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The Brighton Fringe is here again!  Running throughout May, England's largest arts gathering is going from strength to strength, drawing together the city's already-vibrant cultural scene and cementing its position among the leading Festivals of the world.  Informal and manageable, all events are within easy striking distance of London - or if you're coming from further afield, Gatwick's a short train ride away.

The Brighton Fringe is four weeks long this year.  In a change from previous festivals, events run from 4 May right through to 2 June - taking in both May's bank holidays, as well as school half-term.



 
Buddhism: Is it just for Losers?
Published on Wednesday, 12 June 2013
4

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4 stars

The Nightingale (venue website)
Theatre
30-31 May, 1 Jun, 9:00pm-9:40pm
Reviewed by Mathilda Gregory

 World Premiere.
 Warning: Contains strong language.

Matt Rudkin’s delightful little show – packed with low-fi props and silly-yet-clever ideas – had its audience in joyful fits before it had even properly begun. Two earnest young men, dressed in white shirts and black ties, aim to arrange the seating so that tall people are at the back and smaller ones at the front. When their system falls apart, the frustration is delicious. And their continued interplay, supposedly setting up the show, is genuinely and twistedly hilarious.

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The Silent Movie Experience
Published on Thursday, 06 June 2013
3

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3 stars

The Old Courtroom (venue website)
Events
12, 19, 26 May, 3:00pm-4:00pm
Reviewed by Richard Stamp

 Warning: Contains flashing lights.
 Family-friendly. Suitable for all ages.

In the suitably retro setting of The Old Courtroom, West End musician David Watts treats us to a family-friendly showing of Charlie Chaplain’s 1916 film Behind The Screen – which he accompanies on a keyboard and a percussion set, recruiting eager young volunteers from the audience to fill additional instrumental roles. Famed (as I now know) as the first appearance of the custard-pie fight on celluloid, this energetic movie is enhanced by Watts’ madcap soundtrack, which he skilfully synchronises in a live performance that’s both visually engaging and tunefully fine.

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The Revenge Fantasy Club
Published on Thursday, 06 June 2013
3

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3 stars

Metrodeco (venue website)
Theatre
4-8, 12 May, 7:30pm-8:30pm
Reviewed by Richard Stamp

 Warning: Contains strong language.
 Suitable for age 16+ only.

You know that old chestnut about a woman scorned? It forms the premise of The Revenge Fantasy Club, which sees two angry women – Bridget and Shelley – meet at a corner table in the Metrodeco café, to plan revenge on their mutual one-time paramour James. The banter’s witty and the performances are strong, though I felt the play would benefit from little more substance and darkness to its plot.

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Jewel
Published on Sunday, 02 June 2013
5

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5 stars

Marlborough Theatre (venue website)
Theatre
30 May, 7:30pm-8:30pm; 31 May, 1-2 Jun, 6:00pm-7:00pm
Reviewed by Mathilda Gregory

 World Premiere.
 Suitable for age 16+ only.

Claudia Jeffries – in make up that’s on the border between The Only Way is Essex and full-clown – crab-walks onto the Marlborough stage, listing to one side like a broken doll. As we take in her plastic smile and her stained, torn tutu, she comes closer, walking like a toddler. Then she goes back offstage does it again. To nervous laughter, Jeffries announces “I’m Jewel; I’m entering a beauty pageant. If I don’t win, I’m going to be upset.” And we’re off to another place.

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The Trials of Harvey Matusow
Published on Friday, 31 May 2013
5

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5 stars

Emporium Theatre (venue website)
Theatre
Run ended
Reviewed by Ben Aitken

If writer-actor-virtuoso Robert Cohen had spent a month telling the story of a New York Jew who dobbed in his Communist pals to the FBI, it would have been absolutely fine by me.

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The Cow Play
Published on Friday, 31 May 2013
3

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3 stars

The Warren (venue website)
Theatre
25-27 May, 5:45pm-7:05pm
Reviewed by Darren Taffinder

 Warning: Contains strong language.
 Suitable for age 16+ only.

The Cow Play is not the best title, but don't let that put you off. It's quite a thought-provoking show on the effects of depression, with a lot of promise. As it stands, it's not clicking together as well as it could; but it's almost there. You can see the potential and this is a young company to watch.

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Puddles
Published on Wednesday, 29 May 2013
5

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5 stars

Upstairs at Three and Ten (venue website)
Theatre
27, 31 May, 5:00pm-5:45pm; 29-30 May, 8:30pm-9:15pm
Reviewed by Ben Aitken

 Warning: Contains strong language.
 World Premiere.
 Parental Guidance. Under-17's must be accompanied by an adult.

Puddles is an unusual romance which sees two quirky call-centre workers grow beautifully together, one afternoon when the phones go down. The script is a burst of brave poetry, the acting is deft and joyous – the production is a must-see.

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Absence
Published on Wednesday, 29 May 2013
2

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2 stars

Upstairs at Three and Ten (venue website)
Theatre
27 May, 1-2 Jun, 3:00pm-4:00pm
Reviewed by Ben Aitken

 Warning: Contains strong language.
 World Premiere.
 Parental Guidance. Under-17's must be accompanied by an adult.

Does absence make the heart grow fonder, or fill it with fear and loathing? Tim Cook’s new play presents two couples in a café in an attempt to answer this question – but it’s an effort which ultimately suffers at the hands of a somewhat thoughtless production.

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