EDINBURGH 2026: Review: BADGERS, Traverse Theatre
Badgers is at the Traverse Theatre until 30 August
Badgers is a play about folk tales, written by Malaika Kegode and directed by Jenny Davies.
Meles (Kegode) is a podcaster, living in the shadow of her mother, who is an award-winning journalist. She single-handedly raised two children while breaking the glass ceiling but now she’s dying. Meles wants to achieve something great herself and digs into a cold case for her podcast.
Ten years ago, a musician called Ben disappeared without a trace. He lived with a reclusive older woman called Bridget, and there has always been suspicion surrounding her but no evidence of wrongdoing.
Meles decides to investigate the case and she discovers a lot of folklore surrounding badgers. Bridget has a connection to the animals and implies that Ben has now become a badger. There’s some pretty weird spooky stuff and some genuinely thrilling moments when Meles explicitly goes against Bridget’s wishes.
Badgers poses some good questions about who has the right to tell which stories. Joe Williams and Beth Roberts provide the music for the piece and it sounds great but with underwhelming visuals, it feels as though it would rather be an audio play.
Badgers is a unique and, at times, genuinely exciting play, but it struggles to maintain the pace for the full duration.
Photo credit: Paul Blakemore
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