FESTIVAL 5"/3"
sound and lighung Chile do notgood comedy — rehearsal — admittedly make. especmlly when ' THEATRE warned of beforehand - the)’ COP about In M this could not be held to seemingly rande SEX BLOOD blame for missed cues. fashlqn. 003" Without - 9 s fluffed lines and generally anything @SCmbhng 3 mediocre acting. punchline in between. Set entirely in (Sue Wilson)
Swinedale FM Radio g I Continental Drift . Station. the story trundles (Fringe) JaCILMCDODZlId. throu h a series of Hi 1 Street T eatre (Venue
g 41) 226 6522, um“ 30 I always thought that
innuendo and sight gags. few of which hit the target. Half way through it seems as if even the cast have given up hope.
Aug. 6pm. £4.50 (£3.50).
V THEATRE
Greek theatre was either tragedy or comedy. and as it’s generally agreed that those Greeks knew a thing or two about theatre
Given a little more , (here‘s probably a pretty rehearsal and a lot more good reason why this was enthusiasm this show : (he case, And with The could really have i I Mayflies we have that
potential. (James Taylor) I Kiddies WI’ NM (Fringe) Screaming Blue Murder Theatre Company. The Mad Abbot (Venue 84) 447 8811. until 28 Aug. 6.30pm. £4 (£3.50).
V COMEDY
CONTINENTAL DRIFT
Australian storyteller- comedian Jack McDonald comes pretty highly recommended — by the Independent last year. by several Antipodean papers — so perhaps it was a case of first night wobbles. but the show I saw was woefully lacking in punch. focus. shape and direction. it‘s a shame. because McDonald is clearly a very nice man —
sheepdogs' antics. of teaching English to Japanese people or of bar- room conversations in
An impressive solo performance by Tim
? Newton (who also wrote
the text) is the foundation of a largely rewarding
v exercise in atmospheric theatre. Spoken (almost)
entirely in doggerel verse. The Ballad lurches through the streets and sewers of 19th century London. sniffing for a mythological emblem for
the horrors described in ; Mayhew‘s London Labour and the London Poor.
This they find in the 12ft maneater Limehouse Rat. which is exorcised by an
enigmatic ratcatcher
1 armed with docker‘s hook. Newton hurls ‘ himself about athletically.
keeps the verse's metre.
‘ and paces it all . beautifully. No mean
achievement. (Andrew
Royal (Venue 47) 556
i 2549. until 4 Sept (not 22.
l
‘29 Aug). 7pm. £5.50 (£4.50).
l
reason.
Philip lves and Richard Osborne have swotted up on their ancient history and come up with a ‘tragi- comedy’ performed entirely in verse and cataloguing the destruction of Maeflos by a few irate gods. Cue plenty of tragic wailing and carry on with comic innuendo (‘Oh Hector‘s got a magnificent sword‘) and you do indeed have a disaster on a quite global scale. (Philip Parr)
I The Mayflles - Sex, Blood, Death and Global DBSIFIICIIOII (Fringe) Working Theatre. Pleasance (Venue 33) 556 6550. until 4 Sept (not
Tue). 6.45pm. £5/£5.50 ‘ (£4/£4.50).
% v THEATRE
mime and music certainly creates a very warm and pure form of theatre. but the real reason it works is
his very affability makes PUIVCF) | up for a lot — but rambling i I “l0 33"“ OI "10 ' tales of g limehouse Bat (Fringe) . , anthropomorphised l LOUdCI' Than Words. Cafe Th1s heady IanIure 0f
‘l want to be drinking Pink Panthers
RISK
with iiaomi Campbell in Beverly Hills e. I '
after i’ve come home from my job as a gigolo . . . I want to swap my bread crates in Carruthers Close for a waterbed in Beverly ifills.’ The character, Spike is reciting his mantra In the poignant closing scene of the
powerful new play, Risk, by the Crassmarket Proiect.
Risk is a poke in the eye for any iaded theatre-goer in Its no-nonsense, yet moving portrayal of young homeless people forced to beg on the streets of Edinburgh. Based on the and closes a continual reminder that true-life experiences, dreams and tho SWIG! ‘8 0|! 0|" 40ml “"8 fears of young people on the streets, '3 "0 “MOON”! OBN'PNP “8118 the play explores how they came to be 5809'"! "'0 mm M hMOWOfl. there in the first place: drink, incest but a mII-dlmud and motlonallv victim, ex-psychiatric patient, and "MM"! 9"“ M mm M '8
how they survive In this ‘at risk’
situation.
bound to leave its audience a little less likely mechanically to respond,
JIM ROSE CIRCUS SIDESHOW
A carnival atmosphere swept over the ' Acropolis for the first night of the much hyped Jim Bose Circus Sideshow, replete with carnival music and a liberal sprinkling of nervous chatter sweeping the crowd. After all this isn’t your normal Festival Fringe act, this is the opening night, a sell- out, for this modern day freakshow. So what of it? The show is splendidly compered by the wise-ass, smooth taikin’ Mr Rose, without whom this would have been one heck of a boring
Jim Bose Circus Sideshow: ‘(II my Bed, isbe
flight out. With his overthe-top run, a)... m introductions for each act and general body plowing and (met “a.” “Idiom! COIOIIBB. "In 3089 '8 00° 0' alongside a few bizarre new additions, the best show compares i’ve ever m. or much an my "mm, 9000 but if it was that dangerous they lust
But what about the atrocities? The show is extreme well polished, rather enloyable and exceptionally well scripted, with a mixture of well orchestrated theatrics and a few true, ‘Oh my God, is he really doing that’ moments. Basically it follows very closely in tradition with bygone freakshows, all the old favourite routines are here; the sword swallowing, straitlacket escaping,
wouldn’t be doing it.
Recommended or not, it will doubtlessiy sell out its three-week run, especially if the moral malority starts screaming louder for it to be banned, which with the addition of the ‘Electric Jesus’ they may well do. (Joe Lampard)
Jim Rose Circus Sideshow (Fringe) Acropolis (Venue 26) 557 6969, until 4
Sent. 79m, £8.
the comic absurdity of it ; - I doing it and have they no all. The actors look i v ! shame? But i can’t really comical for a start: one’s a I ' be bothered to find out. Russ Abbot lookalike. Z 4 (Stephen Chester) another‘s a dead ringer for I The lunch Pack Of Iiot Rick Moranis. And here ' i Pork Cr iiam (Fringe)
i PORK OR NAM
i it isn’t offensively bad. 60) 226 4224 um“ 28
it's just so bad that it’s 1 Aug. 6pm. £3' (£2).
impossible to work up the 1
enthusiasm to be annoyed. ' A woman says ,
something
;' incomprehensible and
i poetic. then leaves three
5 people to sit round a table
I and die an agonisingly
f tedious impro death. Then
their characters really do
die. killed by an lslamic
hit man disguised as a
waiter. Then the play
finishes and you go home.
(Venue 15) 228 1404. 15. “16 Piece does thrgw up a 19 Aug, 7pm; 20’ 22 Aug. number of interesting
3.30pm; 21 Aug. noon.“ 3 questions. like whoare (£5), these people. why are they
they are. four brave matadors. wordlessly confronting an invisible. bellowing bull.
Here. the bull is boss; for a change the bullfighters lose. Strong characterisation and an intimate relationship with the audience result in a surreal. witty. charming investigation into manliness.
Enthrailing and memorable. (Gabe Stewart)
I hinui (Fringe) Yllana. Spain. Traverse Theatre
Freud Egg Productions, 5 Buster Brown‘s (Venue
CROV€ Breathtaking Burritos Tasty Tacos Excellent Enchiladas Magic Mushrooms Tanta/ising Tostados Sumptious Seafood Stupendous
An impressive debut by a largely amateur cast who make no concessions for those not familiar with Edinburgh slang or humour. With local references to Edinburgh clubs
‘Cot one already,’ when approached by a Big issue vendor. (Ann Donald)
Bisk (Fringe) Crassmarket Project, The Caiton, Caiton Road (Venue 71) 558 3581, until 28 Aug, 6.30pm, £7 (£4).
Steaks Friendly Service
THE LASTDROP &Much,MuchMore... 74 G RASSMA R [(57 10% STUDENT DISCOUNT o 31- 2 25 4851 BUENO APPETITO AMIGOS
“The Inn Place to Hang Out”
3 LOCHRIN TERRACE, EDINBURGH TEL: 031 229 1569
The List 20—26 August 1993 43