Fringe review: YOU ARE GOING TO DIE, Adam Scott-Rowley - Edinburgh Festival Fringe

Photo credit: Ryan Buchanan

You Are Going To Die by Adam Scott-Rowley is advertised as a “nail-biting descent into existential anxiety”. If this is the goal of the piece, then it certainly achieves it.  The show is disturbing to watch and is an attack on the senses. There is no clear storyline or character, is over the top and contains vulgar impersonations of an old woman and a gay man. The portrayals are ridden with cliches such as walking hunched over in a quite husky voice as the old woman. One isn’t sure what the motivation is behind deciding to perform fully nude, but it fits in with the shock factors that the show is dominated by, such as an overbearing soundtrack, flashing strobe lights, and for some reason, there is a toilet on the stage. 

Adam Scott-Rowley can certainly hold the audience’s attention and maintains a strong atmosphere as a performer. The let-down of the show is the lack of exploration on the themes, which it sets out to explore: the human experience, mortality and dread. Rather, it is filled with visually and aurally overbearing sequences which don’t achieve much beyond unnerving its audience.

** Two stars

Reviewed by: Viv Williams

You Are Going To Die plays in the Old Lab at Summerhall at 8.50pm until 27 August.