An Edinburgh Fringe Round-Up

Written by: Adam Carver

This article comes to you purely from the perspective of an observer at this year's Edinburgh Fringe Festival, this year being the first time I've properly 'done' the Fringe (whatever that actually means). Having worked as press and sat through about 40 productions in my two and half weeks of avoiding the Olympics in Scotland, I've put this together as a collection of observations, feelings, whimsical wanderings and other miscellaneous thoughts.

Repertory Theatre - Edinburgh Fringe review

Written by: Dombo (@DomOJFryer)

Where's Dom gone? 
C Venues (ECA), Edinburgh
Was Dom fond? 
***** 



Warning: the first two rows will get wet. Repertory Theatre (you will find out the definition of this term during the course of the play) is an incredibly fast – paced comedy, flown into the UK from Israel, Via Edinburgh. The Elephant and Mouse set the scene immediately, when a young ambitious playwright sits and waits, whilst the all – too – familiar sight of an eccentric, maniacal National Theatre boss decides whether or not to produce it in his theatre. Why this theatre exactly? This is the theatre where the young playwright's father died, on stage, whilst playing Hamlet.

Lady M - Edinburgh Fringe review

Written by: Dombo (@DomOJFryer)

Where's Dom gone? 
C Venues (ECA), Edinburgh 
Was Dom fond? 
****



What would you do if Shakespeare only gave you one scene to express yourself? Lady M is the tale of Macbeth – only this time, from the perspective of a chambermaid. Annemarie de Bruijn, as the Chambermaid, carries the weight of the world on her shoulders as she discovers the death of the king at the hands of Macbeth; she also carries the plays unbounded energy and holds the attention of the audience - despite being in an auditorium which appears to be the hottest place on Earth.

Enter the Woods - Edinburgh Fringe review

Written by: Wendy (@Wendyfer1)

TheSpace @ Venue 45, Edinburgh
**

Flying High Theatre Company, a Youth Theatre organisation from Nottingham, aims to educate and assist aspiring performers up to the age of nineteen taking GCSEs, A Levels or other qualifications in Dance or Drama. Enter The Woods, only one of their endeavours at the fringe this year, is described as an exploration of the ‘darker side of stories and real-life happenings’.

Julius Caesar - review

Written by: Peeny (@AdamPeeny)

Where's Peen been?
Noël Coward Theatre, London
Was Peen keen? 
*****



An incredibly strong, confident production: a success most worthy of its wreath of victory. This is a story of winning a war, which leads to murder and fear-driven suicide, all in the search for freedom and liberty.

DON'T MISS: Pop-up Shakespeare, and 2013 Seasons

Now that the London 2012 Olympic Games are over, London is preparing itself for the Paralympic events. The tourists are very much present and the city is still buzzing! 

Beyond Hillsborough - Edinburgh Fringe review

Written by: Dombo (@DomOJFryer)

Where's Dom gone? 
The Quaker's Meeting House, Edinburgh
Was Dom fond? 
*****



Simply utter the word 'Hillsborough' to many Liverpudlians, and it would send them to a darker place; and even if it doesn't, seemingly everyone has something to say. The disaster, which happened at an F.A cup semi final match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest football clubs at Hillsborough, Sheffield on 15^th April 1989 was nothing short of tragic, and has since provoked many talking points between the Police and the various charities set up in order to help the families of those involved. 

Four by Four - Camden Fringe review

Written by: JB (@JoshPBrown)

Etcetera Theatre (Camden Fringe), London
***

Four by Four does what it says on the tin. It is four half hour shows by four different writers across four nights of bite size drama at the Etcetera Theatre. Produced by KUDOS (Kingston University Drama on Stage) in association with EVE Theatre Company, each show exhibits two scripts a day, so if you want to see all four shows make sure you’re around for two days – unfortunately I was only there for one. Nevertheless, B.I.B by Graham Follett and Sew it Out Loud by Imelda Topping were pleasant snippets of theatre superbly directed by EVE’s Jennifer Matthews. 

99.9 Degrees - Edinburgh Fringe review

Written by: Dombo (@DomOJFryer) 

Where's Dom gone? 

C Venues (ECA)

Was Dom fond? 

****

As you walk into the small, dimly lit space in Edinburgh's College of Art, it is difficult to imagine anything good happening here. Anything; for instance, the air – conditioning in the room is provided by a top of the range hole in the wall accompanied by a tube leading to fresh air. But then, some things can be rather unexpected.

Centre Stage on What's Peen Seen?: Dan Rebellato

Dan Rebellato is “a playwright and an academic and stuff like that”. He writes plays for the stage and the radio, academic articles and also spreads his knowledge amongst the students that he teaches at University. Here, you can find out what he’s up to now, how he got to where he is today, what he did find and indeed what he might have found (had he known) useful along the way.

London Road - review

Written by: Lils (@LilyKG)

National Theatre (Olivier), London

****

London Road has returned to The National Theatre, for a limited period, after its sell-out run last year. After having heard so much about the critically acclaimed production, I couldn’t wait to take my seat in the Olivier’s vast auditorium. I have to say, the prospect of experiencing a musical centred on the Ipswich serial murders of 2006 filled me with intrigue more than anything else – it struck me as an interesting medium through which to explore the remembrance of such a brutal event. If you’re filled with the same feeling, you should quench your curiosity with this refreshing production. It brings a whole new meaning to what we know as 'verbatim theatre'.

More Light - Edinburgh Fringe review

Written by: Seona (@SeonaMcclintock)

C Eca, Edinburgh
****
A dying emperor seals himself inside his tomb with a group of his wives, trapped with no choice but to accept their dark fate. But their calm subservience is broken as they find new life in death.

OPPORTUNITY: OVNV 24H Plays 2012, New Casts & Openings and a Hollywood Transfer

Alongside RSC taking London by storm, Edinburgh is very much buzzing and it’s annual Fringe Festival is displaying some of the very best (and also not so great) acts, performers and companies that have headed up to Scotland to take part in the industry’s most coveted arts festival. Where does that leave the rest of the theatre world during the exciting month of August?

Well even with a busy few weeks hosting some kind of big sporting event everyone has been going on about, London is still very much the place to be for theatregoers too…

CHEAP TICKETS: RSC's London Season 2012

Following on from the ground-breaking Romeo and Juliet in Baghdad, an Arabic version of Shakespeare’s classic staged at London’s Riverside Studios earlier this summer, the Royal Shakespeare Company are bringing two productions from their home in Stratford-upon-Avon to the Noël Coward Theatre in London.

Innocent as a Child - Camden Fringe review

Written by: Woods (@Thomas_E_Woods)

Where did Woods watch it? 

Etcetera Theatre (Camden Fringe), London

Was Woods won over?

***

They say a little imagination goes a long way, and whilst one is left to ponder who ‘they’ are in Kaimera’s case, it proves to be true as their debut production effortlessly transforms the top of a pub into prisons and therapy rooms, all within the space of an hour. 

Char's Stars: Bare Essentials

Written by: Char (@charlypies)

Encompass Productions presents:

 ‘Bare Essentials’

The Emerging Artists Showcase at Battersea Barge, London

Char’s Star of this performance –

Luke Manning:

Luke’s performance may have looked like a simple one (intended split meaning there) but it was actually the most committed and believable of the night, also proving that if all you do is smile then the whole world will certainly smile back at you.

Manning played the adorably oafish brother Marvin in Amber Hillier’s piece The Ronderbrines, a humorous story of a dysfunctional family reunited after five years in the gloriously awkward location of a garden shed.

Theatre Uncut - Edinburgh Fringe review

Written by: Wendy (@Wendyfer1)

Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh
*****

Theatre Uncut is not so much a performance to be reviewed, but an event and an idea to be greatly appreciated for both its premise and produce. Its founding last year was a response to the coalition’s plans to make drastic cuts to public spending, the idea being to create a theatrical protest by utilizing the skills of political playwrights. Contributors included names such as Mark Ravenhill and David Grieg, whose short plays were then performed across the country by volunteers, rights-free.

Songs For A New World - review

Written by: Peeny (@AdamPeeny)

Where's Peen been? 
The Bridewell Theatre, London
Was Peen keen?
****

A lovely little song-cycle goes a very long way when executed with such expertise; and here, this National Youth Music Theatre company was exceeding relatively high expectations from the get-go. A lot of this cast will be looking back at this production as “where it all began”.

Mack and Mabel - review (2)

Written by: Adam Carver (@CarverAdam)

Southwark Playhouse, London

*****

It was with some excitement and trepidation that I entered the Southwark Playhouse to see their much-acclaimed revival of Jerry Herman's Mack & Mabel. Documenting the real-life story of Hollywood director Mack Sennett and his star-leading lady Mabel Normand, Mack and Mabel was hailed as a “flawed masterpiece” accordingly; director Thom Southerland has lovingly reworked the show for this staging.