding

FRESH funding for 13 Edinburgh Festival Fringe producers means “the show will go on” this summer. The Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society is distributing nearly £1.3 million through its Fringe 2022 Resilience Fund. The Scottish Government’s Platforms for Creative Excellence (PLACE) programme had awarded almost £1.6m to the society. The remaining £305,000 will support the society’s…

Read More