Pleasance to still bring the Fringe to Edingburgh this summer

Pleasance will return to Edinburgh this August alongside their recently announced London season. Coming to Pleasance Courtyard will be the best of theatre, comedy, magic and family shows. There will also be a selection of shows available on online for audiences to enjoy wherever they can get Wi-Fi connection.

Pleasance are dedicated to supporting innovative and emerging artists through their development. The recipient of Pleasance’s Charlie Hartill Theatre Reserve is entitled ‘Screen 9’ and documents through verbatim theatre the Colorado premiere of The Dark Knight Rises which was torn apart by gun crime. It explores the remarkable ways in which the survivors responded and recovered to the tragedy.

Playing in both London and Edinburgh will be the inaugural recipient of the Charlie Hartill Development Fund for Artists of Colour. Entitled ‘Patricia Gets Ready (for a date with the man who used to hit her) it is a powerful piece which follows Patricia as she gets ready for her date and a honest look at her future with stories of how her past has affected her present.

Before it heads to Pleasance London ‘The Importance of Being…Earnest?’ will take to the stage with a twist where audience participation will be needed when cast members begin to mysteriously drop out.

Also returning to the Fringe this year will be some favourites in the shape of multi-award winning NewsRevue in which four outstanding performers will transform a year of doomscrolling into joy viewing at lightning speed accompanied by an on-stage musical director.

All 236 episodes of ‘Friends’ is to be re-told from Gunther’s perspective in ‘Friend (The One With Gunther) , mind-melting magic is to be performed by Paul Atchinson best known for his sketch act Mixed Doubles and singer pianist Jeremy Sassoon’s MOJO will journey through hits by George Gershwin, Amy Winehouse and Bob Dylan.

Family fun will be returning to Edinburgh in the shape of ‘Pippi Longstockings’, and storytelling and music will be combined in Will Pickvance’s ‘First Piano on the Moon’. Biographicals will be a feature with Richard Shelton’s ‘Sinatra: Raw’ revealing the man behind the music, with Francis Bacon’s life also being explored in ‘Bacon’ by Pip Utton.

Fringe First winner Apphia Campbell will present ‘Black is the Color of My Voice’ inspired by Nina Simone and her first award-winning Fringe show ‘Woke’ with stunning gospel and blues sung live.

It may be a reduced festival but, there is still plenty on the programme to enjoy including ‘SKANK’ a funny, dark and filthy piece which follows Kate who could be a successful writer if only she concentrated and stopped obsessing over her untimely death. Further shows are to be announced.

Alongside the Fringe there will be a host of unmissable online content to enjoy including Rob Wards ‘Conversations’ which sees battle lines drawn in the fight for equality, along with part-theatre, part-stand up comedy show ‘In One Eye, Out The Other’ and tells the story of Feargal the downtrodden but cheery man who fulfilled his lifelong dream of becoming an alcoholic.