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MAN!FEST: THE DRAG BOYBAND MUSICAL to Take on Toxic Masculinity at Edinburgh Fringe

OnTheNose Productions and Chichester Festival Theatre bring the show to Pleasance Courtyard.

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Featured Topic Edinburgh Festival More Coverage MAN!FEST: THE DRAG BOYBAND MUSICAL to Take on Toxic Masculinity at Edinburgh Fringe

OnTheNose Productions, Chichester Festival Theatre and Pleasance will present MAN!FEST: THE DRAG BOYBAND MUSICAL, a riotous drag musical taking Edinburgh Fringe 2026 by storm with pop bangers, swoon-worthy choreography and a razor-sharp exploration of toxic masculinity.

Ash. Ewan. Cody. Ruben. Together they are MAN!FEST, the hottest boyband on the planet. But as their fanbase matures and the threat of female empowerment looms, the cracks behind the manufactured perfection begin to show.

Caught between manipulative management, impossible public expectations and their own fragile identities, the group battles to survive the pressures of fame while maintaining the fantasy demanded by their screaming fans.

Blending high-energy musical theatre, drag performance and biting satire, MAN!FEST: THE DRAG BOYBAND MUSICAL examines the cultural machinery behind boybands and asks difficult questions about masculinity, celebrity and the ways young women are taught to consume both.

Show creators OnTheNose Productions said: 'We are incredibly excited to be taking our all-singing, all-dancing, and (most importantly) all-flexing boyband to Edinburgh to perform throughout the entirety of August for the Fringe! It's every awkward teenage girl's dream to have a boyband member as her boyfriend. We just took it to the next extreme; why date them when you can be them? I mean, who doesn't want to be in the world's biggest boyband?'

Hilarious, anarchic and unexpectedly moving, the production shines a spotlight on the toxic systems affecting both performers and fans alike.







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