Festival Theatre
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And the Devil May Drag You under Diabolical cabaret in which the audience must vote each act into Heaven or Hell based on the purity of said act’s soul. Host and hostess the Devil and Miss Mephisto are satanically : delightful with their songs and skits, but some of the acts (which range from magic to music to stand-up comedy) don’t quite enter into the spirit. Puritans. (Suzanne Black) George Square Theatre, 662 8740, until 25 Aug, [1.20pm. £10.50—£l l (£8—£9).
Another Side of the Mirror 0.”. Lynn Ruth Miller returns to the Fringe to perform another chapter in her fascinating life. Now nearly 75 years old, she presents her memories to us with joy and candour. From anecdotes about her Romanian grandmother to her long battles with illness, Miller’s vivacious appetite for storytelling makes this a life- afi'rrming experience. (Yasmin Sulaiman) Laughing Horse @ The Argyle, 221 9759, until 25 Aug, 3.55pm, free.
Blue on Blue ee The subject of Afghan ambushes is pushed into the realm of cliche in this three-hander. Suffering after a possible friendly-fire incident, an American servicewoman shacks up with a Mujahedin rebel. An engaging performance from Arran Shanti fail to rescue the clunky dialogue and simplistic heavy-handedness of this piece. (David Laing) C Cubed, 0845 260 I 234, until 25 Aug, 2pm, £6.50-£ 7.50 (£5.50-£6.50).
The Bulging Seahorse and Other Grey Matters eee- Experience explores the powerful dilemma of knowledge of impending death versus blissful ignorance. Using audience participation to shape certain scenes, the result is both amusing and thought-provoking. However, the plot lacks plausibility and, while entertaining, the show fails to leave any significant impact. (Sarah Redhead) Zoo Southside. 662 6892, until 25 Aug, 5.30pm, £7 (£5). Candide .0- .. Despite a lively performance from Prentis Hancock as Voltaire, this one-man production fails to catch fire. The biting satire that makes the story so riveting simply doesn't emerge from behind the dialogue-heavy script, and the colourful characters Candide meets on his voyages never really come to life. (Yasmin Sulaiman) Greenside, 557 2124, until 23 Aug, 8.40pm, £9—£10(£7—£8).
The Censor 000-. . Hands flicking towards each other’s groins, two actors circle one another in the basement office of the film censorship board. Prudishness and sexuality are explored in Anthony Neilson’s electrifying text. Unfortunately, the dynamics of the central relationship lack the required crackling chemistry, but this may have been due to the scoffrng teenagers in the back row.
(Natalie Woolman) The Vault, 510 0022, until 25 Aug, 7.25pm. £5 (£4).
Elia, Marilyn, Marlene and Me 000;. t. This one-woman show tells the story of a thirtysomething songstress who‘s dying to be the next Australian pop star. While her acting is patchy, Melissa Westem‘s impersonations of Ella Fitzgerald and Marlene Dietrich are spot on, while her natural charm and sincerity is captivating. (Theresa Munoz) The Vault, 510 0022, until 25 Aug, 10.10pm, £6—£9 (£6—£7).
Root
Elvis Hates Me! oeee Philip Stokes‘ playl is set in a mental health ward where two patients believing they are Elvis Presley, are cared for by a disturbed nurse. The piece follows the nurse’s fantasy about what she could have been and the world of celebrities. The cast not only provokes laughter, tears and shock, but also explores the current frenzy for celebrities. The simple staging pushes the actors to dominate the stage and keeps the full attention of the spectators. (Robin Ford Coron) The Zoo, 662 6892 until 25 Aug, 4pm, £7 (£5). Foresldns Lament ee This dodgy production of New Zealand playwright Greg McGee’s landmark 1980 play is played out in the locker room of a local rugby club changing room. A couple of really appalling performances and some less than inspired direction derail things. Still at least the Kiwi accents are genuine and there’s lots of full frontal male nudity. (Paul Dale) Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, until 25 Aug, £9—£10(£7—£8). Histrionics .0 With this rough- hewn but charming play, award-winning writer James Butler keeps the comedy flowing with men in drag, tuneless singing and tussles on the saloon floor. Blue smoke, a live lute and the damp air of the Caves transports us back to the 18th century. (Theresa Munoz) Underbelly '5‘ Baby Belly, The Caves, Niddry St South, 017 Cowgate, 0844 545 8252, until 24 August, 11.40 am, £6.00—£9.50 (£7.50—£8.50).
Hitler Alone see The Fiihrer rants and raves his most intimate concerns during his last hours in the bunker. While the script is often overladen with historical information, the central performance is at times incredibly compelling. (Miles Johnson) Inlingua. 220 5] [9. until 24 Aug, 8.15pm, £7 (£5). The House of the Grape ee ‘People just look at the star rating,’ says Patrick when his French cafe gets a one- star review. ‘They don‘t read in between the lines.’ Like the restaurant, which he tries in vain to save from ruin, this play is unsalvageable. Lifeless and irritating, it’s derailed by a clunking script. Even the charming posters adoring the walls of Petit Paris, and the smells emanating from its kitchen do little to save this sprawling mess. (Yasmin Sulaiman). Petit Paris, Queensferry Street, 226 1890. until 24 Aug, times vary. £6—£7 (£4—£5). In Conflict O... A verbatim theatre piece featuring astute performances from a young cast, this series of interviews with US military personnel who have served in Iraq reflects everything from bitterness to a defiant kind of idealism. Director Douglas Wager adds some theatrical touches, but the focus is on the words themselves, which have a powerful impact. (Steve Cramer) Assembly Rooms, 623 3030, until 25 Aug. 12.15pm. £13—£15(£12—£l4).
In a Thousand Pieces eeee. No one should rush to the Paper Birds company in search of an incisive analysis of human trafficking. Despite drawing on verbatim material, In a Thousand Pieces tells you nothing you didn’t already know about Eastern European women being sold into prostitution. What the company does provide, however, is an imaginative piece of physical theatre that
102 THE LIST FESTIVAL MAGAZINE 21 Aug-4 Sep 2008
tackles the issue with wit, verve and compassion. (Mark Fisher) Gilded Balloon Teviot, 668 1633, until 25 Aug, 1.45pm, £9—£ 10 (£8—£9).
Loving Burns ee Two female performers weave songs from the Bard of Ayrshire into a pretty thin story which connects the many women in Burns‘ life. I’m not sure we really need another play about the errant but lovable rogue, but if we do, this isn’t it, for the longing for him by the women left behind is. well, overlong. Some nice singing redeems the piece, though. (Steve Cramer) Rocket @ Roxburghe Hotel, 0871 750 0077, until 25 Aug, 5.30pm, £7.50—£8.50 (£4). Padarnnle, Padamrne eeee Monolingual Brits will inevitably miss some of Teatr Ecce Homo’s captivating ensemble sequences while reading the (frequently frozen) surtitles, in this adaptation of Nobel Prize-winner Alexsandr Solzhenitsyn’s Cancer Ward. Fluid movement work grants the terminally ill characters — played by a largely teenage cast — a kind of dignified grace, as they come to terms with their conditions through denial, philosophy or love. Uplifting and heartbreaking.
(Matt Boothman) Rocket @ Demarco RoxyArt House. 087] 7500077, until 23 Aug, 11.20pm, £9 (£7).
P.I.E .0 Velvet and Hatcher are female private detectives. Together they crack bad puns and attempt to stage a full-scale murder mystery with just two actors. This is endearineg silly at best, drawing heavily on existing noir spoofs and lacking the originality to sustain interest for a full hour. (Jonny Ensall) Pleasance Courtyard. 556 6550, until 24 Aug. 3.25pm, £7.5()—£8.50 (£6—£ 7). Saving Tania’s Privates see This show should come with a warning. Not because of the references to lesbian sex and liberal attitudes to everything else - being open to that should go without saying. But because one woman (Tania Katan) exposes her survival of breast cancer (twice), body and soul in a moving hour that’s as warmly witty as it is heart-rending. (Sumnne Black) Pleasance Dome. 556 6550, until 25 Aug, 1pm, £8.5()—£9.5() (£7—£8). Scararnouche Jones ee. Scaramouche Jones. the white-faced clown, has lived a century and wants to tell you the story of his life. Bring a cushion, because it‘s gonna be a loooong ride. An energetic performance from writer Justin Butcher doesn‘t hide the fact that this self-indulgent production is overwritten but lacking human warmth. (Kirstin lnnes) Assembly Rooms, until 25 Aug, [2.20pm. £12—£l3 (HO—£12). Secret Agents ee This tale of a terrorist incident posits, refutes and amends aspects along the way in a risky attempt at meta-drama. When it works, the structure builds like a house of cards in a comment on the construction of truth, but plot holes and an obvious denouement bring it crashing down. An ambitious show that just needs more work. (Suzanne Black) Pleasance Dome, 556 6550, until 30Aug (not 26—28). 7.50pm, [ti—£9 (£6.50—£ 7.50).
The Self-Murder see This physical theatre show from Russian company Stop! See! Sense! Russia! is a well-intentioned attempt to address the problem of suicide among the nation‘s youth. The show, which employs a daily
revolving cast and multimedia, dramatises an encounter between a boy and girl who have made a suicide pact on the intemet. While energetically performed it's a tad earnest and pretentious. (Miles Fielder) clubWEST @ The Royal College of Surgeons, 527 1562, until 25 Aug, 1pm, £12 (£10). The Shadow 0 Enthusiastic acting is let down here by an over- written, confused and dizzyineg fast- paced script about a poet who loses his shadow. A barrage of contradictory metaphors dealing in the currency of light. dark, joy, greed, friend. foe and princesses, sadly undermines the nostalgia for good old-fashioned storytelling which i suspect was the initial drive behind this production. (Rosalie Doubal) Underbelly 's Baby Belly, 0844 545 8252, until 24 Aug, 12.10pm. £8.50—£9.50 (£7.50—£8.50). Shafted e ._ Three men with motives for murder are trapped in a lift. As the lights flicker out, one succumbs to a macabre death in a straightforward thriller that even Stephen King would struggle to twist to life. Two valiant performances are dwarfed an almost total lack of suspense that, if corrected, might nudge this into watchable tem'tory. (David Laing) Roxburghe Hotel, 0871 750 0077. until 25 Aug, 2.50pm, £7 (£6). 66a Church Road eee Sitting amid an array of suitcases as if he has been thrown out onto the street, Daniel Kitson creates a tragicomic riff on his old flat. At first the imaginative conceit successfully taps into the sentimentality people invest in their homes, but the overly-intense final 30 minutes fails to hold audience attention. (Natalie Woolman) Traverse Theatre. 228 1404. until 24 Aug, 10pm, £ l4—£ 16 ( I 0—£ I l ). Shippers & Gentlemen see This show does little to illuminate the dark truths of the stripper’s lifestyle, but a lot to emulate their writhing dance moves and skimpy outfits. Good multimedia elements and promenade staging make the atmosphere genuinely exciting. but its ability to leave the audience hot under the collar also exposes the show‘s limited theatrical scope. (Jonny Ensall) C soco, 0845 260 l234, until 25 Aug, 10.55pm.
£8.50—£ 10.50 (£7.50—£9.5()).
Table 23 see A young man, who has turned his back on his family to write a novel. returns home after his sister’s death to wind up the family restaurant. Contrasting with this apparently downbeat narrative is a performance style that incorporates physical comedy and clowning. At times the story and techniques get in each other's way, but the company is to be admired for its abundant energy. (Steve Cramer) Gilded Balloon Teviot, 668 1633, until 25 Aug, 1.45pm, £8.50—£9.50 (£7.50—£8.50). Which to Burn? eeee. A one- woman show about loneliness, death and the Forth Rail Bridge might not sound like a winning combination, but Rachel Ogilvy brings the character to life through a series of remembered vignettes. The downbeat and often sad story of a woman trapped by past events actually offers an uplifting glimpse of a hopeful future. (Henry Northmore) Gilded Balloon Teviot, 668 I633, until 25 Aug. 1.15pm, £8.50—£9.50 (£7.50—£8.50).