Jake Mace
This is a year where themes of authenticity of voice and the marginalisation of artists have never been more important at EdFringe. Debate on how the festival can sustain its’ reputation of providing a platform for unheard voices has been aired online and in the press – from the Fringe Society’s Keep It Fringe fund investing in 50 grassroots creatives, to artists online lamenting the skyrocketing costs of bringing a show to Edinburgh. With the festival just around the corner, we took the chance to flick through the programme and highlight 6 shows that are elevating marginalised voices or stories next month.
This EdFringe, make sure to support unheard voices by diving into the unknown, exploring unseen corners and listening to rebellious voices. Take a look at these exciting shows delving into six different marginalised themes.
Climate Justice – The Climate Fables
Are you prepared to tackle your climate anxieties head on? Centring the narratives of climate refugees, The Torch Ensemble bring us two plays. Dabbling in questions of the biblical, the existential and starting a family in the face of climate disaster, this provocative concept offers us a chance to confront the un-confrontable challenges that face generations ahead.
Binge Fringe is looking forward to… the chance to reflect and reconsider our approaches to climate justice in light of ethical dilemmas and moral quandaries that challenge and effervesce.
The Climate Fables – Greenside @ Nicolson Square (Fern Theatre), Aug 4-5, 7-12 & 14-19. Tickets available through the EdFringe Box Office.
Race & Identity – Coconut
Ellora Kamineni’s love letter to brown girls takes on the story of a slightly lost, slightly confused and incredibly chaotic brown girl “doing things (and people)” that none of the aunties would approve of. Taking a zesty and youthful insight into dating, hook-ups, finding a vocation in light of expectations, and “how not every brown girl dreams of being a doctor.”
Binge Fringe is looking forward to… witty, fresh insight into identity, expectation and debaucherous youth.
Coconut– TheSpace @ Niddry Street/Triplex, Aug 4-26. Tickets available through the EdFringe Box Office.
Neurodivergence – Character Flaw
Exploring our relationships with diagnoses and how they change our lives, storyteller Philippa Dawson offers up an empowering and captivating journey that reflects on her Queer journey, self-acceptance, medication and the broader experiences of women with ADHD. Sure to be a jam-packed show, the piece includes everything from trumpet solos, to sketches, storytelling and anecdotes.
Binge Fringe is looking forward to… growing a deeper understanding of a gendered, queer expression of neurodivergence and how diagnosis can become a life-shifting event.
Character Flaw – Greenside @ Nicolson Square (Lime Studio), Aug 4-12, 14-19 & 21-26. Tickets available through the EdFringe Box Office.
Migration & Refugee Stories – Rewind
Internationally acclaimed physical theatre troupe Ephemeral Ensemble deliver an energetic, rhythmic and vibrant exploration of Latin American refugee and migrant stories. Following the story of Alicia, described as ‘a woman who dared to resist’, the ensemble have drawn from the science of Forensic Anthropology as well as testimony in investigating human rights violations. Sure to be raw, rebellious and timeless.
Binge Fringe is looking forward to… unravelling the relationship between anthropology, migration stories and the stories of those who have suffered under authoritarian regimes.
Rewind – Summerhall (Old Lab), Aug 2-13, 15-20 & 22-27. Tickets available through the EdFringe Box Office.
Trans Identities – May Contain Traces of Nuts.
Exploring modern masculinity from the perspective of a trans masculine writer, this show follows a group of teenagers in an isolated village with toxic relationships to gender roles, where expectations and drug-fuelled evenings lead to tensions between lifelong friends bubbling over. In a world where trans lives are being ‘debated’ by modern media, this piece takes a bold and defiant place among a roster of shows exploring queer identities at the Fringe this year.
Binge Fringe is looking forward to… uncovering the perspective of masculinity amongst trans identities in the swirling world of lifelong relationships and gender roles.
May Contain Traces of Nuts. – TheSpaceTriplex (Studio), Aug 4-12 & 14-19. Tickets available through the EdFringe Box Office.
Eilidh McKenzie
