Skip to content

FringeGuru

Home arrow How to choose a show arrow Embracing the weird
 
Embracing the weird

Finally, no round-up of show choices would be complete without a nod to the Festival's stranger side - that special blend of thespian energy and away-with-the-fairies imagination which you can only find on the Fringe. Year after year, Edinburgh throws up an array of performances which are innovative, distinctive, or just plain weird.

There's good weird and bad weird, of course, and it's not always easy to tell the difference in advance. Either way, though, you're at least guaranteed an experience - and with luck, a few anecdotes to take home.

Weird venues

Unusual venues
"No arts festival these days is complete without an event in a toilet, and Edinburgh never disappoints when it comes to finding even stranger places to present a play"
No arts festival these days is complete without an event in a toilet, and Edinburgh never disappoints when it comes to finding even stranger places to present a play. A parked-up bus, a lift, and a swimming pool have all featured in recent programmes.

An earlier fad for theatre in moving vehicles appears to have passed, but walking shows are as popular as ever - often with actors mingling among the audience as the play proceeds. Perhaps the most bizarre example of a travelling performance came in 2005, when audiences for one show were "abducted", blindfolded, and transported in a blacked-out van to a secret venue.

The grown-up version of all these antics is the site-specific performance, where a (relatively) serious piece of theatre is written to fit around a particular location. As well as being often very entertaining, site-specific performances sometimes offer a rare opportunity to see inside a building normally closed to the public.

Done well, a show in an unusual venue of any kind can make a memorable highlight for anyone's Fringe. The danger, of course, is that more attention has been paid to the location than to the performance - and more than one vaunted site-specific performance has turned out to be a disappointing, plotless, insubstantial wisp of a play. Check reviews, as always.

Weird shows

Even within the confines of a "normal" theatre, the Fringe offers the ideal environment for adventurous (and publicity-seeking) theatrical companies to give vent to their most fanciful concepts.

Unusual shows
"There's plenty of mildly unusual fare on offer from highly professional companies, where a striking and memorable experience is all but guaranteed"
The basic formula for an eye-catching show is simple. Take a familiar idea (Shakespeare, Chaucer, The Sound Of Music); devise the most outrageous gimmick you can think of (perform it backwards, suspend yourselves upside-down, do the whole thing in a bathtub); bolt the two together, and see how it comes out. If backed by talent, such ventures can be hilarious... but a giggle-inducing concept doesn't necessarily point to a fun-filled show, so this is one case where it's particularly important to check reviews before you commit yourself.

Shying away from the outright weird, there's plenty of mildly unusual fare on offer from highly professional companies, where a striking and memorable experience is all but guaranteed. A lot of it happens outdoors, amidst striking architecture such as Old College Quad, and with the Royal Botanic Garden and other gardens around Edinburgh opening up for often-magical twilight performances.

<< Awards

Edinburgh 2013

Coming to the Fringe this year?  We can help you make the most of your time.  Learn about Edinburgh's summer Festivals and plan your visit around the city's major events. 

Find out more >>