A peaceful Private, clique of mean girls, hip-hop William Wallace, 12 queens, an insatiable cannibal and an invitation to join the High Society provide the highlights on Edinburgh’s stages in September.
I’ve said it before, one of my pet hates is shows that go up late. The Fringe was full of them, even the Traverse managed to start the first show of the day 10 minutes late one morning, the Pleasance went further with a 17 minute hold up on the second show of the day. Likely, they’ll blame audiences, but having worked the other side of the game, often it’s simply down to the venue producers not allowing adequate time between shows for a proper turn around. Cramming in shows might make money but it doesn’t do anything to enhance the Fringe experience for audiences.
Thankfully, with the silly season now over for another year, there is a guarantee of a more comfortable theatre going experiences at theatres around Edinburgh in September, with some great title waiting in the wings to entertain.
With James Brining at the helm the Lyceum is already expanding its programme, attracting more and more touring productions to supplement the venue’s inhouse shows.
Private Peaceful (17-19 September) is one such title. Based on the novel by Michael Morpurgo and performed by Benjamin Cain, Private Peaceful is the unforgettable story of Tommo Peaceful. On the eve of battle, Tommo looks back over the events that shaped his life: the warmth of family, the innocence of first love, and the deep bond with his brother that carries him through the horrors of war. In this one-person piece, adapted and directed by Simon Reade, Cain conjures an entire world of characters, landscapes, and emotions. At once heartwarming and heartbreaking, Private Peaceful is both a moving family drama and a powerful reminder of the human cost of war.
Running time 80 minutes, no interval, tickets here: https://lyceum.org.uk/events/private-peaceful
At the capital’s largest venue, the Edinburgh Playhouse may now be owned by Global live events and experiences company MARI, but the programme remains tempting. Based on the play The Philadelphia Story by Philip Barry, and direct from London’s West End, High Society (8-12 September) has been hailed as ‘pure theatrical escapism… studded with diamond performances from a top-notch cast..
Call The Midwife’s Helen George leads an exciting 28-strong cast as glamorous socialite Tracy Lord and is joined by stage and screen favourites Freddie Fox of Slow Horses fame, Nigel Lindsay, Julian Ovenden and Malcolm Sinclair. As plans for the society wedding of the year descend into chaos, old and new flames vie for attention while a sharp-eyed tabloid reporter hunts for a scandal at a waterfront estate.
Featuring a score of overflowing Cole Porter numbers, including Just One Of Those Things, Let’s Misbehave, I Love Paris, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, Well, Did You Evah!, True Love, and many more, your well advised to heed the publicity blurb, which urges, ‘Clear your diary, because you’re invited to the most swell party of the year.”
Running time 2 hours, 30 minutes including interval, tickets here.
Later this month, Mean Girls (27 September-3 October), the hilarious smash-hit comedy stars Steps favourite Faye Tozer in not one, but three roles – Cady’s mother Mrs Heron, Regina’s ‘cool mom’ Mrs George, and maths teacher Ms Norbury, alongside Emily Lane as Cady and Vivian Panka as Regina.
Meet The Plastics, Regina, Gretchen and Karen. They rule North Shore High and will burn anyone who gets in their way. Home-schooled Cady may think she knows a thing or two about survival of the fittest thanks to her zoologist parents, but high school is a whole new level of savage. When Cady devises a plan to end Regina’s reign, she learns the hard way that you can’t cross a Queen Bee without getting stung.
Running time 2 hours 30 minutes including interval, tickets here.
At the King’s Theatre there’s a suitably Scottish feel to the first musical to grace the stage of the newly redeveloped venue’s reopening season. Forget Hamilton, a thrilling new hip-hop musical from award-winning playwright Rob Drummond and acclaimed rapper Dave Hook cast aside the Braveheart clichés to bring you the story of one of Scotland’s most famous legends. Furiously funny and politically explosive, Wallace (30 September- 3 October) asks whether William Wallace was a hero, a rebel, or simply a myth in a series of electrifying head-to-head rap battles that blend history, humour and hip-hop. With a score incorporating rap, folk, pop, rock and razor-sharp lyrics in a distinctly Scottish voice, Wallace aims to reinvent the story of a national icon for a new generation.
Running time 1 hour 45 minutes, tickets here.
Across town, at the Festival Theatre it’s time to come face to face with the terrifying cannibal, Hannibal Lecter, in The Silence of the Lambs (8-12 September), in this world premiere of a new play based on Thomas Harris’s gripping psychological thriller. It’s a show that comes with a pretty hefty trigger warning: ‘Please note this production contains scenes of threat, violence and murder, strong language, sexual references and harassment, mutilation and body horror, psychological intensity, childhood trauma and onstage prosthetic human remains’.
If that’s not put you off, here’s the story: When FBI trainee Clarice Starling is sent to interview the psychiatrist and infamous murderer Hannibal Lecter, it’s hoped his brilliant mind will help catch a sadistic new serial killer, Buffalo Bill. Another girl is missing, and time is running out. But Dr Lecter has questions of his own, and now Clarice must decide: keep a safe distance, or let Hannibal The Cannibal into her head…?
Joining John Partridge in the title role are Corrie’s Mollie Gallagher as Clarice Starling, Emmerdale’s Oliver Farnworth as Agent Jack Crawford and Sam Jackson of Skins fame as Buffalo Bill. Make sure your interval order is a nice Chianti.
Running time 2 hours 20 minutes, including interval, tickets here.
Staying on Nicolson Street, it’s a case of when six becomes twelve. If ever you needed a reason to ses Six The Musical (15-26 September) twice in the one month, this is it. The piece, which began life as a show on the Edinburgh Fringe returns with not one but two casts – yes there’s a cast change in the middle of its two week run at the Festival Theatre.
Divorced. Beheaded. Died, Divorced. Beheaded. Survived… From Tudor Queens to Pop Princesses, the six wives of Henry VIII take to the mic to tell their tales, remixing five hundred years of historical heartbreak into an 80-minute celebration of 21st century girl power. These Queens may have green sleeves but their lipstick is rebellious red.
Winner of 35 major international awards including the 2022 Tony Award for Best Original Score and Best Costume Design on Broadway, Six is a Must See – if you haven’t already.
Running time 80 minutes, no interval, tickets here.
As always, you’ll find all the latest theatre news, views and reviews you can trust over at MustSeeTheatre.com, do give it a visit, and I’ll be back with you next month with more hot tickets not to be missed.
Happy theatre-going,
Liam
