Author: The Reviews Hub - Scotland

Performance concept: Peter Schaufuss and Ian McKellen Director and Choreographer: Peter Schaufuss The crown sits heavily upon this knight’s head, as Ian McKellen, to absolutely no ones surprise, carries the abridged storytelling mechanics of Hamlet – reciting a ‘best of’ hits to an apprehensive and a famished crowd eager to see the man who played the role at the same Festival Fringe some fifty years ago. The reinvention of majesty takes time, and Peter Schaufuss’ Hamlet holds itself to a standard it ought to recognise it cannot reach. Where the narrative aspects of ballet collide with an all-too-unfocused telling, frequently the significance of story…

The Piano Man returns – Internationally renowned singer-pianist Jeremy Sassoon brings their canny talents with tickling ivories to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Raising a glass, or several, to the icons and influencers of the world of music, Jeremey Sassoon’s Mojo is a love letter of sorts and a thank you to the singer-songwriters of Jewish origin, from the defining era of Gershwin to the undeniable brilliance of Carole King, and the late, contemporary genius Amy Winehouse. They’ve got their Mojo ready, do you? Traversing the landscape of musicians of Jewish origin, largely chronologically, be prepared to hear some mighty…

Writer: Rachel Causer Director: Liam Blain The art of lying is a talent. Despite what people may think about our habits of spreading fibs and telling tall tales, lying has a place and purpose. More so than ever, the visage of falsehood is a comfort blanket in a social media-dictated world. Please, Feel Free to Share is a one-woman show, a mostly comedic and occasionally dark venture through personal addictions and the biggest fix we all crave; likes. On the surface, as a young woman opens to her presumed therapy group, of the loss and difficulties she faces – it…

Writer/Director: Mella Faye A Greek Tragedy isn’t meant to be a pleasant journey. The name gives it away a tad. And yet, the pleasure extracted from well-performed bouts of misery or grave devastation can, if handled correctly, provide a wealth of marvel and ingenuity. The fable of Oedipus. The Mother. The Father. The Son. Many have a base grasp of the idea; of the boy who would become king, slayer of his father, and lover of his mother. But now, radicalising the text, reinventing it for a contemporary and digestible re-telling, Pecho Mama infuse the story with a live Electronica…

Creators: Alex Roberts, Cameron Carver & Jac Cooper  Director: Cameron Carver There’s always one. Sat alone at the bar, watching, taking in the journeys and stories of those surrounding them. But thing is that person sat night after night, well, they too have a story. Or rather, they have two tales to tell; one of Connor and another of Rob. Fusing together a plethora of artforms – the simplicity of No Place Like Home lies in the strength it possesses in tying these communication and artistic methods together, none outshining or detracting from another. Video design, a cacophony of soundscapes…

Writer: Alex Byrne Director: Kasia Zaremba-Byrne The circus is the work of the devil. It’s difficult to disagree with Mary-Ann Haynie’s intensely religious aunts. Death-defying acts, beasts, manipulation, scintillating beauty, and an uncanny ability to part hungry audiences with their hard-earned dollars; may be a work of the devil, but Dead Rabbit Theatre’s Tiger Lady is a ferocious being of a more mortal and earthly design. Elephants, Tigers, and Lions – the life of the circus flitters in the wind and imaginations of young Mary-Ann, soon to be known as Mabel Stark; the first-female Tiger training West of the Atlantic. And though…

Music & Lyrics: Elton John & Tim Rice Book: Roger Allers & Irene Mecchi Director, Costume Design & Mask/Puppetry Co-Design: Julie Taymor Despite the juggernaut of success with which we are familiar with, the cinematic and stage variations of Disney’s The Lion King were nothing if not tremendous gambles. And now, with records shattered, platinum soundtracks launched, and an extravagance of stage enchantment, there’s little else to add to the story which has inspired and conjured emotions for nearly thirty years. Returning to Edinburgh after the pandemic cut the run short, The Pride Lands rolls into the city again at the…

Writer: Tom McGrath Director: Tony Cownie Life’s too short not to laugh. From Charlie Chaplin to Buster Keaton, Alice Howell to Mildred Davis, the silent era stars navigated the dishevelled steps of comedy gold through the early twenties to the fifties. But above them all, one duo paved the cobbles for the history of comedians – their legacy still standing tall to this day: Laurel & Hardy. The big-hearted Southern boy, and that scrappy Lancashire lad found their fame in America, and after nearly twenty years away from The Lyceum stage, Tom McGrath’s Scottish classic and love-letter to the pair revisits the stage,…