Fringe 2011

This year, three days, 12 shows, a mixture of theatre and comedy. Old favourites and new venues and companies. Two days of sun and one of rain, so for this Summer, not a bad average.

This year’s lessons:

1. Do not forget to pack your pashmina – you will need it when the night chill draws in, and it can also be used as a towel to dry wet feet.

2. The demise of the Guardian Daily Guide means that you will need to be more structured in working out what shows will be in the gaps in your schedule.

3. The Scotsman does daily 2 for 1 or half price offers on many popular shows, and so is worth buying.

4. A show that is sponsored by a whisky company is good. Free whisky!

5. It is now very difficult to find free internet access in venues to book tickets on line, so the best option to avoid queues is either to use phone internet access, or go to the venue at a quiet time, e.g. we managed to get returns for the sold out ‘Prudencia Hart’ just by being at the Traverse Box Office shortly after it opened.

6. In the rain, outside will be cold, but venues will still be hot, so, as always, layering!

7. If you sit in the right bars, or go to the right shows, the famous will come to you.

8. If you visit early, before most reviews are out, read up on the recommendations of a respected critic, e.g. Lyn Gardner.

9. ‘Pot luck’ late night comedy slots are worth booking, as you don’t know who you are going to get, and you may get top names.

10. Edinburgh restaurants serve late into the evening during the Fringe, and it’s very easy to find a good choice of eating places after 10.00pm.

11. (for good measure) Student flats are a good accommodation option as an alternative to prohibitively expensive hotels. Clean, comfortable, and all you need - apart from a tv. But then how much time are you going to spend there?

This year's Fringe

When you offer advice, sometimes it’s a good idea to take it yourself. I was thinking about this when I re-read last year’s Theatresnob’s Guide to the Fringe. I could have saved myself a great deal of trying to juggle stuff around if I’d have remembered the advice about the handbag!

This year felt a little different. I didn’t stay over last year, and so it was nice this time to be able to plan evening shows again. That said, there were so many that clashed that the only solution would be to go for more than one night.

So, in the best tradition of my annual guide, here are this year’s tips:

1. Stay as centrally as possible if only there for one night. This time we stayed in Hunter Square, just off the Royal Mile, and really handy for so many venues. My favourite visits have been where we have stayed within a stone’s throw of what’s going on, and surprisingly this wasn’t too loud late at night.

2. This year the Fringe has embraced Twitter in a way that I don’t think it had last year. Companies tweet information, publications tweet reviews, or re-tweet positive comment. It’s all out there now, so use it, and see which shows have a buzz about them from people whose opinions you respect.

3. Download the various iPhone Apps, and use them for your planning. Whilst I still carried my Fringe brochure around, I was constantly checking reviews, venues and timings on the Apps I had downloaded. My favourite was iFringe, which I found better then the official App, as it was good for reviews, and tips about venues, e.g. location, bars, and eating. I also liked Theatreninjas, who offer free tickets to certain shows on a daily basis, though I didn’t actually use them.

4. A hard copy map is still a good idea though, just to make sure that you know where you’re going, and can have a quick check if unsure.

5. Shows that offer food are still good, though if a show says ‘with strawberries’, I would like to actually get some. A show that offers a full lunch is an excellent idea, but it probably won’t sell well, as most people factor in the cost of tickets and food separately, and won’t want to pay that much for a ticket.

6. Embrace the spirit of the Fringe by wearing a flowery headband. There’ll be plenty of others doing the same.

7. Carry water! So many of the venues were baking hot, and packed.

8. Ditto a pashmina, for when it cools down later on.

After a couple of year’s seeing a mix of theatre and comedy, this year was pretty much all theatre, (mainly because the comedy acts I really wanted to see clashed with things we’d booked), and all in all it was a good selection. Nothing was particularly poor, though some were better than others. A few were very good indeed. Which is a good thing, as tickets are getting more and more expensive (unless you can tap into Theatreninjas, or FreeFringe, 2 for 1’s, or the half-price booth), so it becomes more and more difficult to go for something off the wall, and unheard of. I’m not sure if I want to add up what I paid for 8 shows.

My favourite? BeltUp Theatre’s Lorca is Dead. Most definitely.

Theatre Snob's guide to a day at the Fringe

In the interests of anyone thinking of a day trip to the Fringe, and following on from the Fringe guides I’ve written over the last couple of years, here are my tips:

1. Plan ahead. It is possible to get there in time for Shakespeare for Breakfast, but you need to get your tickets in advance, as the Fringe office doesn’t open in time to pick them up.

2. Where possible, select some shows with food (see Shakespeare for Breakfast, there are also shows which provide cake!) or take snacks with you. The Pleasance bar had sold out of crisps!!

3. Plan your venues, so you’re not chasing from Old Town to New Town and back again. I didn’t venture across to the New Town at all, and all my venues were within easy reach of each other.

4. Don’t queue for tickets at the Fringe Office. Most main venues have their own box office or internet access, so you can purchase tickets, or print out pre-booked ones, without queuing

5. Give yourself some breathing space. Smell the coffee, (and drink some too, with an early start, you’ll need the caffeine), even if you only have an hour between shows.

6. Absorb the atmosphere. Pleasance Courtyard/Pleasance Dome are great places to people watch. The Dome also has a good range of snacks, and has the added benefit of being indoors if wet. The wine can get watered down by the rain in the Courtyard!

7. Look around you. Tomorrow’s stars are here, as well as some of todays.

8. Chat. People are here because they love theatre/music/comedy/culture. So do you, so you already have things in common, and they may suggest a show you hadn’t thought of seeing.

9. Accept that things will clash/be full/be not logistically possible to see. Love seeing what you do. There’s always another year.

10. Have a large handbag – for snacks, brolly (sadly essential for the last few years), pashmina, and all the brochures, magazines and fliers you will undoubtedly pick up.

11. Travel home first class. It’s much more civilized and relaxing than standard class.

12. Finally, enjoy your day. And when you arrive home, think about next year!

Edinburgh 2008 - the shows

*we didn't actually see a show here, but I liked the pic!

This year, we had longer than ever in Edinburgh, but we didn’t try and kill ourselves by running from one show to another. We took time to eat (and shop). In fact our first show wasn’t a ‘show’ at all but the Vanity Fair Portraits photography exhibition at the Scottish National Portrait Gallery. We’d intended to go and see the Tracey Emin exhibition, until we realised that it was at the Gallery of Modern Art, out of the centre, and we ditched the idea of the Impressionists, as it wasn’t going to match the Musee D’Orsay. ‘Vanity Fair’ was fabulous, but we didn’t really have time to do it justice, as we had to hail a taxi, and cross town to our first ‘proper’ show...

Potted Potter***
‘All 7 books in 70 minutes’ - Yes, I know! And there were a lot of kids in, but there were a lot of adults too, and some of the jokes were distinctly adult orientated. We played a fairly violent game of quidditch (we were Slytherin); I learned that book seven is really all about death, and camping.

Ha Ha Hamlet**
A bit of a mistake, we should have known by the title really. We are now wary of booking anything at the Gilded Balloon, having never seen anything good there. It was ‘energetic’, and they tried hard, and it wasn’t the worst show I’ve seen in Edinburgh.

Aeneas Faversham Forever*****
In contrast, this was brilliant. A spoof Victorian murder mystery, performed by the Penny Dreadfuls. Very skilled performances to a packed audience. And I got a ‘henchman of the month’ badge.

Old Rope**
Late night comedy cabaret, which we went to mainly for Rich Hall. He was excellent, and Richard Herring was also very funny. The female comic, though, wasn’t funny, just drunk.

Shakespeare for Breakfast****
Better than last year’s show. This time we had characters doing The Weakest Link and The Apprentice, which worked really well.

Simon Callow, 'A Festival Dickens'***
The longest show – it even had an interval – in the largest space. Simon Callow performing two stories from Dickens. He was very good, and his timing and pace was excellent. I did have a bit of a problem with material, though, which was Dickens at his most self indulgent. The child died, then the wife, and then the dog! But it pressed all the right buttons, and I cried – it felt a bit like the end of Blood Brothers!

Idiots of Ants****
Great fun. They have a real charm about them, and they’re clever. But they were in the tiniest of venues, Pleasance Beside, which was nothing more than a glorified portacabin. Some great sketches – ‘Wally’ at the Literary Festival, and the cockney ghosts being particular highlights.

So, overall, was it a vintage year? Possibly not, yet I’ve given shows better reviews than other years. Maybe, after 3 years, I’m already becoming a little jaded. The first year, it was all new, and the sheer excitement of being in the middle of all that creative energy was a thrill, last year was such a crazy hectic chase that made it all part of the fun. This year, the weather quite literally put a dampener on it, but also it is getting very expensive. Director Boy was right, you can’t really afford to take many risks when shows are getting on for £10 a shot. Maybe the trick is to go at the very start, when many shows are ‘two for one’, and hope to discover a few 'gems'. All that said, I know I’d miss my Edinburgh ‘fix’ if I didn’t have it.

This year's Edinburgh

The overall impression – cold, and wet, which sadly reduced the chance for celeb spotting in the Pleasance Courtyard*

It also seemed much less busy than last year as well, maybe because we went at the beginning of the week.

Anyway, this year’s lessons:
· Plan ahead if you want to see ‘quality theatre’ – by this week, the ‘hot tickets’ will have sold out, unless you’re prepared to queue for returns
· The National Gallery of Scotland, the Gallery of Modern Art, and the Scottish Portrait Gallery are in different buildings, and long way apart
· Taxis – cheap, plentiful, and the best way of getting from one side of town to another, when you realise you have only 15 minutes to get to the next show
· ‘Self service’ ticket machines aren’t always ‘self service’
· Beware of shows at the Gilded Balloon
· An umbrella needs to be added to the list of essential equipment
· Be prepared for all temperatures from boiling hot (venues) to freezing (Pleasance Courtyard in the rain)

*’celeb’** count, only two – Rhod Gilbert, and Elliott from Idiots of Ants
**I use the word loosely, as both were performing there.

Edinburgh - the shows

We had two days. If you count them, 34 hours. We fitted a lot in. The Assembly Rooms, unvisited last year, are a fab venue, and became, along with the Pleasance, my favourite.

Sherlock Holmes – Murder in the Garden – Frantic Redhead productions***

We’d seen this company last year doing a walking play. I think you got less exercise with this one, though there were quite a few steps. Some of us got there a little late, as we were stuck in the Box Office queue, and had to be ‘talked in’ by Cat. A fun way to start.

Dai (Enough) – Iris Bahr****

A one woman show by Iris Bahr, set in a Tel Aviv café just before a suicide bomber enters (not as depressing a piece as it sounds). A tour de force, as she performed all the characters. She inhabited each character, and all seemed entirely different and the end of each story was profoundly shocking, even though you were expecting it. She’s been nominated for a Stage award for it.

Moths Ate My Doctor Who Scarf – Toby Hadoke***

Not nearly as nerdy as it sounds, and one I really wanted to see. It was about growing up really. If Toby has the ‘Rainman gene’ then so do I, as I also know the names of bit part actors from ‘old’ Who. And that was what it was mainly about, the Who you remember from your childhood, not ‘new’ Who, other than discussing feelings about it returning, and a very familiar reaction to some casting decisions (Billie Piper!!, and now, Catherine Tate!!!).

A Tale of Two Cities**

Not quite what it was sold as, which was a bit of a spoof. They actually played it pretty straight but there were a number of anachronisms. They made a feature of Sydney Carton looking nothing like Charles Darnay, but then proceeded to do nothing with it. The best actress played a bit part at the end. The best I can say is that the whole cast attacked it with gusto.

Simon Amstell – No Self****

If how much has stuck in the memory is a reflection of how good a show is, then this was very good indeed. I now can’t look at an Innocent Smoothie, or Justin Lee Collins without thinking of this show. Or indeed, at holiday photos.

Mark Watson’s 24 Hours to save the planet

We were only there for the start of this, on the Royal Mile at midnight – just outside our apartment actually – so I can’t really rate it. Watson is a bit of a Fringe legend, and he was about to set off on a 24 hour marathon – apparently at one point they ended up planting trees. Part of the group were last seen doing a conga up the Royal Mile. Definitely one to do if you have the time.

Shakespeare for Breakfast***

Another one we’d seen last year. Whilst I don’t think this year was quite as good, it was fun, and had some good performances, and we got coffee and croissants.

Phill Jupitus reads Dickens***

He’d never read any Dickens before the Fringe, and by last Tuesday he’d read 10 hours. He was very funny, though we did strike a little unlucky in that we got the opening chapter of Martin Chuzzlewit, which clearly wasn’t Dickens’s finest hour. However, we learned a new word, ‘consanguinity’, and a rhyme.

Love Labour’s Won – Rogue Shakespeare Company***

I have to admit I was flagging a bit by this point, and the room was incredibly hot, but it was well performed, by a talented cast with great costumes. And they gave you free chocolate.

Idiots of Ants****

Comedy sketch show – and they gave you free water (much needed in a tiny sweaty venue) jelly beans and a badge. Great fun and clever as well. I think they’ll go far. If you ask nicely, they'll give you a nickname.

My favourites were Dai, Simon Amstell and Idiots of Ants. We didn’t see any absolute stinkers, and overall, I think the shows were better than last years, as we’d done more research and planning. But you don’t need to, you can just go with the flow. It was exhausting, as we often had only half an hour between shows, but at least there were no crazy dashes the length of Princes Street like last year.

We stayed out drinking till about 2am, we ate Thai food, and Turkish food, and hardly heard any Scottish voices. In fact that was one of the things that struck me after I came home, the lack of Scots.

Even now a week on, reviews are just emerging of other things I’d like to have seen. You don’t really get a flavour of what there is until you’re there, so may be the trick is, like Cat, to go twice. I wish we’d had longer in our apartment, I wish I’d managed to see the show done by the group I used to work with, I wish…, I wish…

Things I learned from the Edinburgh Fringe

No longer a novice, this years list is as follows:

· That the Fringe brings on Stendahl’s Syndrome even more than Florence.

· That layers are essential clothing in the summer that we’re having, and the pashmina and comfy shoes remain an essential part of a Fringe wardrobe

· The Pleasance Courtyard is the best place for celeb spotting – I clocked a Kaiser Chief (the one who talks, but isn’t Ricky), Jenny Éclair, and Mark Watson

· People will always oversell their shows. I was warned at the box office that Love Labour’s Won contained mild language and nudity. The nudity was unnecessary, and the language very mild for someone who’d seen Simon Amstell

· A bit of BBC promo works wonders. My choices were guided by last week’s Edinburgh Show on BBC2. I saw 3 shows that had been featured. Dai, Idiots of Ants and Phill Jupitus reads Dickens

· Not to be afraid of long sentences. It was good enough for Dickens so it’s good enough for me.

· The rain drives the flier-ers inside, and means there is a lack of cute guys around

· That its difficult to achieve consensus on what to see with 4 people, especially if I’m one of them

· That fliers made like fans are very useful in a hot venue

· That no matter how many shows, there will always be time for shopping

· That it’s pointless joining a long ticket queue when some venues provide free internet access and you can book on line, and just pick up your tickets at the venue. Sadly, I discovered this too late for it to be very effective.

· That staying on the Royal Mile is an excellent idea, as you’re in the heart of everything

Over indulgence

I’m on my second glass of wine when the tiredness hits me. I’m on my way home, and it’s been intense. 10 shows in two days at the Edinburgh Fringe, and we still had time to eat, and shop. But now, I’m shattered.

As the train travels very slowly towards York, I’m too tired to even think about what I’ve seen. The time to assimilate it all will come later. At the moment, I’m in a happy haze of cultural overload. I sit and doze, and random images from things I’ve seen, and phrases I’ve heard run through my mind. As I disembark at the station, I drag my case behind me. It bumps noisily down the steps as I can’t be bothered to pick it up. I murmur an incoherent farewell to two of my fellow culture vultures, and stumble into a taxi.

Home brings reality, post lies on the mat, and the cats are demanding food. Lovely as it is to be home, I want to remain in the world where I can live like this for more than just a couple of days in August.

Sensory Overload

Or

A Beginner's Guide to the Fringe

I’m not sure where to start, but this is a long one. Perhaps with the fact that it was all pretty mind blowing. 7 shows, in two days, and still time for a little shopping. After only a few hours I’d both succumbed to the magic and got sensory overload from the sheer bombardment of theatre. And, quite predictably, I didn’t just want to watch it, I wanted to be part of it all.

Advice

Plan ahead, read the reviews – there are plenty out there, but you need to sift through them, to sort out the wheat from the chaff. Book some shows, particularly if there’s something you really want to see. It will save you a lot of queuing. But leave time for the impromptu.

Accept that there’s so much around you that you’ll only see 10% of what you’d like to, and that at the end off your visit you’ll suddenly hear of a show you’d like to have seen. Celebrate what you have seen, rather than what you haven’t.

Buy tickets on the day at the venue, as the queues are shorter, and they will try and get you in even when the Fringe Box Office has sold out

Modify the ‘Theatre Snob’ rules

‘Festival chic’ is the new dressing up. Essential elements are comfy shoes (you will be trekking at speed between venues) and the ubiquitous pashmina. Comfortable clothing is also essential. Linen is good as it’s cool (you will get hot and sweaty) even if it does crease to hell.

Depending on the show, you might encounter food (always good, as you’ll find it difficult to fit in time for a proper meal) and audience participation. Go with the flow.

Play ‘spot the author/director/producer’ – they’re the one looking slightly nervous, and leading the clapping at the end – useful, as with some Fringe shows, it’s not that clear if they’ve ended.

Accept that you’ll probably see at least one crap show, and remember it’s only an hour. Ok, you won’t get it back, but you’re supporting someone else’s passion.

If you can afford it, and can find a room, stay in the Old Town. We didn’t, which meant lots of treks up and down Princes Street.

Always accept flyers from cute guys, you never know, the show might actually be good.

Be wary of ‘it’s a had 4* reviews’ – this can be anything from The Stage, to their best mate’s comments on an internet forum.

Venues

These vary enormously, from the rather fab inflatable purple cow, known as the Udderbelly, to the dank and smelly Underbelly (known to us as the Smellybelly)

Edinburgh bar prices: good, Venue bar prices: bad

You will run out of time between shows – venues are farther apart than you think.

Shows (and star ratings)

Sherlock Holmes and the Three Students***

Promenade theatre around University of Edinburgh sites. Our first show, and a good one to ease us into the process, and also guide us round some of the sites. Added interest of the author P D James in the audience. You needed to be fit for this one, as they moved you along at a pace. Not SH’s greatest mystery, but fun, and we could call it exercise, so it justified eating chips.

Be My Baby***

Our only ‘established’ play, i.e. something I knew before the Festival, but had never seen performed. Also our only ‘late arrival’. As we dashed down Princes Street, I realised that I do not run, even for theatre. Well acted by a young company. Our only BBC radio interview as we came out of the show.

Have a Nice Life****

A new drama/musical about group therapy. Less bizarre than it sounds, but good fun, with some excellent performances.

Breakfast with Shakespeare****

Croissants, coffee, and Shakespeare. Taming of the Shrew, the panto, performed at speed by an all female cast. Fast paced and high energy start to the day, complete with the usual panto audience responses. A packed audience, and great fun.

Shakespeare’s Passions**

A one man show covering Shakespeare’s ‘greatest hits’ both male and female, where he played all the parts he’d ever wanted to play. Self indulgent, occasionally cringeworthy, but also occasionally almost touching. Lots of soliloquies, but it was notable that he’d omitted Hamlet’s advice to the players.

Bloggers – Real Internet Diaries***

Performed in the ‘Smellybelly’ which sort of took the edge off, as the smell of damp pervaded the whole performance space. Our only 4* show as recommended by The Stage. Focussed on blogs that were primarily about people’s sex lives, so it gave my friend a very bizarre impression of people who blog. Yet elements of truth where people discovered that they had unexpected readers. Also on the beginning of blogging, as people dipped a toe in the water, and the end of the blog. The audience profile for this one was interesting, as it was a much younger audience than for other shows.

Painters****

4* + really, as it was the best show we saw. I hesitate to give it the full 5* though, as that’s the equivalent of a standing ovation, and you know what I’m like about them.
Fab show by 3 guys who performed it as a piece of physical theatre mixed with dance and comedy. Again, high energy, audience participation, and a real sense of joy about the performance. A fabulous finish to an exhausting, but brilliant couple of days.

Overall, fabulous, exhausting, exhilarating – and next time, I’m going for longer, and staying up later. With bars open till 5am, who needs sleep!

Public diaries

I'm sitting in a (frankly smelly) fringe theatre venue with a friend, watching a show about Blogging. It's based on real life blogs, but ones of a very sexual nature, it's funny, and well acted, and I'm laughing at some of the things the 'bloggers' are saying and acting out. It bears little resemblance to the blogs of people I know, or those that I read.

After the show, we go for a drink. My friend comments 'I guess that's what most blogs are about'. I find myself explaining that actually most aren't like that, and that people write them for different reasons, but with an understanding that anything that goes out there can be read by anyone. That they are, in fact, public diaries. One of the very true aspects of the show was one guy who blogged that his ex found out about his new girlfriend from reading his blog.