Pleasance Courtyard, Edinburgh Watching a man labouring to strike up conversations in the smoking area of a nightclub proves not just funny but also touching and uplifting Ever pretended to use your phone to avoid the shame of being Norman No-Mates at a party? Freddie Meredith’s new show is a 60-minute channelling of that experience, an hour-long cringe at a man labouring to strike up conversations in the smoking area of a nightclub. Meredith, a familiar face to viewers of Big Boys, Such Brave Girls and other TV series, has alighted on a familiar social type here, albeit one rarely so brilliantly depicted. His alter ego is a shy and insecure beta male desperately trying to look – well, alpha is out of his reach, but even basic social functioning would be an upgrade. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/tzH2mZM
Summerhall, Edinburgh Gabe Winsor’s inventively staged tale is charming and sweetly lo-fi, but the emotion never quite clicks Deep sea diving and plumbing the depths of family history make a decent parallel in this nimble multimedia production by Buzzcut , which has a sweetly eccentric air yet leaves a little too much beneath the surface. The premise is familiar, as Eddie (Morgan Beale) returns to the seaside town where his sister, Ira (Camilla Anvar), still lives in her childhood bedroom and runs the family pub now that their parents are gone. Guilt, resentment and jealousy bubble up as they squabble over which of them was their parents’ favourite and what to do with the business, while Ira shares her doubts about Eddie’s new husband. At Summerhall, Edinburgh , until 31 August All our Edinburgh festival reviews Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/2qFSGlP