But it also resulted in me booking into the largest number of shows since I started doing major excursions to the Fringe. Previously I managed twenty one shows and was decidedly in need of a dark quiet room and a long lie down... this year I've ended up with twenty five shows. Most of them I'm going to with Ma as usual, but I've managed to keep nine just for myself.
It's an interesting mixture of completely new stuff, new shows by old favourites and repeats... although the repeats are only The Bunker Trilogy (Morgana, Agamemnon and Macbeth), Briefs and A Simple Space.
But I know that due to the nature of the shows, the latter two will be altered from the last time I saw them.
In all other things I took my own advice from last year... specifically Rule 2, take a chance on something new (and to a lesser degree Rule 5... there's a lot of circus in my selections).
Even the venues have changed up quite a bit. We're in the Garden of Unearthly Delights way more than we've been for the last several years, and hardly in Gluttony at all.
Given that there was a larger number of shows, and a number of them were on at similar times, the planning stage was something of an ordeal. And then once I'd decided on seeing The Bunker Trilogy on my birthday, I realised that Womad was on that weekend... and given that the trilogy is taking place in the Botanical Gardens this year, it seemed like a very bad idea, so there was some reshuffling that needed to take place.
But in the end it all seemed to come together quite well, even if I won't end up with an awful lot of free time during the month of Fringe...
- Exposing Edith: Exposing Edith is a stunning mix of authentic, vintage French pop and contemporary sounds.
- A Night At the Musicals: UK Drag icon and artiste extraordinaire Jonny Woo teams with Adelaide Festival darling and Olivier winning star of La Clique and La Soiree, Le Gateau Chocolat for an evening of unadulterated musical theatre nonsense.
- The Bookbinder: The Bookbinder weaves shadowplay, paper art, puppetry, and music into an original dark fairytale in the vein of Coraline and Jonathon Strange and Mr Norrell. An inventive one-man performance for curious children and adventurous adults.
- Bruce: Keeping you at the edge of your seat, Bruce will sweep you away on an epic adventure of love and revenge. He may be just a yellow block of foam, but Bruce's out to prove he's got a heart of pure gold.
- Three Birds One Cock: Why is it that Alfred Hitchcock's beautiful women are often the victims of gruesome and violent storylines? Using their feminine charms (what else would they have?), they must steer the course of fate and take revenge on their master puppeteer.
- The Bunker Trilogy: Morgana: On the reserve lines of World War One, three young soldiers in search of distraction and delight find more than they’d bargained for in the beautiful, mysterious and mystical Morgana Le Fay.
- The Bunker Trilogy: Agamemnon: An intense reimagining of the Ancient Greek legend. Enter the trenches of the First World War, 1918 and journey into the delusions of a shell-shocked solider, devastated by war, cut off from help, convinced of a plot to bring him down.
- The Bunker Trilogy: Macbeth: An immersive and intense reimagining of the Shakespearean legend thrusts you deep into the trenches of the First World War as the warrior, tormented by witches, hallucinations and apparitions, prepares for his final battle.
- Total Nonstop Tricks: Total Nonstop Tricks brings together athletes from their respective fields into a collective and explodes them onto stage with beats, DJ and lights to display their love for movement, creativity and passion.
- Scotch and Soda: This is circus and jazz, served straight up. A show that is an actual cocktail of exciting artistic personalities, world class circus, heart pounding barroom and junkyard jazz, and one final ingredient - the audience.
- Adam Richard - Splitsecondism: A show about bludgers, beavers and badly translated tattoos.
- Bicycle: Upon meeting an enigmatic Transylvanian Count, a Victorian Englishwoman is given a bicycle. But this gift comes with a price: midnight supper at his place. This invitation proves too tempting to resist and her mortal life is changed forever.
- Tolu: A vivaciously fun story told through circus, dance and play by the sensational Casus Circus. Audiences of all ages will have their imaginations sparked by the three awe-inspiring performers, as they twist, flip, spiral, balance, jump and climb.
- Half Hour Hamlet: Come and see Shakespeare the way it should be done, fast, furious and ridiculous! Patrick Hercamp presents William Shakespeare’s very own 'Hamlet' done in 30 minutes!
- Sound and Fury's Lord of the Thrones: Sound and Fury brings their brand-new mash-up parody of two reasonably well-known literary works. And a lucky audience member shall play the hero, Frogurt Snark, on the adventure of a lifetime!
- My Life as a Gay Bum: It's time to share the many strange, funny and weird moments I experienced in darkrooms, parks, toilets, cars and 100 more places in this autobiographic one-man show.
- Undertone: Using live triggering to create soundscapes from the performance itself, Undertone blends the visual and auditory elements into an integrated whole. As the circus and the music directly influence one another, no two performances are ever the same.
- Briefs: Briefs return with a jaw-dropping, eye-popping evening of extravagant birdbath boylesque, too-close-for-comfort yo-yo tricks, valiant aerial acrobatics and show-stopping drag.
- Duckie: Critically acclaimed cabaret star Le Gateau Chocolat is breaking out of his shell and reimagining a childhood favourite, The Ugly Duckling, in his new work Duckie. A classic tale of identity and belonging, Duckie explores what it's like to feel different... only with far more sing-alongs, Disney references, outlandish dress-ups and Chocolat than the original!
- UnPlotted Potter: We're going off the Marauder’s Map and into the forbidden forest of supporting characters. Does Professor Flitwick have a girlfriend? How does Mr Borgin unwind at the end of the day? How did Madam Rosmerta come to own the Three Broomsticks? We want you to help us find out! You choose the character: we tell you their story.
- William the Great: William the Great is a ceremony away from the crown, but his patience is tested as obstacles continue to pile up between him and his greatest dream. Through an elegant amalgam of highly skilled acrobatic numbers you will discover an eccentric kingdom filled with characters of an absurdly touching zaniness.
- Aaaand Now For Something Completely Improvised: A doddery grandfather can't quite remember his ripping yarn, but with your help a mystery stuffed with hilarious characters, whip-smart wit and breathtaking twists will take hasty shape before your very eyes.
- A Simple Space: The stage is bare, costumes basic, and lighting and sound DIY by the performers live on stage. In this stripped-back state, we, as performers, have nothing to hide behind, and our true stories and connection seep through. It’s a terrifying and liberating way to perform!
- Down Down Lucifer: Lucifer wants to be God. The only problem is the angels hate him, men demonize him and his adversary is an all-powerful creator being at the head of an unbeatable celestial dictatorship. How will he ever collect enough souls to stage his coup?
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