Photos: The Cast of Edinburgh Fringe Show CLASSIC! Visits National Library of Scotland
The show can be seen daily at Pleasance One in the Courtyard at 14.40 until 29 August.
By: Stephi Wild
The cast of Edinburgh Fringe show Classic! enjoyed a visit to The National Library of Scotland this week. The show sees the cast perform 42 classic novels in 60 minutes. The library holds many rare first editions of books that are featured in the show as well as handwritten letters by Jane Austen and Robert Louis Stevenson.
In the pictures cast members Louis Blair, Althea Burey, Amy Gavin, Robin Simpson and Gareth Tempest can be seen examining the rare books and letters. The Library, on George IV Bridge in Edinburgh's old town, owns countless literary treasures and artefacts
Classic! is the debut Fringe show from Manchester's Award-winning Hope Mill Theatre. The comic play sees a cast of six race through a multitude of classic novels in 60 minutes. At lightning speed and utilising multiple costume changes, Classic! races its audience from Black Beauty to Wuthering Heights via Moby Dick, Treasure Island, and many, many more ...
The show can be seen daily at Pleasance One in the Courtyard at 14.40 until 29 August https://www.pleasance.co.uk/event/classic#overview
It features a thrilling script by Coronation St and Emmerdale writers Lindsay Williams and Peter Kerry combined with direction from actor and director Joyce Branagh (recently seen in Oscar winning film Belfast directed by her brother Kenneth) and results in a brilliantly funny show for everyone.
Classic! is set around a group of actors coming together to break a record for the most novels ever shared on stage. In doing that, they share the stories in extremely unexpected ways: Moby Dick becomes a sea shanty, Jane Eyre is a silent movie, Oliver Twist is a film noir and Black Beauty a pantomime... and that's just scratching the surface!
The show features music by Louis Ashton Butler and musical direction from Joe Clayton and features a brilliant cast comprising of Louis Blair, Althea Burey, Amy Drake, Amy Gavin, Robin Simpson and Gareth Tempest.
Joyce Branagh said 'The script is hilarious - really snappy - and we've got a great bunch of experienced comedy actors, so the whole thing is very VERY silly. Emily Bronte, Charles Dickens et al will be disco-dancing in their graves!'
Hope Mill Theatre was founded in Manchester by Joseph Houston and William Whelton in 2015. Since then it has firmly placed itself on the northern map for its ambitious in-house productions including UK, European and World premieres, many of which have transferred to London and toured. Their 2021 revival of RENT received rave reviews from critics and audiences alike and won the What's On Stage Award for Best Regional Production.
The National Library of Scotland is open to the public Monday to Saturday, check www.nls.uk for times.
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