7 festival highlights: Theatre
Our theatre picks include a dark comedy criticising the anti-trans movement and the return of a Fringe drag favourite
The Red Hourglass
Seems a while since Alan Bissett was ‘just’ an author behind his desk writing away. This reinvention as playwright/performer suits him and here he is in surreal mode playing five non-human characters.
The Stand 2, until 29 August, 12.20pm.
Clown Show
Geoff Sobelle is back at the EIF for a satirical analysis of modern America as a destabilised travelling circus with, presumably, a total clown in charge.
King’s Theatre, 27–29 August, 8pm; 29 August, 2pm; 30 August, 3pm.
Transmission
Drag act Nelly Kelly plays Big Jimmy, a symbol of the new right’s anti-trans rhetoric and someone who wants to ‘make Scotland cis again’.
Summerhall, until 23 August, 7.15pm.
Invasion
Colonial trauma is at the core of this piece from Philippine Theatre UK as they tackle wartime atrocities, the action moving from 1940s Manila to 2020s Oxford.
Space Venue 45, 24–28 August, 8.40pm.
.jpg)
Haribo Kimchi
South Korean theatre maker Jaha Koo invites you into his late-night snack bar to chat cuisine, cultural assimilation and curious customers.
Studio Theatre, 20–24 August, 8pm; 22 August, 2pm.
Kinder
One of the hands-down 100% success stories from last year’s Fringe with Ryan Stewart returning as Goody Prostate, a drag artist about to launch into a library reading hour while also confronting memories from the past.
Underbelly Cowgate, until 30 August, 2pm.
Reaching The C
Written and performed by Ursula Leveaux, this is a story about the unexpected paths life can take and how you have to somehow navigate it all. Sometimes music can help.
Space Symposium Hall, until 22 August, 4.10pm.