Royalty; gangsters; performers; pioneers; radicals; legends. Women.
Of all the various themes and noticeable trends presenting themselves for the 2024 Edinburgh Festival Fringe, two become increasingly apparent with every show listing audience scour. And while the most (potentially) numerous of these shows will be in a follow-up piece, for now, we here at Corr Blimey couldn’t think of a finer way to kick off our Fringe coverage and recommendations, than by paying tribute to the outstanding summer ahead of productions about, for, and created by women.
Below is a selection of the ‘these go to’ eleven recommendations we have for productions which utilise women who made the headlines through history; be they biographical, referential, musical, or otherwise.
From now until August kicks off, we’ll be releasing our weekly recommendations of the top theatre, comedy, spoken word, film, music, children’s theatre dance, and visual arts available to audiences across all the city’s festivals. But this time, rather than focus solely on genre or performance method, we’ll be looking at some of the terrific emerging topics from Climate Crisis and Sport to Food and Contemporary Myths. Come along with us and Have a Gander.
If you have a show coming and would like to chat with us about a Q&A or a review, please do get in touch through the ‘contact’ page where one of the team will get back to you!
Think you know the full story of Mary, Queen of Scots? You haven’t got a clue.
A right royal affair, audiences are catapulted back to 1561. The Scottish Reformation has enforced a complete ban on rock’n’roll. A rock opera designed to play with time, Pretty Knickers Production’s show is everything ‘Fringe.’ Bold and in your face, the creatives behind Fringe hit Salamander are thrilled to bring this new musical on the dramatic and turbulent life of Mary; a powerful woman, undermined by men, spun for a contemporary message.
Join the city in rocking out to the undisputed Queen of Rock at the Assembly Rooms – Ballroom, before the heads begin to roll…
Venue 20 – Assembly Rooms; Ballroom
Running time 80 minutes
Aug 1st-6th, 8th-13th, 15th-20th, 22nd-25th (21:20)
The myth, the legend, and the reality of history’s most powerful woman, Cleopatra, will never be topped. Not even by Beyoncé, Taylor Swift, or a Kardashian.
Catapulting even further back in time, audiences find themselves in the revelry and celebration of Egypt’s triumphant victory over Rome with Alchemation and Nathaniel Hill’s House of Cleopatra. But just beyond the city gates, dangerous enemies wait, just as this party reaches its peak.
The biggest party in the city, get ready to party like it’s the end of history’s most dramatic dynasty with an original, high-octane pop score by Laura Kleinbaum and Jeff Daye, who create an immersive musical score fitting of one of history’s most mysterious rulers.
Venue 322 – Assembly Checkpoint
Running time – 70 minutes
July 31st, Aug 1st-6th, 8th-11th, 13th-18th, 20th-25th (23:15)
In Leni’s Last Lament, which swept top awards at its one-night-only performance at the United Solo Festival in Manhattan last March, Hitler’s controversial filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl poses as a misunderstood victim as she attempts to justify and sanitize her notorious past. Set in Leni’s editing room and presented as a macabre, comic cabaret with a live accordionist, the play is a wild, ironic ride full of hard-to-believe insights into this provocative figure as she reassembles her life to create a more palatable portrait.
Ahead of the show’s run, have a look at our Have a Gander Q&A with playwright Gil Kofman
Venue 20 – Assembly Rooms: Drawing Rooms
Runnign time – Sixty minutes
August 1st-6th, 8th-12th, 14th-19th, 21st-25th (17.25)
Exploring some local history, Mermaids Performing Arts Fund performs The Edinburgh Seven at Greenside’s Thistle Theatre. A riveting exploration of the first seven women to be admitted to medical School in Edinburgh, and the United Kingdom.
This historic group, against the backdrop of the Surgeons’ Hall Riot, opens the truth of their fight for acceptance and professional recognition. Not only seeking to honour the legacy of these seven women, but as a pertinent reminder of the continuing fight for equality across education, and beyond.
Venue 16 – Greenside @ Riddles Court: Thistle Theatre
Running time – Fifty minutes
August 12th-17th, 19th-24th (12.40)
Blue Fire Theatre Company bring their critically acclaimed, and OffFest-nominated, one-woman show to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe this year.
From the distant past to the recent one, the one thing evident in all these shows is the relevance of their performances today. And Chopped Liver and Unions is no different. This is Sara Wesker’s story.
A trade unionist, and radical political activist – Wesker led the singing strikers of 1928, to improve the working conditions of female garment workers in London’s East End. But for so many, their love of the cause impacted their daily life and the battle for the love of their life. Was it all worth it? This is a play that gives a full-on account of the life of this forgotten woman, who should be heralded as a working-class hero.
Venue 152 – Paradise in Augustines: The Studio
Running time – Sixty-five minutes
August 2nd-10th, 12th-17th, 19th-24th (Various times)
Alice Diamond and the Forty Elephants
The incredibly talented Young Pleasance return with another large-scale, high-energy show: Alice Diamond and the Forty Elephants.
When her notorious gang-leader brother heads off to World War One, Alice Diamond spots an opportunity to stake their claim, take his place, and stamp a mark on the streets of London. With their all-female syndicate behind them, Alice rules the city as a crowned queen of crime.
But when the war ends – and the men return home – Alice isn’t ready to give up her newfound status. The result? A singling-rivalry which ensures as much of a romp and battle as the Peaky-Blinders could muster.
Venue 23 – Pleasance Dome: King Dome
Running time – Sixty minutes
August 1st – 11th (13.30)
June Carter Cash: The Woman, Her Music, and Me
One of this year’s most anticipated productions, in and out of the Fringe, The National Theatre of Scotland continues forward with its dedication to sharing extraordinary stories, told by extraordinary people.
Performed by Prudencia Hart star Charlene Boyd, The Woman, Her Music, and Me gets to grips with a life far less ordinary, and the story of one of country music’s most iconic voices: June Carter Cash. Rather than an outright biography, Boyd takes audiences through a more personal play with songs, as they explore the relationship they have with her musical heroine, and the shared experiences as performers and working mothers.
Released as part of this year’s Made in Scotland Showcase, audiences cross the Atlantic in their trip from the Appalachian Mountains to the Glasgow high-rise flats, in an empowering and enduring tale.
Venue 26 – Summerhall: The Dissection Room
Running time – Eighty minutes
August 2nd-4th, 6th-11th, 13th-18th, 20th-24th (16.20)
Just as they are preparing for the audition of their lives – playing Anna May Wong, Hollywood’s first East Asian starlet – China Doll comes crashing into confrontation with the ingénue’s history as she begins to notice remarkable parallels between them and their navigations of life, love, and identity as East Asian actors in the West.
Diana Feng andthe Wednesday Women’s Writing Collective explores the internalised racism and self-worth in this compelling piece on discrimination and progress which finds China Doll waking up in 1930s Hollywood. Stuck in the body of the rising star, she discovers their similarities, and prompts audiences to reflect on how and why East Asians are facing the same biases as they did nearly a century ago.
Venue 302 – Underbelly, Bristo Square: Clover
Running time – Sixty minutes
July 31st, August 1st-11th, 13th-26th (12.55)
‘/ and her’
It was those infamous final remarks, added by King Edward VI to his last will and testament, which thrusted the fifteen-year-old Jane Grey onto the throne of England for a mere nine days.
And yet, amidst the romanticism of Jane’s unfortunate end, almost lost to history, is the life of her cousin of equal age, Jane Lumley. What is known, however, is that Lumley is the authoress of the earliest known English translation of Iphigena at Aulis, a play about the martyrdom of a young girl to her state. Fitting. In this original play, / and her, from Jennifer Grober (who also directs), delves into the power behind language to redefine destinies in the middle of the turbulent religious wars of England.
Venue 40 – C ARTS: Studio
Running time – Sixty minutes
August 12 – 18th, 20th – 25th (20.15)
Another of this year’s Made in Scotland Showcase pieces, Apphia Campbell’s new re-worked piece (originally performed as Woke) stunned audiences at the Lyceum Theatre last year.
Through the Mud, an intense seventy minutes of music, protest, and performance, tells the story of two generations of women activists in the struggle for Black liberation in America. One is notorious Black Panther Assata Shakur; the other a college student at the beginning of the Black Lives Matter movement in Ferguson, 2014.
Performed against a stunning soundtrack of blues and gospel, sung live, Through the Mud explores what it takes to become a revolutionary.
Venue 26 – Summerhall: Main Hall
Running time – Seventy minutes
Aug 1st-6th, 8th-11th, 13th-18th, 20th-25th (17.55)
We started with a Monarch; its only fitting to don the crown once more.
The Empress Queen, and the model for the contemporary monarch, Victoria is one of the most pertinent symbols of the British monarchy, and the extent of the Empire’s colonisation.
Returning to their legendary role, through a newly recorded voiceover, created specifically for this production Prunella Scales continues the twenty-eight-year success Katrina Hendrey’s Queen has had; using the words and songs from Victoria’s journals, letters, and diaries. This re-purposed production will star Sarah Crowe as Victoria in her middle years and Grace Darling as the young queen.
Revealing the woman behind the glum and grim façade; one who fell in love, grieved, and fostered a deep sense of isolation. And, just maybe, there’s a sense of humour there too.
Venue 20 – Assembly Rooms: Drawing Room
Running time – Sixty minutes
August 1st-11th, 13th-25th (13.00)
Interested in being featured? With many previews and Q&As lined up, we’re always happy to chat about including your show in future articles. Please do get in touch through the contact page to feature in an upcoming ‘Have A Gander’
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