AETHER Will Explore Dark Matter and Mystery at Edinburgh Fringe 2025
TheatreGoose’s latest work, directed by Emma Howlett, runs July 31 to August 25 at Summerhall.
TheatreGoose will bring its third original production, AETHER, to the 2025 Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Running from July 31 to August 25 (excluding August 11 and 18), the production will play Summerhall’s Anatomy Lecture Theatre nightly at 7:15 PM.
Written and directed by Emma Howlett, AETHER interweaves particle physics, Victorian séance, and existential inquiry into a mysterious, multidisciplinary work propelled by spectacle and scientific wonder. Part lab, part ghost story, and part rogue Nobel Prize ceremony, the show stars an ensemble of characters—a disillusioned illusionist, a murdered mathematician, a reluctant medium, and an obsessive PhD student—as they collectively confront the unknowable.
Inspired by the work of astrophysicist Vera Rubin, AETHER is a meditation on the 95% of the universe we cannot observe or define. It explores the intersection of belief and scientific discovery, and the too-often-erased stories of women in STEM. The production was developed in consultation with scientists at Oxford, Cambridge, Edinburgh, and Stanford, and supported by the Hugo Burge Foundation New Theatre Writing Residency and a John Fernald Award from the Equity Charitable Trust.
Ticketing Information
AETHER runs July 31 through August 25 (not August 11 or 18) at Summerhall, Anatomy Lecture Theatre. Performances begin at 7:15 PM and run 60 minutes. Tickets start at £10.00.
Cast and Creative Team
Written and directed by Emma Howlett, AETHER features design by Ellie Wintour, lighting by Ed Saunders, sound and original composition by Sarah Spencer, and dramaturgy by Sophie Kean.
TheatreGoose is a UK-based company focused on immersive, design-driven storytelling. Previous Fringe hits include Her Green Hell and Sisters Three, both met with critical acclaim and award recognition.
|
Antigone 1989: A Town Hall Musical Gilded Balloon Patter House (8/05-8/29) |
|
Elvis in Chaos Lime Studio at Greenside @ George Street (8/07-8/15) |
|
Helen Bradley: Painter and Storyteller Pleasance Courtyard (Cellar) (8/05-8/30) |
|
15 Minutes of Shame ZOO (Playground 2) (8/07-8/30) |
|
Kevin Quantum: Invisible Force Ballroom at Assembly Rooms (Venue 20) (8/06-8/30) |
|
Jitters Summerhall (Old Lab) (8/06-8/30) |
|
The Second Best School Shooting Pleasance Courtyard (8/05-8/30) |
|
Black Blues Brothers: Let's Twist Again! Underbelly (8/05-8/31) |
|
Puck Bunnies: A Heated Rivalry Drag Musical Parody Puck Bunnies: A Heated Rivalry Drag Musical Parody (8/05-8/31) |
|
They’re Just Small Town (Northern) Lads Summerhall (Anatomy Lecture Theatre) (8/06-8/16) |









