Latest news with #EdinburghPlayhouse
Scotsman
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
Fringe shows at the Edinburgh Playhouse including Bill Bailley, Dead Ringers and singer David Gray
Edinburgh Playhouse has revealed its Fringe schedule, with stars including singer David Gray, actress Miriam Margolyes and comedians Bill Bailey and Jason Byrne performing there in August. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... The famous Capital theatre kicks off its Fringe programme with three Forth on the Fringe shows on Friday, August 1 and Saturday, August 2. The line-up on Friday at 8pm includes Jason Byrne, Connor Burns, Mark Nelson, Kai Humphries, Kevin Quantum, Jess Robinson, Circa, The Black Blues Brothers, Jonny Woo, Gravity & Other Myths, Grace Mulvey and Laser Kiwi. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad On Saturday at 1pm you can see Miriam Margolyes, Hal Cruttenden, Patrick Monahan, Cirque Kalabanté, Ben Hart, Baby Wants Candy, MC Hammersmith, Circus – The Show, Footballers' Wives – The Musical, Christopher Macarthur-Boyd, Mat Ricardo and Lola. And later on that day, at 8pm, Alan Davies, Susie McCabe, Paul Sinha, Craig Hill, Rosco McClelland , Miss Frisky, Gareth Waugh, Tape Face, The Genesis, Chris Turner, Dangerous Goods and Swamplesque will take to the stage at the Playhouse. Tickets for these shows, available from £28, can be found here. Some of the shows on at Edinburgh Playhouse in August for this year's Fringe festival. | ATG Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Marking its 25th anniversary, Dead Ringers will be on at the Playhouse on Sunday, August 17. Starring long-standing cast members Jon Culshaw, Jan Ravens, and Lewis MacLeod, the show will take you on a trip through a quarter century of classic sketches and unrivalled impressions, alongside the razor-sharp topical humour which has become the series' trademark. Tickets for this special anniversary show can be found here. Nick Mohammed is Mr Swallow: Show Pony, is on at the Playhouse on Friday, August 22. After a sell-out 2023 UK tour and extended run in London's West End, Taskmaster loser and Ted Lasso star Nick Mohammed returns as his critically acclaimed alter-ego Mr Swallow with a brand new show. Age guidance 14+, tickets available here. Fellow comedian Bill Bailey brings his Thoughtifier show to the Playhouse on August 23 and 24, with tickets available here. A magical, musical mystery tour of the human mind, along with some other pressing matters about whales, biophilia, unrequited love and other thoughts. Amplified With Music. Welcome to Thoughtifier! Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad And chart-topping singer songwriter David Gray will perform at the Playhouse on Monday, August 25, tickets available here. David Gray is back doing what he does better than almost anyone, and fans of complex, serious, lyrical songcraft should rejoice. Dear Life may be the deepest, strangest, loveliest album this pioneering British singer-songwriter has ever delivered. Years in the making, it is an album of emotional crisis and resolution, mortality and faith, reality and illusion, love and heartbreak, magic, science, loss and acceptance.
Scotsman
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
Alice Cooper, Edinburgh review: 'impressively vivacious'
Sign up to our Arts and Culture newsletter, get the latest news and reviews from our specialist arts writers Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Alice Cooper, Edinburgh Playhouse ★★★ Scottish audiences have always appreciated the lure of a well-performed pantomime, and Alice Cooper's audio version, dripping with Grand Guignol, is a slick, well-oiled machine. Backed by his tight-knit five-piece band, for this Edinburgh appearance the 77-year-old shock rock icon archly glowered through swordplay, mock executions and the obligatory guillotine showstopper. For much of the show he didn't address the crowd directly - there was no need, such is his charismatic command of the stage. When he did eventually speak, it was to commend his band, and to pay tribute to the late Ozzy Osbourne. Alice Cooper | Getty Images Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The track Welcome To The Show from recent record Road essentially acknowledges that the set-pieces will be reviewed before the music, with Cooper barking 'Top hat! Cane!' to his masked minions, yet it retained a punkish energy all the same. No More Mr Nice Guy introduced even more knowing schlock, so much so that that it blasted past all protestations of self-parody into the upper echelons of communal karaoke, with the impressively vivacious singer conducting the crowd as they bellowed enthusiastically through the chorus. In a fierce three-guitar attack, Ryan Roxie, Tommy Henriksen and Nita Strauss took turns in the spotlight and also showed off some intricate interplay, with the hair metal formula never turning into thrash or high camp turning into rock musical - that was despite some French Revolution theatrics that threatened to escalate into Les Misérables and footage of horror legend Vincent Price that brought to mind his starring turn in Michael Jackson's Thriller. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad
Edinburgh Reporter
21-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Edinburgh Reporter
Outwith Festival announce sponsorship deal
Fife couple David and Cathryn Archer are sponsoring this year's Outwith Festival in Dunfermline through their company, Sephra. The Archers are business owners and also performers, as well as long-time supporters of the arts scene in their local area. They are now backing the creative community by helping to fuel the festival with popcorn Sephra's story began in David's garden shed back in 2003, when chocolate fountains were the height of party glamour. Fast forward to today, and Sephra is a global player in the dessert and bakery equipment world, with a US branch, more than 30 staff, and a popcorn business supplying stadiums and theatres across the UK. From Manchester City's Etihad Stadium to Dundee United's ground, and from London's West End to the Edinburgh Playhouse, Sephra popcorn is making fans cheer and audiences crunch. 'One of my proudest moments was getting our popcorn into Asda,' said David Archer, Sephra's founder. 'That opened the door to other big retailers – and now we're thrilled to be part of Outwith Festival. It's a brilliant celebration of creativity, and we're proud to support it.' The five-day event runs from 3–7 September and features a packed programme of music, art, film, literature, and theatre. This year's headliners include Arab Strap and The Twilight Sad and will benefit from the £2,500 sponsorship deal. Louise Reid, Trustee and Sponsorship Manager for Outwith Festival, said: 'We're absolutely delighted to have Sephra on board, an international company that started in Fife. As musicians themselves, David and Cathryn Archer have a real understanding of how important the arts are to this area, not only for supporting local talent but also for building a sense of community.' David Archer, SEPHRA Europe Managing Director said: 'It is our pleasure at Sephra to get on board with the fantastic Outwith Festival, which each year goes from strength to strength. My wife Cathryn and I have been involved with performing live music for over 30 years, as such it is something close to our hearts. We are confident that the Festival will be very well received once again, it has another incredible line up of talent. We also hope that all festival goers who pick up a tub of our popcorn very much enjoy it.' 'We have been delighted to have it stocked in a number of theatres, venues and stadia throughout the country, but to have this brilliant collaboration on our own doorstep is the best yet!' Tickets and full programme available at Like this: Like Related
Daily Record
21-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Record
Bill Bailey learning the bagpipes ahead of Scotland shows in tribute to Sean Lock
'I'm learning the bagpipes. I have a wonderful set of bagpipes that I own and I've had the bag changed into the Bailey tartan." Bill Bailey has revealed he is learning the bagpipes as he heads to Scotland for a string of shows. The stand-up comic and Strictly Come Dancing winner, 60, is perfecting his pipe playing in time for shows at Glasgow's Armadillo on August 22, and Edinburgh Playhouse on August 23 and 24. He said: 'I'm learning the bagpipes. I've got the basics. I wouldn't say I'm an expert. I have a wonderful set of bagpipes that I own and I've had the bag changed into the Bailey tartan. It's just a fantastic and such a powerful instrument.' He plans to play the pipes on his latest Thoughtifier tour dates in a tribute to fellow comedian Sean Lock, who died of cancer, aged 58, as he says 'they have that commemorative, haunting quality'. He added: 'There's something quite primal about it, especially in a small theatre. There'll be some classic stirring Scottish tunes. 'A drummer comes on and starts beating out the rhythm to a variety of different songs and it gets the hairs standing on the back of the neck every time.' Bill will also be in conversation with former SNP MP Mhairi Black at Edinburgh's Gilded Balloon on August 25. He said: 'The first time we drove to Edinburgh, we got lost. We were in a little Ford Fiesta. The car wasn't absolutely in mint condition so we had to avoid motorways. 'We got to our digs in Leith at six in the morning and next door there was a pub open. 'I came back many years after that and I love the whole experience.' Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'.
Scotsman
03-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
Dear Evan Hansen, a musical with a message
The multi-award-winning stage musical Dear Evan Hansen, which plays the Edinburgh Playhouse this week demonstrates the struggles of mental illness. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... With music and lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul and book by Steven Levenson, the premiere was at the Arena Stage Washington DC in June 2016 before a short off-Broadway run a year later then Music Box Theatre Broadway in December 2016 running until September 2022 when it closed. Nominated for nine Tony Awards it won six prompting a film version directed by Stephen Chbosky which had poor returns when it opened in September though, the stage musical won two Olivier Awards and a Grammy for Best Musical theatre Album. The West End production opened at the Noel Coward Theatre in November 2019, closed for over a year due to Covid in 2020 and closed for good in October 2022. This touring production opened at the home of the co-producers Nottingham Playhouse in September 2024 and concludes in Edinburgh this week. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The title refers to the start of a letter, but one you would write to yourself as part of your therapy to get a better understanding of yourself. Evan is a loner, a nervous nerd with no friends really, but we see how that all changes. Kirriemuir born Ryan Kopel plays Evan and is the central character getting the first big song Waving Through A Window, not only did he perform wellbut he knocked it out of the park. At college we met Connor (played by understudy Will Forgrave). He is a bully, a drug user and doesn't get along with his sister Zoe or his parents played by Richard Hurst and Helen Anker. Lauren Conroy from Fife as Zoe It is a very modern script, ahead of its time with texts, social media and crowd funding while tackling issues of metal health, youth relationships and drug misuse, a challenge managed effectively by director Adam Penford. We see how a lie could expand like a snowball down a hill and all with great songs like (what has become a strapline and a hashtag) You Will Be Found sung by Evan, Zoe, Alana (Vivian Panka) and Jared (Tom Dickerson), Evan's pal who fakes some emails for cash. LaurenConroy from Glenrothes, a former KAOS (Kirkcaldy Amateur Operatic Society) member as sister Zoe gets her big number Requiem and rightfully gets wild applause. There are melodies here that hint on the writers' future triumphs like The Greatest Showman or LA LA Land and all beautifully orchestrated by Michael Bradley and his 9-piece orchestra. I am avoiding going over the full plot as it twists cleverly so much you need to see it and explains the reason for the growing cult following and reasons for the queues for the array of merchandise. This musical works on so many levels. Dear Evan Hansen at Edinburgh Playhouse until July 5, tickets:
