Preview and Listings Mon 25 Nov – Sun 1 Dec
What’s on Edinburgh’s stages this week?
The panto season is well and truly upon us, with super-glittery Cinderella, the King’s Panto at the Festival Theatre, fully open (ends 31 Dec: tickets) and the Lyceum’s epic Xmas show, Treasure Island, opening on Friday (Ends 4 Jan: tickets).
There are couple one-week-wonder, newly-written pantos, too. Local amateur company Happy Sad Productions has their first of the genre: Little Red Robin Hood (Wed, Fri-Sun: tickets) at Augustine United Church. And the EUTC goes all Minion-ish with Despicable Panto (Wed – Sat: tickets) at the Bedlam Theatre.
Allan Stewart and Grant Stott in Cinderella at the Festival Theatre. Pic: Douglas Robertson.
Equally seasonal, A-Team Productions are staging Elf: The Musical at the Church Hill Theatre (Wed – Sat: tickets).
It’s not wall-to-wall panto though. Most interestingly, local actor Michael Daviot is performing A Noble Clown (Sat/Sun: tickets) about leading Scottish actor Duncan Macrae (1905-1967) as part of a weekend of Edinburgh 900 theatre talks at the Scottish Storytelling Centre (tickets & details).
Dr Who fans will recognise Nabil Shaban (Sil, from way back when), who is performing in a script-in-hand reading of Estonia, a new play by Billy O’Shea at Leith Depot (Thurs: tickets). And Theatre Paradok have The Muses, an immersive theatre experience inspired by Punchdrunk, at The Hive Nightclub (Wed/Thurs: tickets).
And finally, for Strictly fans, there are still a few tickets left for Christmas with Anton Du Beke (Wed: tickets) at the Usher Hall.
Listings
Click on the name of the show or the Book here link to go to its ticketing site.
Augustine United Church
41 George IV Bridge, EH1 1EL
Little Red Robin Hood (Happy Sad Productions)
Wed 27 Nov – Sun 1 Dec 2024.
Wed, Fri-Sun: 7.30pm; Sat Mat: 2.30pm.
Combining the well-loved stories of ‘Little Red Riding Hood’ and ‘Robin Hood’, and a sprinkle of some other fairy tale characters too, this sweet and goofy pantomime production will have every member of the family in hysterics! Book here.
Bedlam Theatre
11B Bristo Place, EH1 1EZ.
Despicable Panto (EUTC)
Wed 27 – Sat 30 November 2024.
Evenings: 7.30pm.
Vector returns to earth after a short stint on the moon to try and ruin Gru’s Christmas… but will he succeed? Gru, Santa and the gorls team up to make sure Christmas stays on track but the pressure of the looming holiday certainly provides a colourfully tense backdrop. This panto is filled with music, dancing and of course lots of minions so buckle in because Vector returning is just the start of the Christmas chaos! Details here.
Church Hill Theatre
33 Morningside Road, EH10 4DR.
Elf: The Musical (A-Team Productions)
Wed 27 – Sat 30 November 2024.
Evenings: 7pm; Sat mat: 2pm.
Based on the hit Christmas movie. Buddy, a young orphan child, mistakenly crawls into Santa’s bag of gifts and is transported back to the North Pole. Unaware that he is actually human, Buddy’s enormous size and poor toy-making abilities cause him to face the truth. Book here.
Festival Theatre
13/29 Nicolson Street EH8 9FT. Phone booking: 0131 529 6000.
Cinderella
Sat 23 Nov – Tue 31 Dec 2024
Tue – Sat: 2pm & 7pm; Sun: 1pm & 5pm.
Join returning panto favourites Allan Stewart, Grant Stott and Jordan Young with a new magical pantomime for all the family. Packed with all of the traditional pantomime ingredients, Cinderella features laugh-out-loud comedy, stunning scenery, beautiful costumes and plenty of boos and hisses as Cinders goes from rags to riches, outwits her very wicked sisters and meets her Prince Charming. Book here.
The Hive Nightclub
15-17 Niddry Street, EH1 1LG
The Muses (Theatre Paradok)
Wed 27 – Thurs 28 Nov 2024
Both days 7pm; Thurs only 5.30pm.
Enter the fray, where you will be invited to wander freely through multiple rooms of Hive around theatrical movement and writing performances of rage, repression, freedom, and catharsis, as we explore the continued socialisation of gender and its intergenerational effects. Book here.
Leith Depot
138-142 Leith Walk EH6 5DT.
The Gathering (Penpals Productions)
Mon 25 November 2024.
Evening: 8pm.
Six pint-sized plays on the the theme of The Gathering. New writing from Edinburgh based playwrights especially for Leith Depot audiences. Performed Script in hand by professional actors. Also includes home baking! Book here.
Estonia (Spartaki)
Thur 28 November 2024.
Evening: 7pm.
Script-in-hand reading of a new play by Billy O’Shea, about a survivor haunted by the ghost one of the victims of the Estonia, which sank in 1994 with the loss of 852 of the 989 people on board. Performed by Nabil Shaban, Riley Stewart and Sian Fiddimore. Book here.
Lyceum Theatre
Grindlay Street EH3 9AX. Phone booking: 0131 248 4848.
Treasure Island
Thurs 28 Nov 2024 – Sat 4 Jan 2025
Evenings: (not Sun/Mon): 7pm, Matinees: Sat and daily from Tue 23 Dec: 2pm; Suns: 1pm, 6pm.
Following the smash-hit Christmas production of The Snow Queen, the Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh presents another epic story for the whole family – a new re-imagining of esteemed Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson’s quintessential adventure story. Book here.
Scottish Storytelling Centre
43-45 High St, EH1 1SR. Phone booking: 0131 556 9579
Scottish Theatre History Weekend (Edinburgh 900)
A weekend of talks and performance exploring Edinburgh’s rich theatre history.
Sat 30 Nov/Sun 1 Dec 2024.
Sat: 2pm; Sun: 1.30pm.
On Saturday there is a a series of free talks with input on the Theatre Royal and Walter Scott’s dramas by Helen Graham, how the Edinburgh Festivals began by David Pollock, the Pleasance and Gateway Theatres by Donald Smith, and the restoration of the Kings Theatre. On Sunday biographer Priscilla Barlow to give a pre-curtain talk on her research into Scotland’s vibrant theatre scene in Duncan Macrae’s lifetime. Book here.
A Noble Clown (Edinburgh 900)
Part of the Scottish Theatre History Weekend
Sat 30 Nov/Sun 1 Dec 2024.
Sat: 7pm; Sun: 3.30pm..
A new solo play, written and performed by Michael Daviot, tells the story of Duncan Macrae (1905-1967), long considered Scotland’s greatest actor. Featuring excerpts from Macrae’s finest roles in plays such as Jamie the Saxt, Gog and Magog and The Warld’s Wonder, as well as his signature song, The Wee Cock Sparra. Book here.
Usher Hall
Lothian Road, EH1 2EA.
Christmas with Anton Du Beke (Strictly Theatre Co.)
Wed 27 Nov 2024.
Evening: 7.30pm.
The Ballroom King and Strictly Come Dancing judge joins forces with his dynamic live band, the incomparable vocalist Lance Ellington, and a troupe of extraordinary dancers, to bring you a magical evening of music, dance and laughter. Book here.
*NB: This is intended to be a complete listing of all public theatrical productions on in Edinburgh. If you are staging a show which is not listed, or a listing is inaccurate, please get in touch through the contact page, here.
