Was Queen Elizabeth I really a virgin? Was the Spanish Armada lead by a giant inflatable penis? How good was Mary Queen of Scots' head game? Find out in this surprisingly accurate (horrible histories inspired) musical comedy. Join us on an in depth exploration of the folds of a woman who's been documented as much for her body and sexuality as her actual achievements and success. Through scandal, conspiracy and raunchy musical comedy, let us delve into the life of Queen Elizabeth I. After all, there's nothing weird about discussing a 491-year-old's wobbly bits, is there

Regina Vagina

Fingers Piano Bar

Princess Gayatri seeks to preserve her father’s legacy and the survival of her people. Can she attain her dreams? Epic new opera from Mhyajo, based on Mpu Prapanca’s 13th century Javanese manuscript Nagarakertagama, with music composed by Franki Raden, a professor in ethnomusicology, and co-directed by Bona Palma. ‘Fascinating and brilliantly scripted’ **** (TheatreAndArtReviews.wordpress.com). ‘A brave and deeply ambitious spectacle’ **** (LouReviews.blog). ‘Its combination of contemporary and traditional, of history, music and movement, is unexpectedly compelling’ (SeeingDance.com). ‘A stunning story and artform… am now desperate to see more!’ (TheArtsBusiness.com).

Gayatri: The Majapahit Trilogy (Episode 1)

C ARTS | C venues | C digital

Meet Nicole: Hyperverbal, chaotic and a little dramatic with deep self loathing and crippling self esteem issues, she thought she was a complete disaster, until she found out she had ADHD. Three years later she impulsively wrote and performed her first one woman show in 2023 about discovering her ADHD at 30, Why Am I Like This? Bracing herself for failure, the opposite happened: everyone loved the show (and her?!) So why is it so hard to believe? Why is she so empty? Now there's a new question: Why Am I (Still) Like This?

EPSG:4326

Why Am I (Still) Like This?

Online

Abigail’s mum is dead. But it turns out she can’t afford her to be. It’s £4000 for the funeral. Extra for flowers. Even more if you want sausage rolls. Then, when a theatre suddenly pulls out of Abigail’s new project, she is asked to write about something else. Something more raw, from her "unique working class lens". Yep. To afford the funeral, she has to write about her mum. With power and playfulness, Kelly Jones’s new play tackles the inequalities around death, and the cost of turning your loved ones into art.

My Mother's Funeral: The Show

ROUNDABOUT @ Summerhall

Every day a different unrehearsed performer takes to the stage, ready to receive instructions. Line-by-line a story unfolds, and a life unspools. A new show by makers of work.txt, ***** (Guardian) Instructions is about AI, creativity and the dying days of capitalism, performed by a different actor every day. They are about to give the performance of a lifetime as the borders between reality and fiction begin to blur. By Nathan Ellis. Produced by SUBJECT OBJECT. 'God, but I do love this' ***** (Guardian). 'Brilliantly conceived and highly original' ***** (Scotsman).

Instructions

Summerhall Edinburgh

It's the Black Women Curse. A poetic reflection of a harrowing true story. Godlike, a Walking Universe, with the power to create life. When the mind forgets but the body doesn't, every traumatic event is etched into the fabric of DNA. Memories manifest themselves like a pollutant. Afrofuturism through an East African lens. Interweaving language, customs and music with wearable tech MiMu gloves, ethereal artist Lula Mebrahtu (aka LULA.XYZ

OommoO I Am A Walking Universe

'If you follow someone down a path you don't recognise, you risk not being able to find your way back.' When Ouida was a child her father sleepwalked out of the house... never to return. Ouida suspected her imaginary friend "Burt" led him astray, but her family insisted he'd abandoned them and she must give up all notions of imaginary things. Years later, Ouida is a respected therapist debunking the irrational and fantastic... But what will you believe? This beautiful, darkly comic story about magic versus cynicism leaves audiences charmed – and just a little bit spooked.

Piskie

The NHS is on its knees, yet no one has thought to call a theatre company... until NOW. Can actors Adam and Kemi single-handedly save our healthcare system, before it's too late? No other theatre company has had such consistent collaboration with NHS / Care Home staff since April 2020. Join us in our interactive and exhilarating A&E as satire meets medical mayhem in a rousing call to arms, with inspiring verbatim stories and dark humour from the frontline. Post-show events 10, 15, 22 Aug, 13:30-14:30.

In the Sick of It

Assembly George Square Studios

At 69, Alice wonders: if she hadn’t been expelled from convent school and had sex with Keith from the sausage rolls section, what might her life have been? Will Alice shake off the shackles of the patriarchy and live out the rest of her days with outrageous abandon? Find out in this rip-roaring feminist comedy, created by three women over 60.

In the Lady Garden

Pleasance Courtyard

Moscow 2001. Echoes of Soviet Russia linger and young Putin is flirting with the West, when two rebellious souls lose themselves in a vodka-fuelled romance. Bringing audio diaries made on an old Walkman to life, Moscow Love Story is an untamed exploration of love and memory, paralleling personal boundaries with geopolitics in a world on the brink of transformation. Developed with support of Alma Alter Theatre Laboratory, Bulgaria and Sherman Theatre, Cardiff. 'Jenkins weaves a substantial, ambitious play of ideas' **** (Telegraph, for First Person Shooter).

Moscow Love Story

This is a show about food banks. This is not a show about food. This is about the bad stuff. This is an emergency. This is a clowning show. Multi award winners Ugly Bucket (Untapped Award 2022) present a blazing inferno of physicality, clown, original music, and transformative personal testimony. Stuffed is a roaring call to action amidst the wreckage of a desecrated system. 'As enraging as it is brilliant. A tour-de-force performance that deserves the nation's attention' ***** (OpeningNights.co.uk). 'You could hear a pin drop in the furthest corner of the room' ***** (NorthWestEnd.co.uk).

Stuffed

The critically acclaimed, sold-out comedy from New York makes its UK premiere. Two actors and a Foley artist perform a live, shot-for-shot parody of the greatest dinosaur film of all time. A wildly inventive tour-de-force of comedy, physical theatre and live Foley. 'Painfully funny... made us cry actual tears of laughter... a pure joy from start to finish' Critic's Pick (Time Out). 'Amazing and hilarious... go see this masterful production' (StageBuddy.com). 'This is something that can't be missed' (TheHappiestMedium.com).

Hold on to Your Butts

Jamie can’t swim. Bit awkward when you’re 30. Fuelled by guilt and a need to mend her broken family, Jamie is taking on her biggest fear, the ocean. With the help of a chipper swim instructor, a shady spiritual guide and one cathartic crab sandwich, she’s questioning, ‘how many lengths does it take to wash away regret?’ Brilliantly witty, deeply heartfelt, this play explores what lies beneath the surface of Black people’s relationship to water. Somebody Jones’ searing debut is 'funny with fear, liberating with grief' (FringeReview.co.uk) and impossible to walk away from unchanged.

How I Learned to Swim

On the heels of a major childhood event, K Lorrel Manning's Lost... Found takes you on a soul-searching, delightfully human rollercoaster ride through music, unlikely heroes and The Artist Formerly Known as Prince.

Lost... Found

Assembly Roxy

Belles was the it girl, hip girl, oh-so-very-fit girl. When she was 17. Now, she’s 24 and spends her days bossed about by her Mum and girls she 100% used to bully. So, when a life-changing opportunity slides into her DMs, she carpes the diem, makes her millions and proves the worth of women worldwide one post at a time. Except she doesn’t. Because…come on. A finalist for The Stage Innovation Award, this is a hair-pulling, fake-nail scratching, cat-fight against get-rich-quick schemes and what it means to be a Girl Boss™.

I Really Do Think This Will Change Your Life

Pleasance Dome

Being of service can be a wonderful thing. But can saying yes to everyone be a toxic trait? Told through tales of years working in the service industry, from call centres to cafes, How Can I Help You is a musical ode to Callum's 33 years as a chronic people pleaser, an exploration of the power of no and a look at how scary it can be to set boundaries, for yourself and for those you love. Callum Patrick Hughes returns to The Pleasance after his critically acclaimed 2023 Edinburgh Fringe debut Thirst.

How Can I Help You

Love at first sight is easy, letting it through the front door is a goddamn Odyssey. All he wants to do is let the perfect man in, but can he overcome his unhinged neighbour, a seductive cult, a self-obsessed vampire, and a cat intent on dragging him to hell? From Audible and the award-winning producers of Fleabag and Baby Reindeer, I'm Almost There is New York favourite Todd Almond's rueful, hilarious and poignant modern love story in song about a man crossing a sea of doubts to find happiness…and good coffee.

I'm Almost There

It's the EURO 2020 Final at Wembley and Billy's gone viral for sticking a flare up his arse! Why I Stuck A Flare Up My Arse For England is a blisteringly funny new play that returns to the Fringe after a sell-out, five-star run. Billy and his best pal Adam are die-hard football fans. It's how they spend every weekend. It's their escape, their religion and their life. But when they encounter a new group of mates, they start to take their support one step further.

Why I Stuck A Flare Up My Arse For England

Underbelly, Bristo Square

What happens six months after your five minutes of fame? Cyrus and Ben are the first gay winners of TV's biggest reality show. They're 22, have thousands of followers, but now spend most of their days making sponsored content about dog food, and fronting campaigns about adult incontinence. When they're offered an influencing deal in Dubai, the couple must decide how far they'll go to cling to celebrity... and at what cost. A smash-hit satire by multi award-winning comedy writers for Netflix and BBC Television. 'Fantastic play... had me howling with laughter' (BroadwayWorld.com), from BAFTA-winning Unusual Productions.

Love's a Beach

1999. Lucy is in labour. She’s just been handed a document to sign and her sense of self is beginning to deteriorate. 2024. Claire is an art student. Her latest panic attack means her art course could be over. Oh, and she can't stop contemplating her own mortality. Misdiagnosis, mistreatment and misinformation were rife back then. And still are now... Claire and Lucy have OCD. But they don’t know that yet. From award-winning Almost Adult writer/performer Charlotte Anne-Tilley (***** (EdFestMag)), Lipstick (**** (The Stage)) director, Ed White and Destiny (**** (Guardian)) producer, Tom Bevan.

Oh, Calm Down

Cairns Lecture Theatre

Join performance-maker and foodie Sean Wai Keung as he explores fortune cookies as well as his own mixed-race identity. Write your own fortunes as he bakes cookies live while exploring the history of this most enigmatic of after-meal snacks. An intimate performance for ten people maximum, you will have the opportunity to write fortunes for yourself or for someone else. Suitable for vegans.

A History of Fortune Cookies

New York Comedian/Moth StorySLAM Champion Brooke weaves award-winning storytelling, poetic narrative, wry comedy to fashion a uniquely styled, kaleidoscopic identity exploration and invitation to reflect on outtie and innie worlds. Following sold-out solo shows Off-Off Broadway and Edinburgh Fringe, Brooke's infectious energy and unique voice crafts a celebration of indomitable human spirit. Previous: 'Writing and delivery is first class'; 'A proper performer to balance the comedy and drama'; 'Brilliant tour de force' (Audience reviews). 'Sharp comedic timing' **** (Skinny); 'Endearing wit… thoroughly worth seeing' **** (TheatreWeekly.com); 'Intriguing and heartfelt' **** (LondonTheatre1.com).

The Brilliance of Broken Glass: Button

Gilded Balloon Patter House

Inside Chekhov's masterpiece, Olga, Masha, and Irina are trapped in a cycle of disappointed hopes, heartbreak, and inertia. But this time, it's going to be different. Looking for answers, this trio investigate the trope they have been written into, from Greek mythology to the Sugarbabes. Harnessing the raucous energy of girlhood and the wildness of three women on the brink, Sisters Three sets ablaze a construction of femininity drawn by men, to find hope in its ashes. TheatreGoose return to Summerhall following their OFFest-nominated and BBC Popcorn Award-longlisted debut Her Green Hell.

Sisters Three

As children they were evacuated from a war zone. Fifty years on, Barton and Andy are still trying to find out who they are. Precious Cargo is a powerful, timely new show about the life-long impact of the Vietnam war, by Australian writer-performer Barton Williams (Huynh van Cuong) and Hebridean composer Andy Yearley (Nguyen Tang). Drawing on interviews with Operation Babylift adoptees from across the world, it is a story about the chaos of conflict, childhood trauma, racism and a generation running out of time to find lost families. Directed by Fringe First winner Laura Cameron-Lewis.

Precious Cargo

'Here we all are... sat together in one room. One room. One audience. One… beautiful nation'. From the creator of We Were Promised Honey! and Five Encounters on a Site Called Craigslist comes a new experiment in storytelling. It’s the story of a nation. It’s the story of a theatre. It’s the story of an audience. Outside there are people trying to get in. And in the middle of the room… apparently a show is taking place. ‘YESYESNONO make shows that feel completely different to anybody else’ (Exeunt). Off West End Award finalist, 2022. Best Production, Total Theatre Award.

Nation

Join Australian musical comedian Darby James for his multi-award-winning cabaret about the process of sperm donation. On this unforgettable voyage with all original songs, Darby clicks a Facebook ad and gets swept up on an hilarious, heartfelt adventure. As he navigates medical questionnaires, psychological evaluations and musings on potential parenthood, Darby finds himself stranded as a seaman in moral purgatory, facing the question: should we be having children? Winner of the Edinburgh Touring Award and Best Cabaret at Melbourne Fringe Festival 2023, and nominated for six Green Room Awards, Darby James dives headfirst into his international debut.

Little Squirt

From the creative team behind the five-star, multi-award winning plays Jesus, Jane Mother and Me, and Heroin(e) for Breakfast. The horrors of war have broken young Wesley, but could the madness he encounters beyond it save or destroy a soldier's shellshocked mind? A powerful new play from multi award-winning playwright Philip Stokes, recognised by the British Library as a culturally important playwright of the 21st century, and Olivier, Tony and Emmy award-winning producer Richard Jordan. Starring Jack Stokes (Winner, Adelaide Critics Circle Award 2023) and Lee Bainbridge – Heroin(e) For Breakfast: ***** (Sunday Telegraph).

Shellshocked – An Explosive New Play

The Herald Angel Award-winning smash hit of modern Scottish theatre returns to the Fringe for a fifth successive year. The tragic, comic and epic tale of the greatest bagpiper that ever lived, a Pitlochry bin man who rocked tradition, flew beyond the summit of his art and changed Scottish music forever. Whatever notions you have of bagpipes, leave them at the door. 'A stunning, staggering piece of modern Scottish folk theatre' ***** (BritishTheatreGuide.info). 'Elucidating, charming and rip-roaringly inspirational' ***** (TheQR.co.uk).

Thunderstruck

Scottish Storytelling Centre

Journey into Dublin, a city where pints are needed before chats can happen. James and Sean are hopelessly single while Grace and Kayleigh are in relationships that are problematic. When the four collide in a crowded bar opportunities appear. Will they follow their hearts or eternally just settle? Find out in this engaging romantic comedy. Colin O'Donnell recently had One More commissioned as a pilot for Irish TV. He's joined by a scintillating cast that takes you into the real life stories of people searching for love in 2024. Colin previously had a sell out show 'Coppers Uncovered'.

One More

Iris and Thalia. Thalia and Iris. A flatshare. A secret. A friendship dancing on the edge of time. Everything moves different when you know it's all coming apart. From the company that brought you Bluewater ('a true original' ***** (BingeFringe.com)), this electric ode to female friendship by Danielle James confronts us with a searing question: how do you grieve something you haven't yet lost?

Knives and Forks

A spooky fantasy adventure. A young girl named Minerva is a hero in her dreams but feels helpless in real life. When her friend is taken by Oizys, the Goddess of Anxiety, Minerva must travel through a skeleton-ridden city to rescue her. A touching tale for any child or adult who has ever struggled with the constant worry that they're not good enough. Featuring award-winning cinematic shadow puppetry from Japan. Hundreds of puppets are projected on a large screen to create a live animated movie. From the creators of Space Hippo and Shadow Kingdom. ***** (Now Magazine).

Shadow Necropolis

Imagine discovering that your friend's novel was all about your late husband's affair and murder... A psychological thriller with echoes of The Talented Mr Ripley and Rosemary's Baby: female "hysteria" vs sexual identity. On the tenth anniversary of her husband's death, May adds the finishing touches to the table settings just as the doorbell rings. This is it. The moment of truth. But as May welcomes Eric with a warm embrace, their conversation takes an unexpected and unsettling turn...

Things Between Heaven and Earth

No one likes crusty knickers and a broken heart. But that’s just life, isn’t it? Three friends grow up under an ancient tree. They’re filthy, brutal and full of hope. By turns hysterical and poignant, Playfight is a searing probe of their inner lives as they hunt for love. Proper, ugly love. As their roots sink deeper, the branches stretch higher… so they decide to climb. Multi Fringe First-winning team Julia Grogan (Gunter), Theatre Uncut and Grace Dickson Productions present Playfight, shining a vivid light on adolescent desire in a landscape of rising sexual violence.

Playfight

Described by WhyNow magazine as a modern-day Under Milk Wood, and an 'unmissable hour of theatre' by LostInTheatreLand.co.uk, This Town arrives at the fringe after a successful sold-out run at Contact and Derby Theatre. Based on the epic poem And Within These Cobbled Streets published by Verve Press, This Town pushes the boundaries of spoken word, storytelling and theatre, dropping audiences into a small Midlands town whilst investigating the difficulties of male friendship, masculinity and sexuality. The characters will make you laugh cry and reflect on on the importance of close-knit communities supporting each other through difficult times.

This Town

Nominated for Best Production at Dublin Fringe Festival 2023, You're Needy (sounds frustrating) is a site-specific piece for one audience member about a woman's retreat from everyday life in pursuit of peace, solitude and "wellness". Carrie's moved into her bathroom. She's living on slim noodles and chopped parsley baths. Every week she's visited by a volunteer hired to help her reintegrate into society. This week, it's your turn. Take an ocean breath and snort a line of rock salt. It's time to peel off those cucumbers and take a long hard look at yourself

You're Needy (sounds frustrating)

Buccleuch Terrace

"Fortunes" lost. "Fortunes" gained. Canada's Miramichi Valley High School presents this world-premiere production of privilege, power, love and revelation, set in Regency-era England. The untimely deaths of their parents has upheaved the world of the three young "Lady Fortunes", whose idyllic lives of standing and innocence are replaced with declarations of unwanted truths, long hidden jealousies and shockingly dark desires. A compelling story of entangled secrets and devious retribution.

Miss Fortune's Misfortunes

Central Hall Edinburgh

Jules has just discovered she likes girls. Juniper has always known – a queer romcom exploring polyamory, shifting sexualities and modern love. Written by award-winning playwright Stephanie Martin. Follow two women redefining romance and exploring what it means not just to survive without a template, but how we can carve our own.

Juniper and Jules

'This is just the start. Of Everything. Of Us.' It's the late 90s. Charlie and Debs have perfected their Wannabe routine. They're drenched in Impulse Blue. And they're each other's everything. But as the world pulls them in different directions, their friendship begins to strain. It dies. Again and again and again. If a female friendship dies many deaths, how many can they survive? Spanning 25 years and the countless lifetimes of one friendship, this new romcom explores the heartbreak of platonic love. By Amy Powell Yeates. Directed by Claire O'Reilly.

Little Deaths

A cocky gay clown in therapy. A clueless detective. An X-Factor sob story. Pop culture and queer drama drama drama collide against a rainbow backdrop. A surreal, fast-paced and darkly funny exploration of a queer relationship gone bad. Blending clowning, drag and a subversive take on the trauma-parading solo show, plewds is about the lengths we’ll go to avoid what’s right in front of us, in a story where the villains don’t look like villains. Being queer is the best, right? Mary Dick Award Winner 2024. Made with support from Camden People's Theatre.

plewds

An ape named Red Peter is captured. In his quest to break out of his confinement, he learns to imitate humanity and contests identity based on outward appearance. Through his journey, Kafka's Ape questions the understanding of otherness. Miyambo has received multiple accolades for this powerful performance, including winner of Outstanding Performance Award at Prague Fringe Festival 2019, Best Satire Award at New York's United Solo Festival 2019, and the Graham F Smith Peace Foundation Award at the Adelaide Fringe Festival 2021, among others.

Kafka's Ape

Mother is in prison. Daughter, from whom she has been estranged for 12 years, has come to visit. Closely watched by security personnel, they have 1 hour. As unreliable as she is charming, Mother recounts her version of events, knowing this is their last chance to reconnect. Along a blurry journey of sleep deprivation and abandoned love, we discover the true reason for her imprisonment and ask: how can you keep a hold of yourself when you're forced to get lost in your keeper? A new play from the writer of multi award-winning Bacon. 'Beautiful and devastating' ***** (Stage)

Surrender

Award-winning solo performance about women over three generations. A mystic siren calls out from distant shores to take the audience on an astral journey of healing, forgiveness and reconciliation. The awakening of the feminine within through monologues, dance, chanting and live music liberates a past bondage and leads to spiritual metamorphosis.

Voices of a Siren

The University of Edinburgh

1968. Three thousand students occupy the London School of Economics, in the most significant act of protest in a generation. 2024. Two friends and flatmates try to work out what radical change means today, searching through archives, photos, and first-hand accounts. Following a sold-out Soho Theatre run, Lessons on Revolution comes to Summerhall. This five-star, 'compelling and galvanising' (James Graham) piece of documentary theatre takes you on a journey through global and personal history which asks: in a new age of inequality and injustice, how can the voices of the past give us hope?

Lessons on Revolution

Estelle models for the Artist. Despite decades of experience, she has never sat for a session like this. What happens when she can't stand sitting any longer? How does this class change her life forever? An exciting new work from Maria MacDonell (Miss Lindsay's Secret) and featuring Leo MacNeill as the Artist, LIFE is a play which is an active drawing class. Pencil and paper are provided and limited on-stage tickets are available seated at easels, with drawing materials provided. You can participate, or simply watch the story emerge.

LIFE

Surrender yourself to a comedy-thriller experience inspired by the classic game of deception. What feels like a game by daylight takes on new life when plunged into the night. Created by one of New Zealand's most innovative theatre companies, Werewolf features chilling sound design and a unique immersive style; you can be a fly on the wall or take charge of the situation. However you decide to play it, you will become part of a community coming together to make it through the night. But what is hiding in the darkness that is making everyone so nervous?

Werewolf

Birdy is 19. She's too old to beat boys up in the playground or skip maths. But she wishes she wasn't. Until, by chance, she unearths a family secret. One that's been buried since 1930s Cairo. One that her grandfather would rather stay hidden. But for Birdy this might be her chance to right the wrongs of the past, and prove maybe she isn't so useless after all? From award-winning playwright Amy Lever, Lost Girl is an exploration into Jewish-Arab heritage, the expectations of womanhood and family.

Lost Girl

Underbelly, George Square

What would you want to say to your best friend if the world was about to end? Exploring queer friendship, platonic love and nuclear anxiety, Seconds to Midnight asks what happens in a world with no consequences. Diving into the parallels between beginnings and endings, we follow Jo and Eddie through the first seven minutes of their friendship and the final seven hours of the world. Praise for previous work: 'A brilliant addition to the queer theatre landscape' ***** (BroadwayWorld.com). 'Tender and original' **** (Skinny).

Seconds to Midnight

Fairy Sprinkles isn't your average fairy... In this award winning rock'n'roll monologue from Lucy Heffernan, all the glitzy hell of a kid's birthday party explodes out on stage to rip apart class, challenge traditional feminine behaviour and explore the impact of mental illness on family. Telling stories from Heffernan's time as a Party Fairy, and featuring five original rock songs – don't miss this intimate, funny and deeply moving work. Winner: 2023 Adelaide Fringe Weekly Award for Best Theatre / Physical Theatre.

Party Girl

Hath not a Jew eyes? Hath not an Arab eyes? Israeli-Palestinian co-creation following four friends and how mandatory conscription to the IDF affects them. One wants to get out, one's a pilot, one was never drafted, one's torn inside. A raw multilingual, physical portrayal that exposes the consequences army life has on the mental-health of the teenagers enlisted. It explores themes like protest against war, self-harm and what it means to be Israeli and peace-pursuing; the critical voice for coexistence under the pressures of politically motivated violence. Who's a rebel? Who's a patriot?

Rebels and Patriots

What happens six months after your five minutes of fame? Cyrus and Ben are the first gay winners of TV's biggest reality show. They're 22, have thousands of followers, but now spend most of their days making sponsored content about dog food, and fronting campaigns about adult incontinence. When they're offered an influencing deal in Dubai, the couple must decide how far they'll go to cling to celebrity... and at what cost. A smash-hit satire by multi award-winning comedy writers for Netflix and BBC Television. 'Fantastic play... had me howling with laughter' (BroadwayWorld.com), from BAFTA-winning Unusual Productions.


This one's for the young hearts, the old hearts and the broken hearts. Story, science and a synth combine in an exhilarating performance that examines what happens in our bodies when we're bereft. From acclaimed New Zealand company EBKM (Yes Yes Yes), Heartbreak Hotel tracks a woman's broken heart in a wrenching and relatable journey that's studded with classic break-up songs and razor-sharp observations on the physiology of love. 'Fantastic. Karin McCracken is, quite simply, brilliant. She's hilarious, heartwarming and moving – often all at once' (TheatreView.org.nz).

Heartbreak Hotel

This is Temi’s show. It’s all about her. Not you. Her. Temi got veeeery good at being everybody’s sassy best friend. Growing up a black girl in a white world shunts you into playing a side character in your own life. But now she’s stepping into her Main Character Energy and it’s your privilege and pleasure to give her all the attention she deserves. As self-aware as it is self-indulgent, this show is a high-energy cocktail of comedy, audience interaction and cabaret. An excuse to show Edinburgh how radiant Temi is.

Main Character Energy

For decades trans people have been using hyperpop to shatter standards of genre, gender and good taste. Right now, the only thing Saoirse wants to shatter is her own f*cking voice. Told through live vocal modulation and manipulation, this is a rip-roaring and unabashedly queer theatrical deep dive into trans identity and music. What it means to speak, sing and, for the audience (yes, you babe), to listen.

HYPER

Ezra Montefiore is the greatest spirit medium of all time. A master of the seance, levitation and telekinesis, he defies all scientific explanation. But when details of a clandestine affair with Prince Felix Yusupov reach the ears of Rasputin and Russia's Imperial Court he must fight not only for his reputation but also his life. From the makers of the sell-out smash hits Jew...ish and Man of 100 Faces comes an extraordinary story based on real historical events, told through dynamic physical theatre, multi-roling and stage illusion. Expect seances, spirit-possession and live levitation.


In Defiance Of Gravity

'On my 29th birthday I died. And went to Heaven. Only it didn't happen in that order...'. A tropical rollercoaster of love, sex and margaritas. A birthday that turns her world upside down. From the golden shores of Costa Rica to the depths of her past, in this journey through paradise, surfboards and salsa nights collide with the raw truths of female sexuality. 'I'm saying no – maybe I'm not saying it loud enough because he doesn't hear it?'

How to Kill a Chicken

This immersive family drama, about an older relative’s act of aggression towards a biracial child, actively investigates white privilege, judgement, identity and bias. I Am, Other invites the audience, through interactive engagement, to explore why it is not okay to be different. Spectators become participants in shaping the lens through which they see the world. At the beginning they are presented with a scenario and a point of view, then guided through gamified scenes, and asked to reflect on the event's repercussions. After a replay of the initial scenario, has their viewpoint changed? Q&A after performance.

I Am, Other

C ARTS | C venues | C aurora

'A fierce 70 minutes of music and protest' (Scotsman). The story of two generations of women activists in the struggle for black liberation in America. One, notorious Black Panther Assata Shakur, the other a college student at the beginning of the Black Lives Matter movement in Ferguson in 2014. Against a stunning soundtrack of gospel and blues sung live, the show explores what it takes to become a revolutionary. Originally performed as Woke, written by Apphia Campbell, Fringe First Winner and creator of the hit show Black is the Colour of My Voice. MadeInScotlandShowcase.com

Through the Mud

How do we uncover our true colours in a world full of reasons to hide? A life-affirming, thought-provoking comedy about trying to blend in everywhere yet belonging nowhere, from engineer, entrepreneur (Forbes 30 Under 30) and award-winning storyteller Narie Foster in her Edinburgh Fringe debut. Born in New York to Thai and Canadian scientists, Foster takes us on a multifaceted exploration of freedom, authenticity and scantily camouflaged metaphors. 'Beautifully written. Raw and honest. Naturally hilarious.' **** (InReview.com.au). All profits go to Summerhall Arts charity.

1 in a Chameleon

Through everyday conversation, hilarious comedy, and music-hall style songs, we learn from four working-class women about their lives; husbands, technology and the approaching New Year in this time capsule of Glasgow in the 1950s. The show pays tribute to the unsung domestic labour of women, and the importance of female friendships – both of which keep it relevant today – along with the iconic comedy lines recited throughout Scotland. Laugh and cry along with Tony Roper's loveable characters in this nostalgic show, steeped in Scottish culture and social history, which continues to entertain local audiences and tourists alike.

The Steamie

A traveller arrives at a border with a stack of battered cases. From within them, whole worlds will emerge... Suitcase Show is an eclectic boxset of short stories. Dark, spiky, and comic, each one is told out of a suitcase. The staging is inventive, from lo-fi shadowplay to wireless projection, from dancing disembodied hands to narratives that crackle from a 70s stereo suitcase. Trick of the Light is an award-winning company from Aotearoa / New Zealand renowned for crafting inventive shows with engaging narratives. Past work includes The Road That Wasn't There, Tröll, and The Bookbinder.

Suitcase Show

Let’s face it, the 2020s started badly. Have they improved? Join comedy singer-songwriter and poet Majk Stokes, once described as 'Bill Bailey’s good-looking younger brother,' as he explores some of the issues that face us all today – social media, coffee, relationships, re-wilding, phone queues – and finds the funny side. (There is one, honest.) ‘The combined styles and wit of Bob Dylan and Tom Lehrer’ (Stage Whispers, Adelaide). ‘He has a charming, relaxed style with a dry sense of humour and his original songs are both witty and poignant’ (Robin Strapp, British Theatre Guide).

Songs for the 2020s

C ARTS | C venues | C aquila

'You know I hate looking back.' 'It's not looking back. We're still here.' How does it feel to watch yourself grow old? A woman, Her, returns home to find her childhood in boxes and her mother ready to move on; her parents have sold the house, and things need sorting through. Over the course of the day, Her and Mother find themselves caught up in some difficult conversations, as they come to terms with what was, what is and what will be. A show about nostalgia, reflection and the ache of leaving the past behind.


Paradok Platform: This Natural Scene

Just the Tonic at The Caves

A collage style devised work exploring the (potential) collapse of the Anthropocene, this personal meditation on the climate crisis explores the beauty and inevitability of impermanence. Born from the debris of late-stage capitalism, Things We Will Miss features performers in disparate roles, including an amateur astronomer, a park ranger, mythological prophet Cassandra, Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley, the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, and ultimately, themselves. Driven by image, light, and sound rather than linear narrative, it viscerally explores the grief and beauty, the horror and hope inherent in being alive in this very moment.

Things We Will Miss

in TESTO by Wet Mess, Wet Messifies transitions, testosterone and the edges of drag. Expect dykey desires, moustache meals and choreography of guttural sexuality pinching at the dull flesh of life where the magical is in the mundane and made up shit becomes real.

Testo – Here & Now Showcase

ZOO Southside

There are 400,000 nurses in the NHS today. This is their story. Tending offers a heartbreaking, hilarious and very human look at the experience of the nurses on the frontline of our health service. Based on over 70 interviews with nurses of all ages, backgrounds and nationalities, Tending immerses you in their day-to-day lives. It asks an essential question: when the system’s under pressure and lives are on the line, who takes time to care for the carers? 'One of the most timely plays of the Fringe' **** (Scotsman). 'Truly extraordinary' ***** (ScottishField.co.uk). 'Compassionate... beautiful, and master-crafted' ***** (BritishTheatreGuide.info).

Tending

Underbelly Cowgate

Arthur is just trying to finish his painting. It fills his days; it haunts his nights. Nobody understands. Not his girlfriend, not his brother. Everyone keeps telling him to stop. But he can't. Not until it's finished. Whatever the cost... Multi award-nominated solo show that melds ancient myth, historical anecdote and emotive storytelling to explore art, freedom and the mistakes we make when searching for escape. 'Deserves to be seen by audiences around the country' (Longstaff Reviews).

The Sun, the Mountain, and Me

In a basement office in Illinois, there's a job waiting for you. Sarah Jane is on vacation, and you've been hired to fill in. In this interactive show for one, you'll explore her cubicle, answer her phone, and receive her faxes as the story of Sarah Jane unfolds. Sit down, send an email, and experience a meditation on life and death between the cells of an Excel spreadsheet. Created by narrative technologists Wolf 359. 'A technical masterclass' ***** (EdinburghGuide.com). One of The Telegraph's best theatre shows, 2022. ***** (Telegraph). 'Jewel-like' **** (TheArtsDesk.com). **** (List.com).

Temping

From Bach to The Beatles and beyond, South Australian cellist/songwriter William Jack presents a free (non-ticketed) multi-style cello recital in the heart of Edinburgh. The program includes iconic songs (by AC/DC, Bob Dylan, Oasis and more) dismantled and reimagined for solo cello. Intertwined with original compositions from William's acclaimed debut album, This Old Cello Box. There's something for everyone, from virtuosic bluegrass, to non-Western sound worlds. William incorporates his jazz guitar background into an unconventional style of cello playing, delivering cellopickin' grooves and catchy hooks, alongside intimate melodies. 'Outstanding, a truly remarkable performance' (BBC Radio 3).

This Old Cello Box

St Giles' Cathedral

‘American labour icon!? Ridiculous. I’m a wharf-rat Swede and a songster. Well, Utah heard enough of my ranting, framed me for murder, had me executed. But I made up my mind not to die, as the song goes…’ This new solo show from writer, composer, actor and musician Joseph Shaw inhabits the ghost of early 20th-century union activist and songwriter Joe Hill, immortalised in the protest song of the same name. Songs and readings from Hill’s letters offer glimpses of his fascinating life.

Joe Hill: The Man Who Never Died

Join North London's finest casual singers for an eclectic mix of sensational songs in all manner of styles from folk to funk, all laced with heavenly harmonies. Audience participation not compulsory but might be irresistible!

The Angels Of Kaos Live

Brewhemia

From Frankenstein to The Invisible Man, James Whale directed some of the greatest movies of all time. How did a working-class boy from Dudley end up in Hollywood? An expressionist and out gay man working in the studio system at the peak of Hollywood's golden age, his moment in the movie-land spotlight lasted little more than 10 years. Just who was James Whale? This one-person show shines a light on his life and work, examining a sense of otherness and the outsider, and how his films still resonate, 90 years on.


James Whale: Beyond Frankenstein

'Chapman’s debut play isn’t just genuine; it is brutally real.' ***** (TheNewCurrent.co.uk). 2008. Margate isn’t cool (yet). 12-year-old Dev sits on a derelict shack, sandwiched between Margate's sea, and the abandoned theme park Dreamland. He's also recently discovered gay people exist... Is the WiFi Good in Hell? follows Dev from boyhood to adulthood. Margate to London. He's gagging for a good connection, but can he cope with the realities of a life he’s forever put on a pedestal? Produced in association with Brixton House Theatre. Written on Soho Theatre's Writers' Lab 2021-2022.

Is the WiFi Good in Hell?

Four-time Fringe First and Olivier award-winning Fishamble returns to Traverse. Explored through a mother-daughter relationship, In Two Minds is deeply personal, inventive, funny and life-affirming. From writer Joanne Ryan (Lustrum Award winner) and director Sarah Jane Scaife (Beckett sa Chreig: Laethanta Sona) comes a tale of an adult child and parent sharing a home. Pom Boyd (The Dry) and Karen McCartney (A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings) perform a delicate piece grappling with mental health, love and humanity. In Two Minds finds insight in the darkness, humour in the pain, and tenderness in difficult family dynamics.

In Two Minds

Traverse Theatre

'Oh good God prepare me!' were the last words Samuel Pepys dedicated to his companion of ten years, to whom he gave his life and sight: his diary. The stage is the precinct of his mind and all he witnessed, intimately retelling a decade that shaped London. From the Plague to the Fire, and the people that wandered the pages of his journal: fact, memory and fiction dance swiftly, ignited by the light of a candle. The stage is desolate, every word is a step, entrancing you into the consciousness behind the flame.

In This Body of Flame

Paradise in The Vault

Winner: Best International Show, United Solo Festival, New York. Music and songs are the key elements that trigger Julian's memories, and set him off on a journey back to his childhood in South America where he discovers his passion for music and his gift for imitating voices. From there, he faces struggles in New York and Europe as he pursues his dream of becoming an artist. Singer/actor Julian Fontalvo portrays different characters that play a part in his story and imitates 70 artists such as Sting, Bob Marley, David Bowie, Amy Winehouse and Tina Turner.

The Imitator

Assembly Rooms

I Sell Windows is one Black woman's exploration of what is birthed at the collision of grief, ambition and sex. After bailing on a trip home, former actor Kacie is confronted with the unexpected death of a loved one – propelling her into an existential voyage back to her tried and true trade of selling windows. As the days leading up to the funeral become fewer and fewer, she grapples with questions of identity, purpose and forgiveness, ultimately asking herself what she can, or even deserves to, become.

I Sell Windows

Embark on an adventure with Mole, Rat, Badger, and the impulsive Mr Toad. From the tranquility of the riverbank to the perilous depths of the Wild Wood, follow their escapades as they try to keep Toad out of trouble and protect his family home from the nefarious Chief Weasel and his band of miscreants. A heart-warming and humorous adaptation of Kenneth Grahame's children's classic from Fringe regulars C theatre: 'Highly recommended' (PrimaryTimes.co.uk). 'Hidden gem' (FringeReview.co.uk). 'Capturing the emotional heart' **** (List).

The Wind in the Willows

Imagine a bar owned by Love itself. Only people who are in love are allowed in. A couple of young lovers enter the bar. After sultry musical and dance performances, and after meeting many of the guests embodying different types of love, the lovers realise that once someone enters the bar – once someone falls in love – it is hard to get out of it because romantic love can become addictive. Sultry performances. Obsession. Purity. Sex. Are you ready to enter Love’s Concordia Bar?

Love’s Concordia Bar

House of Life is a place of worship with one goal: happiness for all, at any cost. One part sermon, one part purge, three parts party, this is a space to let it all out. Led by the glitter-clad RaveRend, House of Life provides a scientifically proven sense of togetherness and elevation at a time when people feel more disconnected than ever. Heal through music, joy and noise in an eight-step musical programme that is hailed as 'one of the most joyful productions the Edinburgh Festival Fringe has to offer' (BroadwayBaby.com). Get happy. Join the RAVEolution.

House of Life

Late at night at the corner store, your card got declined again. The fluorescent lights are blinking on and off. When you go for the door, it has disappeared. What happens when strangers are forced to connect? What if some of them are supposed to have passed on, but got stuck? A searingly honest commentary on the absurdity of existence, how we judge the strangers around us, and how much we need each other. An original devised show, incorporating principles of repetition and movement.

How Dead Am I?

Set on an ancient burial ground where the UK is now a crime scene, Refugee! tells the story of four characters in search of belonging. Under the rubble they find evidence of hope and humanity, as well as traces of violence and despair, and our own government's complicity in war crimes. A live, immersive and community-based experience, with comedy, dance and music. This will be an archive for future generations; to collect, to document, we are all here as witnesses.

Refugee!

It starts when she puts a note through his letterbox. 'Hello Number 4, this is Number 6. Please could you SHUT THE **** UP? Ta.' Not a promising beginning, but... they meet, they fall in love, they get married. Then one day a letter arrives that will change them, and the world, forever… A musical love story about a man and a woman and the little bits of paper that make up a life. Directed By Andrew Panton. Part of MadeInScotlandShowcase.com.

A History of Paper by Oliver Emanuel and Gareth Williams

With a Jacobean, incestuous darkness, Pierre Asmahan, a sex worker on trial yearns for the ephemeral bliss of first love.

Whore on Trial

Saint Stephen's Theatre

Growing up, Sinéad's Dad was a hero right out of the Irish myths he told his daughter – stories of warriors, shapeshifters and magic wells. But as Sinéad grows up and her father relapses into addiction, they are both forced to re-examine the stories they told themselves. Expertly combining Irish epics with personal stories, Sinéad's storytelling is 'nourishment for the soul' ***** (EdFestMag.com). A sequel-of-sorts to 2023's No One Is Coming. 'This is storytelling as it should be' ***** (Herald). 'A masterpiece' ***** (EdFringeReview.com).

Hero/Banlaoch

Scottish Music Centre

Blood spots on my duvet. Stains on my pillowcase. Bite marks on my wrists. Bed bugs in my flat, lurking in my mattress. Except... there were no bed bugs. There were never any to begin with. Based on true events, make the Bed is a solo piece that explores what it's like when your thoughts consume you. When black and white thinking takes over. When you have anxiety. And what it can feel like sitting with that anxiety in real time. And how to maybe, just maybe, go towards the grey. Directed by Cecilia Thoden van Velzen.

make the Bed

Jenny Marx, wife (and brains!) of Karl, was curiously airbrushed from history... Although, given a new voice via a researcher's pen, will she now fight for her truth to be heard, or will yet another formidable woman remain trapped between the lines of history books, silenced by the patriarchy, and occupy outdated notions of what society insists she should be? Commedia dell'arte trained Clara Francesca is directed by Olivier Award winner Guy Masterson, in an astounding performance that nods to Luigi Pirandello and winks at Peter Brook.

Edinburgh Festival Fringe

Aug 23, 2025

Enowate – Here & Now Showcase

Aug 16, 2044

South London Jazz Orchestra

22 - 25 Oct, 2024

Regina Vagina

Aug 30, 2024

Gayatri: The Majapahit Trilogy (Episode 1)

Edinburgh Festival Fringe