DRAG Assembly Checkpoint, 3–26 Aug (not 8, 14), 9.30pm, £12–£13. Previews 1 & 2 Aug, £10. A triple threat of heavenly vocals, theatrical swagger and razor-sharp wit. Direct from sell-out performances, Velma Celli celebrates the iconic drag moments of film, stage and popular culture. Join Velma, her backing singers and band for an electrifying cabaret featuring the music of Queen, Bowie, Lady Gaga, Tina Turner and more.
YUMMY Assembly Roxy, 4–26 Aug (not 8, 14, 21), 9.40pm, £13–£14. Previews 1–3 Aug, £10. Yummy is the Melbourne powerhouse of drag, dance, circus and music, featuring an all-star cast: Karen From Finance, Valerie Hex, Jandruze, Zelia Rose, Hannie Helsden and Benjamin Hancock. Winner of Best Production and Best Ensemble (Cabaret) at the 2018 Greenroom Awards and Best Cabaret at Adelaide Fringe Weekly Awards 2018.
HANS – LIKE A GERMAN Assembly Rooms, 4–19 Aug (not 12, 13), 9.50pm, £11–£13 (£10–£12). Previews 2 & 3 Aug, £8. The boy wonder of Berlin serves up an all- singing, all-tap dancing, accordion- pumping, glittering blitzkrieg of cabaret backed by his three-piece band, The Ungrateful Bastards.
10PM IVY PAIGE: SEDUCTION
Gilded Balloon Teviot, 8–18 Aug, 10.30pm, £12.50–£14 (£10.50–£12). Direct from Las Vegas and a smash- hit season at Sydney Opera House, Gameshow is back for only 11 shows. Featuring new games, new acts and new prizes, it’s a fun and frenzied trip full of anarchy and chaos.
SPONTANEOUS COMBUSTION Fireside, 2–26 Aug, 10.15pm, free. Paradise Palms’ infamous late-night showcase of provocative performance and queer cabaret, down in the arches on East Market Street. Hosted by Pollyanna and Shoot Your Shot plus a few more surprises, alongside street food, cocktails and music.
11PM SMUT SLAM CABARET: WHERE SEX AND STORYTELLING
COLLIDE
Sweet Grassmarket, 8 & 9, 15 & 16, 22 & 23 Aug, 11pm, £8 (£6). Cameryn Moore wrestles this international cult sensation into place, with music, burlesque, occasional clowns and a phone-sex-operator host. Told by the people who lived it, with one open-mic spot per night for brave audience members to tell their own smutty tales.
MIDNIGHT MARGARET THATCHER QUEEN OF CLUB NIGHTS
Gilded Balloon Teviot, 4 & 5, 9–11, 16–18, 24 & 25 Aug, midnight, £12.50–£14. Former PM and cabaret superstar Margaret Thatcher Queen of Soho is back and this time she’s hosting a club night. Expect non-stop 80s hits, dance-offs, lip-sync battles and more from the Iron Lady.
COLIN CLOUD: PSYCHO(LOGICAL) Cloud’s astounding deductions and outrageous stunts have stunned NAME HERE audiences worldwide. Psycho(logical) is a thrill ride where your thoughts Some of the best comedy in the Fringe’s first week. Written by: Brian and imaginations will guide and mislead you before ultimately revealing the Donaldson Some of the best comedy in the Fringe’s first week. Written truth. Pleasance Courtyard, 4–27 Aug (not 14), 8pm, £13.50–£17 (£12–£15.50). by: Brian Donaldson Some of the best comedy in the Fringe’s first week. Previews 1–3 Aug, £9. Written by: Brian Donaldson Some of the best comedy in the Fringe’s first week. Written by: Brian Donaldson. Donaldson Some of the best comedy in the Fringe’s first week. Written by: Brian Donaldson idea that Gingzilla can only be either glamorous or monstrous. See feature, page 41. Previews 1–3 Aug, £6. Featuring songs from Shirley Bassey to Duke Dumont, Cazeleon fights for liberation and freedom in this theatrical mash- up of the past and present. Winner of the Adelaide Fringe Best Emerging Artist weekly award.
THE HUMMINGBIRD EFFECT C Too, 2–27 Aug (not 14), 9.10pm, £8.50–£10.50 (£6.50–10.50). Intimate solo cabaret featuring
Assembly George Square Theatre, 4–26 Aug (not 13), 10.40pm, £10–£12 (£9–£11). Previews 1–3 Aug, £7. Brace yourself for an electrifying
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Deborah Brennan as storyteller and songstress, based on an unlikely true story of a chance encounter with a stranger that sets in motion life- changing events. medley of humour, music, seduction and song from the star of ITV1’s The Voice, who returns to her first love: the stage, and her second love: talking about herself.
ICONIC – A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE MISS BEHAVE GAMESHOW
LITTLE DEATH CLUB Underbelly’s Circus Hub, 4–25 Aug (not 13), 8pm, £12.50–£15 (£11.50–£14). Preview 3 Aug, £10. A Weimar-punk jazz band soundtracks a night of dangerously funny cabaret, breathtaking circus and fire-breathing sideshow at its most inappropriate, provocative and hilarious best. Join multi-award-winning Bernie Dieter for a night of debauchery.
BEN HART: THE NUTSHELL Gilded Balloon Teviot, 4–27 Aug (not 13), 8.15pm, £10.50–£12.50 (£9.50–£11.50). Previews 1–3 Aug, £7. West End star and multi award- winning magician Ben Hart returns to Edinburgh with a brand-new show that shines a light on magic, life, the universe and the darkest corners of your imaginations. Total Fringe sell-out show 2014 and 2017. Best Magic Show, Adelaide Fringe Weekly Awards.
9PM CAZELEON: THE MOVIES IN MY
MIND Gilded Balloon Teviot, 4–27 Aug (not 14), 9pm, £11–£12 (£9–£10).
LADY RIZO: RED, WHITE AND INDIGO With sharp humour and a soulful, soaring voice, the New York chanteuse delivers a deeply personal musical eulogy, unpacking the feelings for her country with belting songs and her trademark wit. Assembly Hall, 4–19 Aug (not 8, 13), 9.10pm, £14–£15 (£12–£13). Previews 2 & 3 Aug, £10. 1–8 Aug 2018 THE LIST FESTIVAL 43