Summerhall

15.30

14 / 16 / 19/ 21 / 23 August

£5

Louise Mothersole and Rebecca Biscuit are the young & funky brains & brawn London-based behind Sh!t Theater. This year they have brought a slice of investigative journalism to Edinburgh, performed with a kind of bunny-rabbit relish as they bound across the floor of the delectable Anatomy Lecture Theater at the Summerhall. The show’s premise is the girls attempting to get onto various medical trials across London – which ultimately they fail to do – except for a £33 a dayer which is a hell of the £400o they were hoping for.

Two years ago, the girls brought their Job Seekers Anonymous to Edinburgh, & perhaps their reputation preceeded them, for the theater was pretty full. As we progressed, the audience really warmed to the girls & their X-files style quest, which was backed up by Visual Projections & bits of music. For me, however, there was a distinct lack of proper entertainment, only exacerbated by the girls constant failure to get on one of the trials. Still, as a scrap-book compendium of ideas, the piece is quite novel, & I’m happy to give the girls THREE STARS

Reviewer : Damo Bullen

9th-12th August

Royal Lyceum Theater  

19.30pm

£10-£32

The Royal Lyceum is a beautiful traditional theater; gilt tiers and opulent surroundings, it is a real joy to experience, & Ganesh Versus the Third Reich is suited perfectly to this grand location.  A powerful, sensitive, awe inspiring play, which leaves you questioning the very essence of reality and belief. It’s the tale of the Hindu God Ganesh who embarks on a journey to Berlin during the second world war to take back the swastika, which was originally a Hindu symbol of strength and overcoming obstacles. On another level the play is about the surprising and unlikely cast, who are in the process of creating the play, facing their own challenges and power struggles and questioning their responsibility in recreating history. It deals with issues of power and ownership, fact and fiction, mythology and the role it plays in the identity of culture. 

Ganesh versus the Third Reich is a wonderfully crafted piece of theatre working on so many levels, weaving humor and horror as effortlessly as it slips from the land of Gods to the folly of man. The space is ingeniously utilized, with back lit shadows and layers of transparent curtains that conjure up otherworldly scenes.  We are transported from mythical forests in the company of an elephant headed god to ominous train journeys through German mountain ranges, to then be snapped out of the moment, as the curtains are ripped back, to a stark empty stage and another layer of the process of the creation of the play. The visual layers echo the depth of truth that this beautifully crafted script explores.

The actors carry this play to another level of theater that seems almost impossible to achieve, a humane, humorous and powerful performance by each one of the unique characters that we meet. Ganesh versus the Third Reich is a thought provoking exploration of the nature of humanity. It questions how people create myths, how myths creates beliefs, that are then reduced to symbols that themselves become the corner stone of cultures that adopt them.  This wonderfully crafted piece exists on so many levels, making us question the very fabric of reality and history, and the part that we play in it. Powerful and beautifully executed. A mesmerising theatrical journey. FIVE STARS

Reviewer : Glenda Rome

Cafe Camino

12-23 Aug

Free Fringe

18.15

“Men marry because they are tired;

women, because they are curious: both are disappointed.”

Café Camino, a stones throw away from York Place is where Christopher Cuttings production ‘Bunbury is Dead’ is held. It is an original play, based around the famous quotes and plot twists of Irish wit and dramatist Oscar Wilde. It is sort of a sequel to the ‘Importance of being Earnest’ and it plays great tribute to the classic comedic masterpiece in writing and performance.

It is a play based around Algernon and his fictitious alter-ego Bunbury which is played by George Mills – really playing up to the stubborn yet high-flying Victorian. Mills shows shire understanding and dry humour in which to the audience reacted with laughter. The most breathtaking performance is from Peter Baker as Rupert, listing off Wilde’s beautiful quotes like he was on stage at the St.James Theatre in 1895 with wonderful camp naivety in his girl chasing character. Every audience member laughed and smiled at the charm of this production.

Some set and costume issues don’t make this play particularity easy on the eye however considering this is a part of the free fringe it really is worth taking this with a pinch of the Edinburgh spirit. Great comedy performances and clever writing won’t leave a Wilde fan disappointed – as this really is unique. A serious credit to this festival. Four stars.

Review by Thomas Boglett

 Gilded Balloon Teviot, Bristo Square,

2–25 Aug (not 11),

16.15pm,

£8–£9 (£7–£8)

Lucie Pohl was born a German, then was whisked off to New York by her family. An outsider from then on, the story of her formative years as an outsider supplies plenty of material for her excellent one-woman show.

Lucie is a funky performer, & such is her command of both the stage & alternative voices, at times I felt as if I was watching a play with a cast of several characters. The journey she takes us on is quite heartwarming, & one has to feel for her as the teenage Lucie returns to study where she thought was home – Berlin – but yet again feels like an outsider.

A very pleasant way to pass an hour indeed. FOUR STARS

Reviewer : Damo Bullen

Summerhall

20.00

only on today (10th)

Portobello Beach is one of my favorite places, its softness a welcome antidote to the harshness of city living. The perfect venue and performance to review after a hard day of enjoyment.

When we got to the beach, everyone placed a set of headphones on & were serenaded by a soft sea shanty melody, complimented by the sound of the waves crashing on the beach. We all walked together towards a crew of castaways looking out to sea, searching for the rescue that would take them home.

This was a lovely thing to experience, the script was relayed through headsets, so that everyone could make sense of the beautiful scene that was unfolding.A really long rope and a long line of castaways all dressed in blue, Members of the cast came and took the audience two by two. to form two V shapes. Then as the sun sank into the sea, a selection of the cast walked into the sea together until they were completely submerged.

And that was it. A totally beautiful evening filled with thoughts of mermaids, cockles and whelks. 

When I don’t understand art. I stop trying to understand it and accept the beautiful sensations that good art gives me. Everyone was softened and healing took place. A perfect end to a long day.

Five Stars for this sell out show of experimental magic

.

Reviewer : Mark ‘Divine’ Calvert 

Summerhall

8-2 August (not 12)

£9-£12

16.35

Inventive, beautiful and even so original, even the instruments are unique to this performance. A beautiful Yorkshire lass falls in love with a creative visionary who is too preoccupied with his artistry to see the gift of amour devoted only to him. His muse however, and the heroine of this tale, is his personal striving for perfection. Perfection in sound and perfection in presentation.

The lighting that brings the glass instruments to life, all purples, crimsons and pinks, create a perfect ambiance for the exquisite music that billows round the stage. Eye candy and ear candy. The Yorkshire accents are lovely too. You always know where you are with Yorkshire folk.

Four Stars for brilliance and an extra star for being from Yorkshire.
So That’s Five Stars.

Reviewer : Mark ‘Divine’ Calvert

31stJuly ­- 24 Aug

Traverse Theatre

(times vary)

£18

I first saw Chris Goode around 12 years ago by chance in the festival with his play ‘Kiss of Life’ and since then whenever the festival arrives the first thing I check is to see if he is performing. He is a playwright of unbelievable magnitude and delivers his one man show as a monologue that hooks you from the first line and holds you mesmerised in the true tradition of storytelling.

Men in Cities is a haunting and very human narrative of numerous characters in a city, each simultaneously going about their seemingly unconnected lives. It’s the little moments that make it resonate with such a believable punch. Framed by the fallout from two violent deaths ­ the apparently inexplicable suicide of a young gay man and the murder of Drummer Lee Rigby in Woolwich 2013, Men in Cites presents fractured snapshots of dozens of seemingly disconnected lives that together offer a challenging, but radically humane portrait of how we live now.

Chris Goode has a raw and rare honesty and he expertly interweaves his own life story along with the fictional ones to the point that truth and fiction blur into one complex volatile piece of work. Watching his Men in Cities is like going on a cinematic journey of the mind, watching the movie unfold yet hearing every murmur behind the actions of each person and understanding on a deeper level where each characters intentions and desires truly lie. This epic dark comedy performed with a seething honesty is an elegant portrayal of both his characters, and himself, in the process of creating them.

People queue up afterwards to buy a copy of the script (myself included), to savour this playwright’s masterpiece in the comfort of their own home. A testament to the quality of the writing, yet the delivery is such an intimate and honest experience nothing will compare with the performance. Chris Goode feels like a modern day reader of epics, a wordsmith of our time, expertly laying bare our fractured realities, while at the same time subtly hinting at how they are inexplicably woven together. FIVE STARS

Reviewer : Glenda Rome