theSpace @ Surgeons Hall
Brief Candle
★★☆☆☆ Fllickering
Brief Candle, from Blushing Caligula at theSpace @ Surgeons Hall, is not the first play to take inspiration for its title from Macbeth. Unfortunately, its attempts at tragic grandeur do not match up to such a reference.
Hickory
★★☆☆☆ Enjoyable
Hickory by Deleardley Theatre is an enjoyable tale with a flawed tail, of two mice whose short lives are spent using physical labour to drive the mechanism of a cuckoo clock.
Why Am I Like This?
★★★★☆ Important story
Why Am I Like This? from High Heels and Heavy Suitcases at theSpace @ Surgeons Hall is something of a gem. Beautifully tailored to its audience, space and time slot, it is funny and refreshing.
Sherlock Holmes The Last Act / Watson: The Final Problem
★★★★☆ Mercurial and ★★★★☆ Reliable
Sherlock Holmes The Last Act and Watson: The Final Problem are both clever, beautifully performed pieces of theatre. They both provide novelty, as well as fidelity to the work of Arthur Conan Doyle.
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 Tragedy That Befalls the Dastardly Crew of the Kakapo
★★★☆☆ Energetic
The Tragedy That Befalls the Dastardly Crew of the Kakapo, from Dead Parrot Collective at theSpace @ Surgeons Hall, is an unsubtle, rollicking romp that will give pleasure to many.
Whispers
★★★☆☆ Spooky
Whispers, the solo show by bilingual performer Pat Zajac at theSpace @ Surgeons’ Hall for the last week of the Fringe, is an evocative piece that sometimes struggles to be fully coherent.
Apartness
★★☆☆☆ Anticlimactic
Apartness, from K4K Films and Shortcut Productions at theSpace @ Surgeons’ Hall, promises much but signally fails to deliver.
On the Run: Dame Over!
★★★★☆ Dame to Fame
Showcasing considerable talent and dedication, On the Run: Dame Over!, the debut comedy show from Them is Brothers, is potentially the start of what could be a great Scottish comedy partnership.
Slings and Arrows
★★★★☆ Hard hitting
There is raw emotion on display in Slings and Arrows, a disabled led dram from Raised Voices at theSpace@ Surgeons Hall – but there is also humour, stagecraft and real hope.
