THIS IS HOW I GOT ARRESTED to Play Edinburgh Fringe at ZOO Playground
Written and performed by Azaelia Slade, the solo show is directed by Jess Gough.
This Is How I Got Arrested (after smuggling drugs across the border but never actually getting caught with any drugs) will come to Edinburgh Fringe. Performances will run at ZOO (Playground 3), High School Yard, Edinburgh, EH1 1LZ, Friday 7th - Sunday 30th August 2026, 19:40.
Written, performed and produced by Azaelia Slade, This Is How I Got Arrested (after smuggling drugs across the border but never actually getting caught with any drugs), is a raw, funny and unflinching exploration of working-class life. Told against the pressure of a ticking clock, lies unravel, truths emerge and mischief escalates into madness. It is an urgent look at working-class youth, sensation seeking and the people behind the headlines, challenging the assumptions we make about those whose stories are so often reduced to stereotypes.
At the centre is Sophie, a witty and thick-skinned young woman whose search for belonging, excitement and escape leads her down increasingly dangerous paths. A working-class youngster who takes "girls just want to have fun" a little too far, Sophie presents different versions of herself depending on who is watching, from Barbie doll to boxer. Beneath the façade lies a fractured home life she is desperate to hide. As parties, drugs and distractions become coping mechanisms, the perfect image she has constructed begins to unravel, revealing the cost of performing perfection in an imperfect world.
Drawing on her own lived experience, Slade, who found refuge in performance from an early age, has created a character who feels authentic and recognisable. Directed by Jess Gough, the show combines humour, misdirection and sharp storytelling to tackle serious themes with honesty and heart.
Azaelia Slade comments, I’m fed up of people claiming they are working class when they are not, everyone should be proud of who they are and their background, stop trying to be something you’re not because it’s cool or current. This is my first ever produced solo play, and after a 2 and a half year battle, it’s nearly exactly where I want it to be. People have always doubted me, but tables are turning and I’m finally starting to be taken seriously as an artist. Being estranged from my family for several years had a big impact on my life and is some root of ‘Sophie’s’ problems. I have spent every day working on this play, I have put all of my effort and pennies into making this possible. This is about telling it how it really is, not how people want it to sound.
The show is a darkly funny ride through truth, the play resists easy answers. Rather than offering certainty, it invites audiences into a world of contradictions, half-truths and unanswered questions, leaving them to navigate the space between what is revealed and what remains unsaid.
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