#EdFringe
I Hope Your Flowers Bloom
★★★★☆ Lyrical
I Hope your Flowers Bloom is a beautifully lyrical monologue in which writer and performer Raymond Wilson, presented by All the Figs at the Storytelling Centre, shows his obsession for trees and other plants, even quoting the Latin name of every tree he mentions.
Garage Warriors
★★★★☆ Strong writing debut.
Garage Warriors, Lewis Aitken’s writing debut for Raw Toast Productions at Surgeons Hall, is inspired by Chat GPT but thankfully not written with the aid of it.
The Hearth
★★★★☆ Moving reflections
In The Hearth from Brite Theater, multi-instrumentalist and storyteller Tom Oakes uses the hearth; that place in the centre of a home where a fire is traditionally lit, to spark a series of moving reflections on life and memory.
Making History by Stephen Fry
★★★★☆ Lovingly assembled
There is a great deal of attention lavished on Making History by Stephen Fry from Edinburgh Theatre Arts at St Ninian’s Hall. The result is an absorbing one.
Never Trouble Trouble (Till Trouble Troubles You)
★★★★☆ Emotional football
Never Trouble Trouble (Till Trouble Troubles You) is another play at Tynecastle Park from Two Halves Productions that is essential for Hearts fans – and thoroughly accessible and entertaining for supporters of any club or none.
Don Quixote
★★★★☆ Knockabout
Taking as its inspiration the towering 17th century Spanish novel by Miguel de Cervantes, Don Quixote at Assembly George Square is an impressively funny affair that is both very silly and very clever.
The Booth
★★★☆☆ Comic confusion
Edinburgh University Theatre Group’s The Booth takes a satirical, but affectionate, look back to the 1950s, when Foley artists ruled the airwaves, using household objects to create so many of the sound effects that brought radio drama to life.
Constellations
★★★☆☆ Needs more variety
There is a clever idea behind Constellations from ZOE and New Celts at theSpace on the Mile. Unfortunately, it is that very idea that prevents it from working as well as it might as a piece of theatre in this production.
Magic Gareth: Level Up!
★★★☆☆ Goofy
Magic Gareth – Level Up!, the family show at the Pleasance from Edinburgh-based Magic Gareth, is a fun and accessible collection of tricks and humour.
An Oak Tree
★★★★★ Clear as water
A mesmeric exploration of belief, loss and imagination as well as an ingeniously conceived experience, Tim Crouch’s An Oak Tree is a stunning piece of theatre.
