EDINBURGH 2025: Review: RUSSIAN ROULETTE, Bedlam Theatre

If you’re looking for absurdist comedy at this year's Fringe, then look no further! Fresh off his last play, another absurdist treat about a gibberish-talking Jellyfish-person and the repressive nature of traditional family values, Will Osbon returns with his latest show, Russian Roulette. 

Set in a strange world where two people, Franc and Kira, are placed in a room and tasked with playing all of the games (yes, all of them) in order to be able to leave. However, as the play begins, they can’t quite figure out what the last game is. They’ve played them all, or so they think.

The writer-star of the show reunites with Anya McChristie, the titular Jellyfish of Osbon’s last show. Setting up the world, their relationship, and their individual hopes to leave the room in one piece, the first act is admittedly a little slow, with a more blunt, dry sense of humour and a sense that much of the material is there to set things up as quickly as possible.

Despite this, Russian Roulette is a play that only gets better as it goes on, and once Franc and Kira find the gun, things become really interesting. Having been told they can leave once all the games have been played, neither character believes that the game of Russian roulette could cause any harm. Once they begin to play, though, and the click of the trigger grows louder and louder, the fear sets in. The performances from Osbon and McChristie are particularly strong here, with subtle glints into their panic from the physicality of their performances alone.

As the gun continues to be passed between the two, and there is still no winner in sight, the pair become increasingly frustrated, left clueless as to how they can finish this cruel experiment and as to who put them there in the first place. The existential questions that this raises are incredibly fascinating and handled well by Osbon’s writing, which is both open enough for interpretation and clear enough so that things feel concise in their allegory of existence and the questions we ask ourselves. 

It is the third act which is truly special, though. The play takes an unexpected turn, one which had been cleverly disguised by the wonderful chemistry between Osbon and McChristie, as well as their individual performances. A twist hidden in plain sight. Once it comes, the energy of the play shifts entirely, and the closing stretch is incredibly intense and a thrill to watch unfold. 

During this section, there are a series of exchanges and monologues from the two leads. One of which, from Osbon, in which he discusses his relationship with his father, will knock your socks off and is sure to be one of the best written and best acted scenes you are bound to see this Fringe.

Russian Roulette is a wonderful little play. It’s like if Chekhov's gun and Waiting For Godot had a baby, and the result is one hell of a ride, with thrills, chills and plenty of laughs to be had along the way. Osbon and McChristie prove to be a wonderful pairing yet again, and when that gun goes bang, you are sure to be in for one hell of a shock. 

Russian Roulette played at Bedlam Theatre until 25 August.

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