Derek Douglas

And They Played Shang-a-Lang
★★★★★ Joyful romp
After an eleven-year streak, Edinburgh Little Theatre’s And They Played Shang-a-Lang opens what is billed as its final Fringe run, to a packed and cheering house at the Hill Street Theatre.

Wallace
★★★☆☆ Raw
Edinburgh Little Theatre’s Wallace is a conscious attempt to stir the blood by celebrating a figure from Scottish history.

Alfie and George
★★★☆☆ Last curtain
If the ghost of Samuel Beckett was invited to return from the grave to write an episode of Inside No.9 he might have come up with a similar idea to the one used for Alfie and George at Hill Street Theatre.

Independence
★★★☆☆ Committed
Independence, from Edinburgh Little Theatre at Hill Street, is a politically-charged piece that takes a few wrong turns but has huge reserves of dedication.

Avenue Q
★★★★☆ Organised chaos
If you are not familiar with Avenue Q, being staged by Edinburgh Little Theatre at Hill Street – a Q virgin – be prepared to be surprised and very amused by Muppet-like hand puppets swearing, acting inappropriately and addressing adult issues head on.

Silence In Court
★★★★☆ Immersive trial:
Young Critics Scheme review
Silence in Court by the Edinburgh Little Theatre immerses the audience into a gut-wrenching court case and challenges them to decipher the truth – and provide a verdict.

Rent for Shoogly summer school
Shoogly Peg Productions to stage Rent at King’s:
The Edinburgh based youth company Shoogly Peg Productions is to stage Rent the Musical as its intensive summer programme at the King’s Theatre in July 2018.

And They Played Shang-A-Lang
★★★☆☆ Bags of fun:
Back for a sixth year at the Stand, Shooglypeg’s production of And They Played Shang-A-Lang is as buoyant as ever.

Spring Awakening
★★★☆☆ Echo chamber:
There is plenty of potential in Shoogly Peg’s production of the musical version of Spring Awakening, based on Frank Wedekind’s often censored play of 1891, at St Stephen’s to Saturday.

American Idiots wanted!
Open casting call for Shoogly Peg intensive programme
Youth company Shoogly Peg Productions has announced an open casting call for its 2017 summer intensive programme, leading up to performances of American Idiot at the Edinburgh King’s.