BEAUTIFUL EVIL THINGS Comes to Edinburgh in August

Told through the eyes of Medusa as she watches the battle of Troy, Ad Infinitum takes a look at the alternative stories of the most notorious women in Greek mythology in a show co-created and performed by long-term collaborator Deborah Pugh. A bodiless head on the goddess Athena’s shield, the snake-haired Medusa watches over the battle, focusing on queens and prophets whose stories have been distorted and dismissed. Casting Medusa as an archivist setting the record straight, history is retold with full nuance and colour as seen through a female gaze, and through the most powerful gaze in mythology. Told with the same high-energy physical storytelling as Ad Infinitum’s award-winning one-man Odyssey, their one-woman race through mythology is a fierce, funny take on some of the oldest stories known to woman. Beautiful Evil Things premiered at Tobacco Factory Theatres, Bristol in 2022.  

Co-creator and performer Deborah Pugh said, "The making of Beautiful Evil Things has been a great opportunity to scrutinise some well-worn classics and thoroughly interrogate their familiar telling and translations. When the much maligned Medusa, monstrous social outcast, throws her infamous gaze across the events of the Trojan War she sees things a little differently. She has little time for gods and heroes, having fallen foul of them both. Instead, she's drawn to the excluded, the ignored and the demonised, unearthing and reframing the tales of some truly phenomenal ancient wonder women; each as flawed, fearless and front-footed as their male counterparts, each stood strong and centre in their own story."  

Ad Infinitum is a multi-award-winning, internationally acclaimed theatre company. They collaborate to tell stories, play and disrupt. They work with artists, activists and communities to create transformative theatre, revolutionise audiences and change the world. Founded in 2007, Ad Infinitum is based in Bristol and works internationally. Ad Infinitum is proud to be Associate Artist at Bristol Old Vic and The North Wall, and a member of the Cultural Governance Alliance (CGA). Previous shows at Edinburgh Festival Fringe include Odyssey, Translunar Paradise, Bucket List and No Kids. 

Running Time: 75 mins | Suitable for ages 12+ 

Captioned and BSL performances available 

Company information 

Co-created by Deborah Pugh and George MannDirected by George Mann 

Performed and Co-Composed by Deborah Pugh 

Set and costume design by Katie SykesSound design and co-composed by Sam Halmarack  

Lighting design by Ali HunterDramaturgy by Nir Paldi  

Associate directed by Megan Vaughan ThomasProduction manager Ethan Hudson 

Open Captions by Claire HillBSL Interpreter Kyra Pollitt 

BSL Consultants Mary-Jayne Russell de Clifford & Lynn Stewart Taylor 

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