It’s Fringe time! I’ve been meaning to post a run-down of my cabaret picks for this year ever since the programme dropped two months ago but… Well, I haven’t managed it. Now I’m up here in Edinburgh and it’s all kicking off so here it is!
Couple of notes first.
(1) I haven’t seen these shows so I’m not saying I think they’re the best ones at the Fringe. They’re the shows that I’m most looking forward to checking out, on a purely subjective basis that is inevitably incomplete and skewed towards acts I’m already familiar with.
(2) These are all shows in the Cabaret section of the Fringe programme. There are cabaret-ish shows in other sections that I’m looking forward to as well, but there’s a separate post for them.
So here, in alphabetical order, are my 24 cabaret picks of the Fringe. All can be found on the Fringe website.
Ali McGregor: Decadence
McGregor’s a Fringe veteran with killer pipes. She’s just made her debut at Joe’s Pub in NYC and nabbed Barry Humphries’s old gig heading the Adelaide Cabaret Festival. Catch this one-off showcase of her fave songs, or her daily family show, Jazzmatazz.
Assembly George Square Gardens, Aug 17
Butterfly Rammy
The seismic political shift in Scotland following the independence referendum and the general election inspired Common Weal to create “a show of music, poetry, ideas and politics”. And no, I don’t know what the title means, cos I’m an ignorant Englishman.
Stand in the Square, until Aug 30 (not 17, 24)
Dandy Darkly’s Trigger Happy!
Dandy Darkly has established himself as a truly unique voice in the Fringe firmament. This Southern sissy-clown storyteller puts dainty doggerel to deliciously devastating effect in macabre supernatural tales satirising American culture. This year: guns.
CC Blooms, until Aug 30 (not 19)
Diary of a Shanghai Showgirl
A few years back, Amelia Kallman and Norman Gosney parlayed their knowledge of the UK cabaret scene into opening what was apparently China’s first burlesque club. In this variety-infused two-hander, they tell us how they did it and how it all went.
Laughing Horse @ the Free Sisters, Aug 20 to 30
Dillie Keane
Best known for fronting Fascinating Aida since the year dot, the glorious Dillie Keane is cabaret royalty. In her first solo show in yonks, she presents a mix of familiar and new “songs of love and filth” co-written by her Aida partner Adele Anderson.
Underbelly, George Square, until Aug 31 (not 17-19)
Dive and Summerhall Present…
C U Next Tuesday Cabaret
For a taste of Edinburgh’s year-round cabaret scene, check this weekly perf party hosted by Miss Annabel Sings (Eat Your Heart Out) with local and visiting talent. Part of Summerhall’s provocative line-up.
Summerhall, Aug 11, 14, 18 and 25
EastEnd Cabaret: Perverts
Bernadette Byrne and Victor Victoria’s musically deft, sexually yomping songs have made them firm Fringe favourites – so much so that they can’t stay away, adding a couple of dates at the end of the Fest despite being too busy to manage a full run.
Assembly George Square Gardens, Aug 28 and 29
Ecce Homo
Bette Bourne’s extraordinary queer theatre company Bloolips flourished from the 70s to the 90s – in some ways a UK answer to the Cockettes. Here, company member Naughty Nickers tells the story of Bloolips’ US debut, his love live and living with HIV-AIDS.
Pleasance Courtyard, until Aug 31 (not 17)
From Geek to Goddess
Kai Hoffman’s infectious charm and love of 50s jive and swing have long made her a fixture of the London scene, including a monthly night at Ronnie Scott’s. In this show she tells her life story – including an early stint as a competitive maths prodigy.
Fingers Piano Bar, until Aug 29 (not 10, 17, 24)
K’rd Strip: A Place to Stand
Has the Fringe ever seen a show like this? (Maybe Briefs’ debut?) The Okareka Dance Company tell the tale of Auckland’s misfit-friendly Karangahape Road area through Maori legend, haka, storytelling, dance, drag, singing and – oh yes – stripping.
Assembly Roxy, until Aug 31 (not 17)
Lili la Scala: Another F*cking Variety Show
For a lucky-dip experience of cabaret at the Fringe, get yourself down to this long-running night, hosted by a glittering stalwart of the scene. Lili also comperes the Big Cabaret Gala in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support at EICC at 2pm on August 28.
Pleasance Dome, until Aug 29 (not 17, 24)
The LipSinkers: Evolution of the Fags
For dynamism, creativity and sheer, queer fun, you just can’t beat the LipSinkers. This troupe out of east London’s alt-drag scene are ceaselessly inventive in their song choices, choreography and production design. They’ll leave you gasping.
Liquid Room Annexe, Aug 16-29
Lynn Ruth Miller: Get a Grip
The octogenarian dynamo is back with a storytelling show based around fears – from childhood, adolescence and early adulthood – and how she overcame them. Charm, humour and telling detail are put to the service of honest, inspiring self-awareness.
C Nova, until Aug 31
Mel Frye Will Double Your Money (Not Guaranteed)
James Habacker is the creator of NYC’s legendary Slipper Room, cradle of neo-burlesque and alt cabaret. For his Fringe debut, he performs as his long-running character Mel Frye, an old-school Borscht-belt gag-writer. With songs, magic and video.
Voodoo Rooms, until Aug 16 (not 10)
Mr B’s Guide to Modern Life
The Gentleman Rhymer and chap-hop pioneer has just about recovered from the devastating revelation that Michael Gove quite likes him. He returns to the Fringe for another round of banjolele anthems, this time promising tips on surviving the world.
Voodoo Rooms, Aug 18 to 30 (not 24)
Puddles Pity Party
Puddles’ cover of Lorde’s song Royals went superviral on YouTube – partly, perhaps, cos it’s weird seeing a Pennywise type bemoaning consumerist anomie, but mostly cos of his sonorous, mesmerising voice. Curious to see a full set.
Assembly George Sq Gdns, until Aug 31 (not 18, 21)
Smack, Crackle n’ Pop!
Coming in for a short and sweet run at the end of the Fringe, these two young performers – Emily Bee and Danny Ash – have each delivered ambitious, innovative and frankly bonkers turns on the London scene. Expect laughs, flesh, circus, weird.
theSpace on the Mile, Aug 25-29
Sweet Dreams: Songs by Annie Lennox
Michael Griffiths’s last show, In Vogue: Songs by Madonna, was a dry, drawling celebration-cum-takedown of the material girl delivered without a conical bra in sight. Lennox is a surprising choice for a follow-up but there’s no shortage of great tunes.
Assembly George Square Gdns, until Aug 31 (not 18)
Tales from a Cabaret
The Creative Martyrs are a kind of Weimar-flavoured mash-up of Laurel and Hardy and Vladimir and Estragon, offering songs and gags for the end of the world. This is a welcome return for their 2010/2011 show characterised by jaunty satirical ditties.
Voodoo Rooms, until Aug 30
Thrill-Seeking Pianist WLTM Like-Minded Audience for NSA Fun and Good Times
Mister Meredith is a dab hand at tinkling the ivories and has a store cupboard of innuendos at his disposal, but above all he relishes the rapport between performer and audience. Flirty.
Voodoo Rooms, until Aug 30 (not 18)
Transformer
Jonny Woo, ringleader of east London’s explosive, all-conquering alt-drag scene, has a new look. He fronts a full rock band to recreate Lou Reed’s iconic album about the NYC underground, enhanced by performance turns and familiar faces. Should be wild.
Voodoo Rooms, until Aug 16 (not 10)
Twonkey’s Stinking Bishop
How to describe a Twonkey show? Wrong storytelling from other worlds, unexpected puppets, things like jokes, baffling yet heart-wrenching songs, fashion-forward clutter… If you haven’t been, go, let it all in, and try not to think about it while it’s happening.
Sweet Grassmarket, until Aug 30 (not 11, 18, 25)
We Can Make You Happy
This is the new one from the House of Blakewell, a duo whose debut show, House Party, showed musical and storytelling talent but felt a bit insular to me. Here they promise to tackle a more universal subject – aided by woodwind duels and dance-offs. Of course.
Assembly George Sq Gdns, until Aug 31 (not 12, 24)
X – Lady Carol
Marking ten years at the Fringe, the haunting, spritey and disarmingly goofy Lady Carol is a one-off, combining self-effacing stories and a wonderfully offbeat worldview with a soaring, transporting voice that takes you to places no one else knows.
Heroes @ Bob’s BlundaBus, Aug 27-31
PLUS!
Cabaret Chinwag
I’d better plug my own event – a weekly afternoon get-together all about cabaret at the Fringe and beyond. An hour-long panel, including guests, discussions and maybe a lo-fi turn or two; then an hour-long mingle, with booze if I can rustle any up.
Fringe Central, 2.30pm, Aug 13, 20 and 27
PLUS! AGAIN!
Check out these three preview features I did about shows at the Fringe for the Guardian last month – one about shows engaging with trans subjects, one about Penny Arcade’s fight against gentrification, and one about poignant, humorous shows inspired by Hollywood blockbusters.
