#Review By Lou of A Room of One’s Own #FringeReview @edfringe #FringeEdin #WhatsonEdi #Edinburgh #Fringe #EdinburghFringe Venue 105 @fringeatpfield

A Room Of One’s Own

Original Text by Virgina Woolf
Stage Play Adaptation By Dyad Productions

The Fringe at Prestonfield – Marquee 2pm – 1hr 5mins

A Room of One’s Own, originally written by Virginia Woolf, performed with gusto and passion by Rebecca Vaughan of Dyad Productions in the marquee in the grounds of Prestonfield House is powerful and in many ways, inspiring. Check out the synopsis and the rest of my review below.

Synopsis

Award-winning Dyad Productions (Lady Susan, I, Elizabeth, Female Gothic, Austen’s Women) return with a 21st century take on Virginia Woolf’s blisteringly brilliant pre-TED talk. Take an amusing and incisive trip through the history of literature, feminism and gender. Meet Charlotte Brontë, Jane Austen, Aphra Behn, and Shakespeare’s sister, Judith! Introducing a different way to look at creativity, it even comments on what life will be like in the 2020s! Come and be amused, challenged and changed. Rebecca Vaughan performs Woolf’s 1928 exploration of the impact of poverty and sexual inequality on intellectual freedom and creativity.

Review

A Room Of One’s Own is all you need to create is what Virginia Woolf’s works tells us. A room, however big or small and mind-space. It’s inspiring! It’s humble and one of the most inspiring things I’ve ever heard, in the world that we live in today, that seems to concentrate on vying for university places, of perhaps not belonging to the “right class”, it’s inspirational and says anyone can create something, no matter what class you come from. So, that’s the overriding message that remains with me.

There’s a bit of a history lesson in this too about the arts, especially writing in-terms of female writing. It’s well-constructed and adds in some well-known modern writers too, so it becomes a piece that bridges the past with the present. It has short moments of being dry, hence not quite the 5 stars, but on the whole, it holds a great amount of attention and is a compelling watch as it shows the journey of how far feminism has come, how far women have come in pushing the boundaries and writing what’s in their heads and being published.

It’s a great play to watch in a beautiful setting, whether you’ve read the book before or not. It’ll make your heart “sing”.

Dyad Productions also have other plays coming soon, such as a Christmas Carol to look out for.

https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/room-of-one-s-own

#Interview By Lou with Just The Tonic’s Darrell Martin – Time To Celebrate Just The Tonic 20 Years At The Edinburgh Fringe Festival @Justthetonic @EdFringe #UnleashYourFringe #EdFringe2024 #Fringe #Comedy #Theatre @aDarrellMartin

Please join me in celebrating 20 years of Just The Tonic at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
I have had the absolute pleasure and privilege of interviewing the founder of Just the Tonic Comedy Club, Darrell Martin. The club started in 1994 in Nottingham and expanded its venues across the UK. What he has to say is fascinating and will take you places you perhaps don’t expect as he provides answers that are a real eye-opener, including tickets on sale now…

1. How does it feel celebrating 20 years at the Edinburgh Fringe?

It feels weary. I have aged way beyond my years. All this laughing at shows has taken it’s toll. My face aches, as does my belly. Especially this year, what with the addition of celebrating.

2. Who were your early mentors and fave comedians

I had no mentors. I was a lonely promoter in the East Midlands. We were like an outback for comedy. Anyone I trusted as a mentor turned out to be yet another shark on the look out for young blood to devour. Trust no one. Favourite comedians have been Phil Kay, Johnny Vegas, Sean Lock, Ross Noble, Spencer Jones.

3. You like giving new talent a platform – do you have any future plans to help young comedians?

Nothing concrete planned. We are discussing this as a group at the moment, but Edfringe has come along and swept away all time and energy.

4. You are hosting Connor Burns this year who is doing really well. Would you like to see more Scottish comedians on the JTT programme? Is that important to you? Any plans to run more comedy nights in Edinburgh throughout the year?

Connor is ACE! A really fresh face for comedy,. A young comic that is able to appeal across the generations. Really great for club gigs and solo shows. We run a monthly gig in Edinburgh at the moment but are looking to expand on that. As I am now based in Edinburgh I am more aware of Scottish acts and we make it a policy to try and be booking Scottish acts into our Edinburgh shows, and then exporting them south. Our next gig is Susie McCabe on 5th October… tickets on sale NOW!

5. How do you put your own curated / compilation JTT branded shows together – does that happen before the Fringe or do you go to see shows during the Fringe, or do people approach you?

The Big Value Comedy Show is a long process to programme. But Comedy in the Dark is sort of half done before the festival starts and then filled in on the hoof during the festival., Often when bumping into people and remembering you have gaps to fill!

6. How do you programme Just The Tonic? Do people apply, do you choose your own shows, or a mix? What influences your final decision in overall programme.

We have a number of people that just keep coming back. That is growing each year., We have people that we actively seek out, and we also respond to applications. At present it is just myself doing it, but we are looking to bring someone new in for next year to help. What with my diminishing hearing, my poor vision and my failing sense of humour, my gout and lack of memory and foul odour, it is becoming increasingly difficult to keep abreast of the changing tide of the comedy and arts scene.

7. What are the biggest challenges and what excites you running venues at the Fringe? Any stories for this year in particular?

This year has been a challenge because we have a new management team. But it has worked out so well. We have learnt a lot, but overall we have succeeded as a team. It is difficult to say what excites me about running venues because I am in the middle of it and it feels like a real slog. But it is calming down and we are now able to see shows. The exciting this is when we have shows on that the public love, and they show that by coming in droves and then the performers are caught in a surprise bubble of success. It feels like a privilege to host things like this. I genuinely enjoy peoples success. No real stories this year., so far. Aren’t I dull.

8. Mental health is a big issue at the Fringe. How do you cope with the challenges and demands, and deal with the performers who might be going through a hard time? And what do you do yourself to stay calm?

The fringe can be really demanding, mentally. It is a long slog, and people are investing time and money into it. And often they are pinning a lot on it. Yes… it is a rollercoaster.

I cope by not having the 1st drink.

For further reading about Just The Tonic to discover more, please check this link out here from an earlier blog post featuring the venues and a Just The Tonic link to what’s on in Edinburgh and one for around the UK.

https://bookmarksandstages.home.blog/2024/07/15/time-to-celebrate-just-the-tonic-20-years-at-the-edinburgh-fringe-festival-justthetonic-edfringe-unleashyourfringe-edfringe2024-comedy-theatre-adarrellmartin/

What’s on in Edinburgh at Just the Tonic

https://edinburgh.justthetonic.com

What’s on around the UK at Just the Tonic Venues

https://www.justthetonic.com/

#Review By Lou of Murder at the Speakeasy. Get your 1920s fashions on and solve a murder #EdFringe #UnleashYourFringe Venue 241

Murder at the Speakeasy

Royal Scots Club 7:30pm (2hrs)

Review by Louise Cannon

I attended Murder at the Speakeasy at the Royal Scot’s Club and it’s one of the most immersive/interactive shows I’ve seen. The audience become 1920’s crime solving flappers. Take a look at the synopsis and then my review below for more about it.

1926. Prohibition is in full swing, but you can still get a drink if you know where to look. Join the party at the illegal speakeasy run by notorious British crime duo the Fisher sisters and meet their ragtag collection of staff and regulars. Witness fights, rivalries and wrongdoings aplenty and, when the inevitable happens, follow the clues and interrogate the suspects to work out whodunnit.

Get dressed in 1920s style clothes and accessories. Get a clue to find who you need to take down to what feels like the bowels of the Royal Scot’s Club. Then get another clue and solve it to get the password to enter The Speakeasy which has circular tables and people mingling. The tables are not empty. There are newspaper cuttings with news stories of disappearances. The cast play out scenes and then mingle with the tables where you can question them to try to gain knowledge to piece together to work out who went as far as committing a murder. Part way through, also have fun learning to dance the Charleston and hear some singing from the era.

It’s great fun and so unique. I didn’t know how much was going to be interactive and it turned out everything was. It was an amazing atmosphere of total strangers talking to each other and complimenting each other’s outfits as well as trying to solve the crime together. It was just so different and definitely worth doing. You’re totally transported to another era and it was fun that most people did actually dress in 1920’s attire for this fully immersive experience.

#Interview By Lou With Elizabeth Colarte about As Good As It Gets @edfringe #FringeEdin #WhatsonEdi #Edinburgh #Fringe #Edinburgh #TheatreReview #UnleashYourFringe Venue 336

Interview conducted by Louise Cannon with Elizabeth Colarte
about her World Premier of As Good As It Gets

Greenside @ George Street in the Mint Studio.

Welcome Elizabeth Colarte to Bookmarks and Stages as she talks about her new play, As Good As It Gets. It’s suitable for 18+ so quite different from that famous film, which is mentioned later. She talks about her inspiration, the unflinching nature of the piece and much more… at the end there is a link for how you can see the show. First onto the synopsis and then let’s start the interview.

In her brand-new solo show, As Good as It Gets, Elizabeth Colarte plays a shameless woman desperate for any excitement in her everyday life. In her bloodthirsty hunt for the high life, she keeps things fresh with a new job every day, spends her time skulking around older people to feel special, and unintentionally starts a whorehouse or two. Through sardonic humor and fast-paced scenes, we watch the threads of her life unravel. As Good as It Gets is an unflinching tale of our spoiled youth and what we lose when we can’t be satisfied.

1. What inspired your title As Good As It Gets?

One night I was riding home on the train with a good friend of mine, and we were both joking about what the show could be called. We came up with at least a dozen before he said, “Well. That’s as good as it almost gets!” I laughed and then immediately stopped because it had summarized what I was feeling for the show. As time went on, it only made more sense since the play is framed by a lot of famous movies. I don’t know if you know, but this isn’t the first time this little title is being used.

2. What can people expect from your show and are you touring it anywhere else?

The show has sharp vignettes, relatable embarrassment, and a character who cares about the things that she falls short with. There is a possibility of it transferring to New York in the coming year.

3. What does As Good As It Gets mean to you, what for you is the “high life”?

The meaning of the “high life” has transformed for me through the writing and performing of this play, which is also what I’d say the show means to me. Changing perspectives is pretty much the point of making art in the first place. And to change your own through something you made is the best outcome I could’ve asked for.

4. The character you’ve created has a different job everyday, what job would you be doing if it wasn’t creating/performing in plays?

I think I’d be a doctor. Or a teacher. Or a dedicated worker on a family run lemon farm in Italy.

5. You say it’s an “unflinching tale of spoiled youth and what we lose when we can’t be satisfied”, it sounds a bit of a cautionary tale there, what do you reckon the youth lose, do you think that can come back or how the youth can try to prevent themselves from losing something of themselves in the first place?

That’s such an exciting question. My interest in the show is that there is something in youth that tows the line of entitled and idyllic. There’s a part of us all when we’re young that wants life to be HUGE, we want to be the hero, to experience every single thing that life has to offer us. And I think that’s a noble and beautiful part of being young. The problem is when that feeling blocks us from being able to take things as they really are, which can feel ordinary, tedious and boring. I don’t know exactly how the youth should balance these two wolves, since I think it’s a natural impulse that is actually quite honorable. But I’m seeing that in order to live in the world, we have to be able to really sit with the silence and fear inside of the mundane.

6. What do you hope people will take away from your play?

I hope people go home and kiss their wives hard on the mouth. I hope they hold each other’s hands and call their Moms.

7. As Good As It Gets is a solo play. What insight can you give into what it feels like being on stage with no other cast around?

It’s a completely singular experience. You have to do the legwork of reacting off of yourself, relying on yourself and trusting the work that you’ve put in to be up there with you. I found it really helpful to commune with other solo performers.

8. What is the fun side and the challenging side of putting on a show at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival?

The fun side is the same as the challenging side. It’s the putting yourself out there, over and over again. It takes a lot of guts to bring a show to the fringe, to hand your flyer to someone, and to go up and talk to someone after. But that’s what makes it great.

Tickets and further details here:
https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/as-good-as-it-gets

#Review By Lou of Squidge @whitenoiseth @edfringe #FringeEdin #WhatsonEdi #Edinburgh #Fringe #Edinburgh #TheatreReview #UnleashYourFringe Venue 33

Squidge
Performed By Tiggy
By White Noise Theatre

Pleasance Courtyard 1:50pm (1hr)

Review by Louise

Firstly it is worth noting that Squidge is shortlisted for the Popcorn Award 2024. This is a big deal at the Fringe.

Squidge is meaningful and darkly comical. Daisy, played by Tiggy is a teaching assistant who is with a small group of children with additional needs. She captures a moment in time perfectly as she enters the room and out comes Squidge, an interesting tool used in the classroom to talk about feelings etc. She works primarily with Paddy and you see their working/professional relationship in-action. It’s heart-warming and life-affirming. Through this, she makes some significant decisions about her life and about what direction she wants to go in.
The bursts of the soundtrack of Count On Me by Bruno Mars, but children’s voices is well-placed and has more significance than just being a song that schools use. The song choice and the play connect very well together. You may well come out of the play with it in your brain for a while longer than the bursts of song, but it is intelligently done to show a deeper meaning in the context of the play.

Daisy lives alone and we get to know more about her life as she sits on her sofa. She tells of a man called Arthur. It’s in flashbacks and some of this is also represented by a black coat, which becomes a strong, cleverly used prop where you can see and feel Daisy’s feelings. It shows that even school staff have lives outside work and it isn’t always linear. It can be messy and full of different emotions, mostly strong ones.

School staff, especially those working closely with children needing extra support will absolutely be able to relate to this play. I work with a school with children in the SEND category, although not within one, but it connected very well with me It is easy to care about Daisy and to will her on through the challenges in both her professional and personal life as she grows and works life out. For those not working in a school, it’ll be a fascinating insight. Daisy is a character who is interesting to explore and is thought-provoking in the direction she goes, her pain and her determination.

By the end of the play, the overall feeling was one of being uplifted. The conclusion is very powerful. Squidge is intelligently written and better than what I expected and is acted very convincingly and compellingly, so I was glad I managed to squeeze it in.

You can find Squidge here: https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/squidge#

#Review By Lou of The Right Place By Sophia Money-Coutts @HQstories @sophiamcoutts #Romcom #RomanticFiction #HolidayRead #SummerRead #BlogTour

The Right Place
By Sophia Money-Coutts

Escapism is sometimes leaves a wonderful feeling and this does just that. It’s residue is that of something uplifting and holiday-like but with lots of substance of something deeper going on. Check out the blurb and review below. It’s a perfect fit for those who like Emily Henry.

Blurb

Escape the grey skies with this gorgeous summery beach read romcom set in the South of France!

If Maggie is living her best life, why doesn’t it feel like she’s in the right place?

From the outside, Maggie Lemon has a perfect life. But she and her husband have been trying for a baby for five years and she’s exhausted. She’s seen countless fertility experts and followed dozens of diets and homeopathic recommendations, and even gave up her dream restaurant in London when doctors suggested the stress might be too much. And now her estranged aunt has died, leaving her hotel in Provence to Maggie.

It’s been years since Maggie visited Le Figuier. There’s a lot of work to be done and she knows she should sell it. But when a disgraced Hollywood actor hiding out at the hotel lends a hand, the load feels a lot lighter. Is it just the chemistry with this handsome stranger, or is it starting to feel like Maggie might finally be in the right place?

Review

Perfect lives from the outside, rarely are from the inside. Maggie Lemon’s life looks and sounds like she’s just got everything made for her. So perfect! She has the money, the business and the husband.
In reality, she’s sacrificed a lot. She is stressed to the max! She’s gone through years of failed IVF treatment and given up the restaurant. Maggie is also wrestling with the question of where she feels she belongs.

Set mainly in Provence, France, her life begins to change as she inherits Le Figuier, but she does have a decision to make and that’s whether to sell it or tackle all the work that is required on this rather run-down hotel. She certainly likes a challenge and it piques interest that renovations are underway as it’s fun seeing how something dilapidated turns out.

There’s delicious sounding food, so on comes the hunger pangs and a celebrity in hiding, which adds intrigue as he also helps out. There’s lots to tackle from the interior to the exterior, including leaks and a pool that’s definitely seen better days too. It’s entertaining seeing how it will all turn out.

For all the issues that are there to overcome, there is some great humour in what transpires to be a holiday read that is fun to explore.