Edinburgh 2009

5 hectic days in Edinburgh. Reviews coming up in as short a space as possible!

Over The Threshold (George 2, Musical Theatre @ George Square)
The advertising is uninspiring. Black and grey is probably not the best colour combination to catch people's eyes in Edinburgh. The strongest songs ('Women Like You' and one of the female solos I don't know the name of) are very strong but the rest is slightly inconsistent. The book is slightly too neatly tied up for my liking, but still enjoyable.

Bloodbath (George 1, Musical Theatre @ George Square)
Oh dear. Really, just, oh dear. I think any show containing the line "is that like thrush?" has found new levels to scrape at the bottom of the barrel. The cast are fabulous but the show is just beyond awful. Whilst he has a lovely voice, Anthony Costa just cannot pull off being the most popular boy in school. The girls dance around in costumes that get smaller and smaller as the show goes on and the whole thing just seems tacky.

Maggie Service With A Smile (The Wee Room, Gilded Balloon)
An hilarious hour that proves you don't have to swear like a docker and talk about sex non stop to do a good stand up show! Great character observations (I especially liked the new york actress with the taxi driver boyfriend) and transitions from each character very smoothly.

Jerry Springer The Opera (George 1, Musical Theatre @ George Square)
I don't like the show. Not because it offends me or anything like that. I just don't really like it that much. The students (RSAMD) are great (particularly the girl playing Steve, hilariously) and I'm sure that if you like the show, then you'll enjoy this production but it did nothing to convince me.

Hooked (George 2, Musical Theatre @ George Square)
Lesson number 1 when performing a show to backing track - MAKE SURE THE CD DOESN'T SKIP. I spent half the show cringing as the cast stumbled over lyrics as the track skipped behind them. The leading man (whose name I've forgotten) had a nice voice but the choreography was weak, the songs weaker and the whole thing was just a little cringeworthy.

Six Ways (George 2, Musical Theatre @ George Square)
I struggle to find the words to express how much I loved this. Written/devised by a group of LIPA students, this is my one big recommendation for the Fringe this year. Having been a fairly active follower of new musicals for the past few years, I've been consistently disappointed by the strength (or lack thereof) of most books. Not this. The book is strong. The performances are fabulous. You'll laugh til you cry (not least at a FABULOUS quip at the expense of one of the 'stars' appearing at George Square) and then shed actual tears too. Just fantastic.

Chat - The Internet Musical (George 2, Musical Theatre @ George Square)
One of the shows I am biased on as not only does it feature one of my clients, I also did the casting. That said, that doesn't make the show any less fun. It's smart, witty, slick and benefits from being one of the few shows with a live band in that small space. Go see it!

Blondes (Udderbelly's Pasture)
I was bored. Beyond bored. Denise Van Outen has a lovely voice, and she sang the songs well but I found the whole experience utterly unremarkable. The very-clearly-scripted jokes weren't that funny (or at least the delivery wasn't) and whilst her voice is pretty, there is little distinguishable about it. The most exciting part of the whole experience was spotting Clarke Peters (who directed) as I was leaving. I think that says it all.

Showstopper - The Improvised Musical (George 4, Musical Theatre @ George Square)
I love Showstopper. I know there's a formula and I couldn't see it very much more than once a year without spoiling the illusion but that doesn't stop them all being pant-wettingly hilarious. We had 'Sandals in the Wind' - a show about gladiators in ancient Rome, in the style of David Bowie, Elton John, Julie Stein and Jason Robert Brown. Just so, so funny.

Private Peaceful (Udderbelly's Pasture)
A stellar performance by Finn Hanlon in every sense. Completely captivating (no mean feat given the stifling heat). Enthralling, enchanting, heartbreaking and inspiring. A definite go see!

The Great British Soap Opera (George 2, Musical Theatre @ George Square)
Chat's sister show - same cast, alternate days. Smart, funny, sexy, fast paced and energetic. Characters everyone will recognise if you're a sucker for Corrie or Eastenders or even just Heat magazine.

Murder Mystery Musical (George 4, Musical Theatre @ George Square)
My only walk out of the week. So unimpressed. An incredible cast but a Punch and Judy set and not clever enough to manage the irony it needs. Massively disappointing.

Gingers The Musical (George 4, Musical Theatre @ George Square)
The queue made me feel like I was part of some superior race (which I am, obviously). However the show itself only involved one actual redhead and was written, in the most part, by a greek family. Essentially each character sang a song about the trials and tribulations of being ginger backed by a techno backing track. Not really worth the hype, at all.

A Respectable Wedding (C+1, C Venue)
A fabulous way to end the visit. Hilarious, clever, energetic and great fun. Fully deserving of the terrific reviews it's getting and well worth a visit if you enjoy physical comedy in any way.

Edinburgh Fringe 2008

My thoughts from Edinburgh 2008:

Miss Sign-On:
Music is instantly forgettable and I struggled with some of the characters, but if you work in (or just have very good knowledge of) theatre, then the jokes will ring very true and it's a good giggle.

Jet Set Go:
Hilaaaarious. Lots of room for character development but such a fun, fun, fun way to spend a couple of hours. Give the comparative inexperience of the cast, they are more than holding their own at George Square and completely deserved the 5* review in Three Weeks.

Departure Lounge:
I'll admit my bias, as not only do I know the writer, but one of my clients was also in the show, but I honestly cannot recommend it highly enough. It's funny, touching and resonates so, so well. Everyone has been one of those boys. Deserves to have life post-Edinburgh.

Only The Brave:
Completely underwhelmed. Trying too hard to be Les Mis. The 'epic love story' that they are trailing between Keith and Niamh is about as epic as an episode of The Simpsons. Some nice music - the song with the women typing the messages is lovely - but the book is dreadful as there is just no story and I am really struggling to see why there's so much hype.

Showstopper, The Improvised Musical:
Was fortunate enough to have booked for this on a night when they announced Mike McShane would be appearing. FANTASTIC. There is clearly a formula, but the humour is intelligent and very funny. We wound up with a show about remorse, featuring songs in the style of Disney, Starlight Express, Bombay Dreams, Blood Brothers and an irish folk song. Fabulous.

Sa-Choom:
The 'dancical' at George Square. I was slightly disappointed as I'd heard SUCH good things about it and it didn't quite live up to my expectations (perhaps because it wasn't a very lively audience) but still very entertaining.

A History of Scotland (in 60 minutes or less):
Great fun if you're 7. All the kids seemed to love it but the humour was very childlike.

Zanna Don't!:
So camp it hurts, but fantastic fun. Make really good use of the space, but I do wonder if it's telling that the show is completely stolen by a little blue bird...

The Jonah Boy:
Too lovely for words, and very touching. Worth the ticket price alone for a fantastic performance in the lead role. Haunting.

I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change (Take Note's production):
I don't think it's as strong as Jet Set Go, but highlighted nicely the strengths of some of the cast.

Perfect Pitch in Concert:
Again, an element of bias as I had two clients involved in this one, but really loved seeing such a strong selection of new British musicals being showcased and being so well received.