LIST.CO.UK/FESTIVAL/THEATRE FRINGE FOR (AROUND) A FIVER COMEDY
FRINGE FOR (AROUND) A FIVER Desperate for a big dose of culture but short of the necessary funds? Kelly Apter, James Corlett and Suzanne Neilson pick a selection of Fringe theatre and dance previews, all showing at a venue near you at a price that’s nice
Miss Havisham’s Expectations
Anything But (A One Woman Play) In the aftermath of her father’s death, altruistic Agnes awakens to the realisation that the foundations of her life are crumbling. Pleasance Courtyard, 1–3 Aug, 2pm, £5.
The Better Half Fromthegreyhouse company returns to the Fringe with this bittersweet look at relationships. Greenside, 3-5 Aug, 8.50pm, £5 (£3.50).
Big Sean, Mikey and Me Dark comedy told from out-of-work actor Ruaraidh’s London flat with the help of his imaginary pal Sean Connery. Gilded Balloon Teviot, 1–3 Aug, 1.30pm, £5. Bottleneck Fizzing Liverpudlian coming-of-age drama that exhibits some of the best new writing in Britain. Pleasance Courtyard, 1–3 Aug, 2pm, £5.
The Boy with the Cuckoo Clock Heart Family-friendly, award-winning puppet show from the Magpie Puppet Company. Pleasance Courtyard, 1–3 Aug, 12.45pm, £5.
Camille Claudel Claudel’s affair with sculptor Rodin resulted in two of the world’s most famous artworks. This play tells the captivating story. Pleasance Courtyard, 1-3 August, 1.30pm, £5. Comedian Dies in the Middle of Joke Comedian Joe Pooley literally dies on stage in this fun interactive play set in a dark 80s comedy club. Pleasance Dome, 1–3 Aug, 2.30pm, £5.
Contains Spoilers Mixing contemporary and breakdance, TrashDollys Dance Company explores the love story of an obsessive photographer and a troubled widow. Zoo Southside, 3 & 4 Aug, 2.30pm, £6.
Death Boogie A hip hop musical following blue collar worker Victor Spartan who feels the stirring of revolution. Assembly Roxy, 2 & 3 Aug, 7.50pm, £5. Dirty Great Love Story She’s perfect. He’s a mistake. Yet life seems hell bent on match-making these two hapless romantics. A laugh out loud portrayal of shambling love. Pleasance Dome, 1–3 Aug, 1.20pm, £5.
Donkey and a Parrot Raconteur Sarah Hamilton shares an immersive tale that has been in her family for hundreds of years, with a voice that is a ‘marvel of sound effects’. Gilded Balloon, 1–4 Aug, 2pm, £5.
Elephant Man Joseph Merrick and his devoted nurse invite the audience for an evening of revelations with the opportunity to pose questions. Institut francais d’Ecosse, 3 Aug, 8pm, £5. Ellipsis Join the Grace Sisters in their quest to find the man without a face in this mix of the absurd with poetry and Vaudeville laid on thick. theSpace at Jury’s Inn, 3 & 4 Aug, 4.10pm, £5.
An Evening with Dementia After a sell-out run in 2010, the award-winning play returns, promising a poignant yet humorous look at the illness. theSpace on the Mile, 3 & 4 Aug, 4.05pm, £5. Everything Else Happened Situated somewhere between Woody Allen and Samuel Beckett, this new piece – based on the stories of Jonathan Safran Foer – mulls over the void between fact
and what might have been. Assembly Roxy, 2 & 3 Aug, 1pm, £5.
Excuse Me I’m Trying to Please You Fiona Paul ingratiates herself with cabaret and side-splitting monologues in a bid to take the audience to pleasure level 10! Zoo Southside, 3 & 4 Aug,3.20pm, £5. Exit Stage Left Theatre director Greg is in the throes of an artistic renaissance as he assembles a rabble of showbiz misfits for his comeback play. Greenside, 3 & 4 Aug, 5.20pm, £3.
Flamenco Roots Ricardo Garcia returns with another intoxicating flamenco show, featuring music, vocals and dance. theSpace @ Symposium Hall, 3 & 4 Aug, 9.05pm, £5. The Gambler Mime, music and physical theatre combine in Theatre Re’s tale of an elderly man stuck in the past. Pleasance Dome, 1–3 Aug, 2.45pm, £5.
Gilbert and Sullivan in Brief(s) A whizz through the work of these musical giants, from pirates, to sailors, to gondoliers, all in the space of only one hour. Pleasance Courtyard, 3 & 4 Aug, 4.30pm, £6. The Girl With No Heart Intricate puppetry and Shamanic music imbue a post-apocalyptic world in this enthralling tale of forgotten wishes. Bedlam Theatre, 3 & 4 Aug, 5pm, £5.
Glory Dazed A production developed with ex-servicemen prisoners, Glory Dazed is a darkly comic look at the impact of war upon returning soldiers. Underbelly Cowgate, 3 & 4 Aug, 5pm, £6.
Half a Person: My Life as Told by the Smiths Twentysomething William’s life is in turmoil so it’s no surprise he turns to the music of the Smiths in this darkly funny play. Zoo Southside, 3 & 4 Aug, 7.50pm, £5. Hinge Presents: Ordinary Things Two couples live in the same Budapest flat but 30 years apart. The play examines generational nuances while each couple learns more about their partner and themselves. Hill Street Theatre, 2 & 3 Aug, 8.30pm, £5.
How to Disappear Completely and Never be Found Accused of embezzlement and forced to go on the run, Charlie abandons everything but Sophie still won’t leave him alone. A fast-paced piece of modern theatre. theSpace on the Mile, 3 & 4 Aug, 8.35pm, £6.50. I Heart Hammas: And Other Things I’m Afraid to Tell You American/Palestinian Jennifer explores her eventual radicalism in this comic look at her journey to her parents homeland of Ramallah. Gryphon Venues at the Point Hotel, 2–5 Aug, 8.35pm, £5.
The Jhiva of Nietzsche A captivating look at Nietzsche’s psyche that examines the conflict of reason and intuition through a series of multimedia. theSpace at Surgeons Hall, 3 & 4 Aug, 12.05pm, £5.
Lingua Frank A comic examination of Scottish independence and questions of national identity from inside an Edinburgh language school. The Playhouse on The Fringe, 1 & 2 Aug, 4pm, £6.
Machines for Living Lecoq-trained company Let Slip presents this humorous look at two architects who build a tower block, but fail to find the utopia they were looking for. Zoo, 3 & 4 Aug, 3.30pm, £5. Meat Set around the dinner party of an exclusive dining club at one of the oldest universities in Britain. Expect scandal and dark humour. Paradise in The Vault, 4 & 5 Aug, 6.40pm, £5.
Miss Havisham’s Expectations In a year that celebrates the 200th Birthday of Charles Dickens, this new production places the spotlight firmly on the enigmatic Miss Haversham. Gilded Balloon Teviot, 1-3 Aug, 3pm, £6. Nggrfg A series of true stories surrounding race and sexualiy from Berend McKenzie, exploring how he learned to deal with persecution and the words that wounded him. theSpace on the Mile, 3 & 4 Aug, 7.20pm, £6.
Not My Cup of Tea Set in a commune in the summer of 1970, this play questions society’s need to dream and who wins when the system has been overridden. theSpace on the Mile, 3 & 4 Aug, 3.05pm, £4.
One Hour Only Preconceptions of sex in Britain are challenged in this voyeur’s insight into prostitute Marley’s first encounter with a young client. Underbelly Cowgate, 2 & 3 Aug, 5.20pm, £6. Our Soldier The tragi-comic tale of a war correspondent named Macbeth and the violence and corruption he encounters. Zoo, 3 & 4 Aug, 3pm, £5.
Queue It’s the old British institution with a twist as this relatively normal activity becomes a treatise on how chaos can arise from order. Sweet Grassmarket, 2-4 Aug, 4.50pm, £5.
Kemble’s Riot In 1809 John Kemble attempts to restore the burnt down Covent Garden Theatre by hiking up ticket prices resulting in riots – here’s your chance to enact these wild demonstrations! Pleasance Dome, 4pm, 1–3 Aug, £5. Re-Animator the Musical Based on HP Lovecraft’s seminal work, Herbert West is a medical student who stumbles upon a lurid green serum that revives the dead in this camp horror. Assembly George Square, 1-3 Aug, 10.40pm, £5.
Salome By Oscar Wilde A classic of the literary canon is revitalised in this theatrical interpretation of Wilde’s tragedy. Zoo Southside, 4 Aug, 2pm, £5. Still Life: An Audience with Henrietta Moraes Model and muse for Francis Bacon and Lucien Freud, the late Moraes gives a fascinating insight into her life as their subject. Bring your sketchbooks. Whitespace, 1 & 2 Aug, 5.15pm, £5.
A Strange Wild Song Rhum and Clay Theatre Company apply their Lecoq training to this tale of memory and imagination, seen through the eyes of a photographer. Featuring live music. Bedlam Theatre, 3 & 4 Aug, 9pm, £6 (£5).
The Sun is Not for Us Four works from China’s most famous playwright, Cao Yu, are compressed into one hour, exploring state oppression in all its gritty manifestations. theSpace on North Bridge, 3 & 4 Aug, 4.10pm, £5. Translunar Paradise A success story from last year’s Fringe. After losing his wife, William escapes to a fantasy world of fond reminiscence when one day Rose joins him, offering herself to him one last time. Pleasance Dome, 1–3 Aug, 5.25pm, £5.
Tumble Circus: This Is What We Do For A Living A story of young love running off to join the circus, showcasing the real skill of a circus performer under all the razzamataz and exploring their relationships. Underbelly Bristo Square, 2 & 3 Aug, 3.40pm, £6. Uninvited Absurdist theatre adapted from the novella by Tyneside poet and playwright Peter Mortimer. Fat Git invite you to into a flat full of pedants, idiots and persistently whistling terrorists. Bedlam Theatre, 3 & 4 Aug, 2pm, £6.
What’s He Building in There? A story of the love between a man and his chair. Disturbing, humorous and just plain weird and all accompanied by an original score. Zoo, 3 & 4 Aug, 12pm, £5. Wojtek The Bear A soldier at Monte Cassino, Wojtek was more than just a bear. Told through the eyes of the man who knew him best, this tale of love and loyalty combines words, music, movement and storytelling. Hill Street Theatre, 2 & 3 Aug, 4.30pm, £5.
19 Jul–2 Aug 2012 THE LIST 87