FESTIVAL THEATRE | Top Tips
7PM ENTROPY
Underbelly Bristo Square, 4–27 Aug (not 13), 7.15pm, £11–£12 (£10–£11). Previews 1–3 Aug, £6.50. Sam has turned up on Barbara’s doorstep unannounced after years of absence, not for nostalgic reasons, but for reasons of his own that become apparent as he plays games with her – and on her. An intriguing and disturbing play full of dark humour.
13, 20), 8pm, £11–£12.50 (£10– £11.50). Previews 1–3 Aug, £8. Jeremy Stockwell and Chris Larner celebrate British comedy legend Spike Milligan with 90 minutes of laughs, songs, philosophy and utter, utter silliness. Playing Spike and those who surrounded him, they explore his invention, delight in his influence and look to discover what made him tick. FAMOUS PUPPET DEATH
EXTINGUISHED THINGS SCENES
P H O T O :
A L E X B R E N N E R
Assembly George Square Studios, Summerhall, 4–26 Aug, 7.25pm, £11.50 (£9). Previews 1, 3 Aug, £5–£8. Award-winning writer/ performer Molly Taylor pieces together the story of two lives intertwined. Vivid and lyrical, Extinguished Things is a captivating exploration of what it means to spend your life with someone, and the nature of what you leave behind.
MY KIND OF MICHAEL Summerhall, 4–26 Aug (not 13, 20), 7.30pm, £11 (£9.50). Previews 1, 3 Aug, £6. Ever since he was a kid, Nick has loved Michael Barrymore. In this heartfelt and playful tribute, Nick invites you to examine the turbulent relationship between showman and spectator, intertwining his own personal stories with tales of Barrymore’s rise to fame and ultimate downfall.
8PM
A SOCKFUL OF CUSTARD Pleasance Dome, 4–27 Aug (not
BRIDE OF THE GULF An international collaboration that responds to the Eurocentrism of Gregory Burke’s Black Watch by putting the people of Basra first in the aftermath of the city’s destruction. From a short play to a full-scale production, Bride is an example of how engagement with the people impacted by war is about more than soldiers. C cubed, 2–27 Aug (not 14), 3.10pm, £9.50–£11.50 (£5.50–£9.50).
122 THE LIST FESTIVAL 1–8 Aug 2018
CanadaHub @ King’s Hall, 3–26 Aug (not 6, 13, 20), 8.30pm, £11 (£9). Previews 1 & 2 Aug, £9. Willingly undergo a heart-wrenching parade of theatrical demises that will severely exacerbate your fear of death. All your favourite scenes are there: Edward’s Last Prance by Samuel Groanswallow, The Feverish Heart by Nordo Frot, Why I Am So Sad by Sally, and the unforgettable Bipsy’s Mistake from Bipsy and Mumu Go to the Zoo by Fun Freddy.
FEAR ITSELF STARDUST
Greenside @ Infirmary Street, 8–18 Aug (not 12), 8.50pm, £9 (£7). Previews 3–5 Aug, £6 (£5). Do you want to rid your life of fear? Then let renowned psychologist Dr Greenwood free you from the ghosts of your past as she takes you on a journey into the darkest parts of the human psyche. Danse Macabre Productions bring their unique blend of horror, humour and fantasy to the Fringe.
Columbia’s association with a certain chemical is dissected in a show that follows its journey from a plant used as an aid to conversation, through an illegal industry that caricatures Columbians, destroys economies and ends up as a performance-enhancing drug for middle-class bores at dreary parties. Pleasance Dome, 4–27 Aug (not 20), 4.20pm £11.50 (£10.50). Previews 1–3 Aug, £10.
9PM
SHACKLETON’S STOWAWAY theSpace @ Surgeons Hall, 5–25 Aug (not 12, 19), 9.10pm, £9–£10 (£7–£8). Previews 3 & 4 Aug, £8. Shackleton’s Stowaway is based on the real events of the legendary Endurance expedition to Antarctica. It follows the tragicomic misfortunes of an 18-year-old stowaway aboard the expedition
9.55pm, £14 (£12). Previews 2 & 3 Aug, £9. Step into this unassuming Alcoholics Anonymous meeting where twisted storytelling and spectacular circus skills are shaken and stirred, with one part dark comedy, one part serenity and three parts hostility, hilarity and honesty.
10PM UNDERGROUND RAILROAD
A GHOST’S TALE GAME
Outside Johnston Terrace Nature Reserve (by the red telephone boxes), 1–28 Aug, 9.30pm, £12 (£9). With 3D immersive sound (a virtual reality for the ears), headphones will teleport you into a mixed reality, where companions from the past, revealing their tales, will escort you around the old streets of Edinburgh. Follow the wide roads and narrow closes, from the 16th century to the modern era.
Traverse, 5–26 Aug (not 6, 13, 20, 25), times vary, £21.50 (£16.50). Previews 2, 4 Aug, £15 (£9). Good morning, America! Welcome to Hanover Middle School, where a pair of teachers are getting down and dirty with today’s lesson. The duo tackle race, sex and power politics in this R-rated, kaleidoscopic, and fearless comedy. 11PM
URBAN DEATH DANDY DARKLY’S ALL ABOARD!
Sweet Grassmarket, 2–26 Aug (not 13 & 14), 9.30pm, £8.50 (£6.50). Urban Death presents vignettes of brutal horror mixed with gallows humour designed to shock, delight, and frighten. These unflinching performances will sear images into your brain and refuse to let go.
NOTORIOUS STRUMPET & DANGEROUS GIRL
Summerhall, 4–26 Aug (not 13, 20),
Underbelly Bristo Square, 4–27 Aug (not 13), 11.10pm, £9–£10 (£8–£9). Previews 2 & 3 Aug, £7. New York City’s critically acclaimed satirist and cult horror raconteur, Dandy Darkly, returns to the Fringe for another horrific, hysteric, late-night frolic. Join Dandy aboard the infamous Gaybird Steamer for an earful of Southern Gothic grotesquery – country fried robots, spider gods, beauty shops and inbred freakery.