SCOTLAND THEATER REVIEWS

Tartan Tabletop is a Dungeons and Dragons panel show which thrives on live comedic improvisation, uncertainty and risks, which results in riotous game play. By merging the world of fantasy role-play with quick-fire wit, Dungeon Master Josh Aitken steers the action by narrating the story, setting ch...

Written and Performed by Lizzie T Ollemache and David Ladderman from Rollicking Entertainment, a riot of magic, slapstick and sparkle is brought to the stage with Messy Magic, a family show which manages to be silly, but skilful. With a recommended age of three and above, the performance has clearl...

The winner of the 2025 Sir Billy Connolly Spirit of Glasgow Award, Rosco McClelland brings his brand new show for 2025. Twice nominated for Best Newcomer at the Scottish Comedy Awards, McClelland is rapidly becoming one of comedy's brightest stars. His previous show was hailed as one of the best-rev...

Sex, drugs and coercive control... Jackie! is a new musical comedy that follows the young Jacqueline Bouvier as she dreams of becoming the first American Royal. After marrying into the illustrious Kennedy dynasty, Jackie discovers that power and notoriety come with the price of secrecy and silence. ...

The King is dead and the Prince is unmarried – if he doesn't find someone soon, he must forfeit the crown! In NYC, baker Aaron Butcher is butchering his career as a family baker. Maybe a commission in the non-location-specific country of Swedonia will fix his problems......

After spending her formative years trying to be 'not like other girls', Sarah Bradley is celebrating all things feminine – from rosé to romance novels, horoscopes to hot celebrities, inconvenient crushes to crying at inconvenient times. Whatever your gender, you are warmly invited to leave shame,...

With prisons rarely out of the news, Insiders gives insight into the challenges of life in jail. Danny struggles with anger and isolation. Craig thanks his newfound faith for his recovery. Middle-class Richard is a fish out of water. When tragic news upsets the rhythm of their lives, each must confr...

There is nothing quite like the delicious mix of chaos and charm that Josh Burton brings to his gleeful children’s show Signor Baffo. In this riotous kitchen, the audience finds themselves whisked into the clattering, splattering world of a hapless head of washing up who has somehow been left in ...

Goldspun Media’s Level Up! begins with a promising burst of nostalgic energy. The familiar chimes of Sonic the Hedgehog’s theme and screen visuals give the impression that the audience is in for a sharp, inventive musical about modern life refracted through the lens of gaming. Unfortunately, w...

Adulting Hard! is an energetic stand-up show where Irish comedian Danny O’Brien tells us about his attempts at buying a house in Dublin. It’s a fast-paced set and full of brilliant laugh-out-loud moments....

Caroline McEvoy: Train Man is an honest yet lively stand-up show at the Fringe this year. The show shares the story of Caroline’s younger brother who has autism. He loved trains growing up and even had a successful YouTube channel dedicated to them....

Described by its creator as “50 minutes of vegetable insanity”, this surrealist and entirely enjoyable hour of physical theatre, tragicomedy and puppetry has a certain ‘je nais sais quoi’... or is it giardiniera? Ruxy Cantir brings this zany, piccalilli performance to Summerhall as part of t...

An entire sketch comedy show based around real-life graffiti scrawled in toilet cubicles is the sort of premise you could only ever wish to come up with. Unfortunately, for any other sketch comedy groups looking for a good show idea, The Manchester Revue beat you to it. Though I’m sure audiences a...

An amazing show all round, Guys Sing Dolls, a cabaret style concert, was expertly executed. Four incredible voices blended in perfect harmonies through a selection of well-loved musical theatre songs. There is no plot per se, but the comedic timing with which the singers wove the pieces together kep...

From the moment Ted Milligan strides on to the stage to the roar of football anthems, the atmosphere is electric. His debut hour, United, is a masterclass in character-led mockumentary, charting the fortunes of the fictional Crubchester United F.C. affectionately known as the Crubs, as they battle ...

In her debut hour, Sharon Wanjohi strides on stage with dynamic energy on a mission to share her comedic mock wisdom. Wanjohi takes aim at the self-help industry, with the precision of someone who finds the guides, and early risers beyond questionable. ...

From the creators of Hold On To Your Butts, Recent Cutbacks return with a gloriously inventive UK premiere which transforms an epic fantasy film into a joyous, lo fi theatrical romp. This is not simply a parody but a love letter to the genre, brimming with clever theatrical tricks and affection for ...

Front Room Productions and Lawrence Batley Theatre present The Uncrackable Case, a courtroom drama which reimagines fairy tale characters in a tabloid-fuelled whodunnit. Humpty Dumpty has fallen from the Death Wall, and Jill is accused of egg-icide in a trial which grips a nation eager for scandal....

Dear Annie, I Hate You is a visceral, captivating account of survival which fuses raw storytelling with inventive theatricality. Written and performed by Samantha Ipema, this semi-autobiographical work confronts the life-altering impact of a brain aneurysm diagnosis at the age of twenty, crafting a...

Dystopian, semi-autobiographical solo show Is There Work On Mars? returns to the Edinburgh Fringe following a successful 2024 run. Multi-disciplinary artist Faye Yan opens the show in a testing lab where she undergoes a series of bleep tests, personality assessments and interview questions in her en...

What did our critic think of EDINBURGH DAYS at St Bride's Centre?...

Jacob Nussey makes his Fringe debut with his stand-up show Primed where he shares stories from his time working at Amazon. With impeccable deadpan delivery that will have the audience in constant laughter, this is a standout set at this year's Fringe....

After years of writing for Michael Che and Colin Jost on Saturday Night Live, KC Shornima proves that some of her greatest material comes from writing for herself....

Chloe Petts love of Big Naturals, regales with a bold and brilliantly crafted hour, in which she tackles her favourite body parts, questions her previously entrenched relationship with lad culture and inspects her own evolving identity....

In her triumphant return to the Fringe, Amy Annette brings Busy Body to The Baby Grand, a shipping container transformed into an intimate comedy boudoir, complete with a floral display and the nostalgic welcoming harmonies of The Andrews Sisters...