SATURDAY 3 AUGUST 2019 THREEWEEKSEDINBURGH.COM
SARAH-JANE SCOTT: APPROPRIATE
As I'm sure you're all aware, many shows premiere at the Edinburgh Festival. Which means when we talk about them in advance of edfringe, we may have a good feeling about them, but - given nobody's seen them yet - we can only wait to see the first show to find out whether they're great ones or not.

Well, here's a play which, while completely new to the Fringe, has already won critical acclaim in its creator's native Ireland. It's a really interesting sounding show, exploring how women's roles in society have - and haven't - moved on, and examining our collective fascination with big weddings and settling down. To find out more I spoke to writer and performer Sarah-Jane Scott.

CLICK HERE to read today's Caro Meets interview.

'Appropriate' is on at Summerhall from 2-25 Aug. Listing here.
Check out the Preview Edition of the TW magazine. You can pick up a copy from venues across Edinburgh. Inside you will find interviews with Chris Grace, Gabriela Flarys, Harriet Dyer, Lewys Holt, Louisa Fitzhardinge, Matthew Greenhough, Double Denim, Robin Morgan and Robyn Perkins. Plus 75 show recommendations!

Find out where to pick up a copy HERE or read it all online HERE.
EIGHT STEPS Q&A WITH CHELSEA MCGUFFIN
This summer we are asking some of our favourite Fringe people to offer their advice - sometimes sensible, sometimes silly - for getting the most out of the Edinburgh Festival in eight steps, by answering our eight quick quiz questions. Today, it's the Artistic Director of Company2, Chelsea McGuffin, on hand with the tips.

CLICK HERE to read today's TW:DIY interview.

Chelsea McGuffin is Artistic Director of Company2, who are staging 'Le Coup' at Underbelly's Circus Hub on The Meadows from 3-24 Aug.
ThreeWeeks Co-Editor Caro Moses helps you navigate the festival with her Three To See show recommendations. Get more show tips here.
 


THREE SHOWS WITH FEMINIST THEMES >>

Hear Word! Naija Woman Talk True | The Lyceum | 19-25 Aug
I'm pretty sure that, over the last few years, there's been an increase in the number of shows that are about feminist issues, or which explore the lives and culture of women. This year the programmes are, as ever, bursting with such productions, so it was quite hard to pick just three of them. We are starting with this International Festival show, described as "a life-affirming call for female solidarity and empowerment", which offers an insight into the lives of Nigerian women and the obstacles they face. Ten of the country's biggest stars tell stories of domestic violence, resilience and resistance, joy, sisterhood, and more, in what promises to be a funny, frank and honest performance. Listing here.

Bait: Kill The Princess | Heroes @ The SpiegelYurt | 1-25 Aug (pictured)
I know this sounds violent, but don't get the wrong idea, I am sure there won't be any actual princess slaying. Because I think what's intended to get the axe here is the gender stereotypes that currently rule our lives and continue to be perpetuated - despite decades of resistance from feminists - by advertising, the media, books, workplaces... the list goes on. The creative types behind this piece are Lizzy Shakespeare and Michelle Madsen, a pair of Lecoq/LISPA-trained clowns, poets and storytellers who are going to use their myriad skills to create a thought-provoking and genre defying work. Listing here.

Tea?... (With Milk) | theSpace @ Surgeon's Hall | 12-24 Aug
"'Are you part of the 51% that is told to change almost every part of your natural body? You should cover up those bags under your eyes, Ewww, that spot on your chin - rub acid on it. Get rid of the moustache! Armpit hair - gross. Laser off all your natural hair below your eyebrows. Cover yourself in expensive products... because you're worthless!'" Well, it very much sounds as though whoever devised this piece is mighty fed up with all the commercial and media pressure on women to conform to contemporary beauty standards. And I can reveal that it's another talented duo, Niamh Callan and Elisha-Grace Lawrence, who've put together this promising play about two friends trying to work out what feminism means to them. Listing here.


THREE POETIC SHOWS >>

Rachel Long, Tania Nwachukwu & Hibaq Osman | Charlotte Square Gardens | 18 Aug
There's lots that's poetic all over the various festivals. But poetry is very much at home in a book, so I thought we'd head over to the fabulous Edinburgh International Book Festival for the first choice in this category. This event features Rachel Long, who founded Octavia, a poetry collective for women of colour, in response to the lack of representation in literature and academia. She appears alongside Tania Nwachukwu and Hibaq Osman for what promises to be an hour of excellent poetry. Listing here.

Illegal | Underbelly Cowgate | 1-25 Aug (pictured)
"An American artist must decide whether to overstay her visa or give up her chance to become a UK citizen. A Guatemalan graduate must decide whether to make the dangerous trek to America. As their parallel stories intertwine, two young women discover how far they'll go to get what they need... and who they'll hurt by becoming illegal". This one's from the Fringe theatre programme, and it's a dramatic narrative poem written by Jessica Phillippi following an eight year period of dealing with the immigration process. Listing here.

The Mariner's Song | Paradise in Augustines | 12-24 Aug
I chose this one on account of the fact that we absolutely know how good it is, because we saw it when it was on at the Fringe last year, and it was excellent. So, yes, we are very happy to see it back again this year to delight more Fringe-goers. Writer-performer Rajan Sharma uses classical mythology, family history and his own experience crewing on a deep sea challenge to create an intimate and poetic performance exploring humanity's relationship with the oceans, rivers and seas. We described it as "beautiful and hypnotic": expect something lyrical and captivating. Listing here


THREE SHOWS ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE STUFF >>

Sea Sick | CanadaHub @ King's Hall in association with Summerhall | 31 Jul-25 Aug
"The ocean contains the switch of life. Not land, not the atmosphere. The ocean. And that switch can be turned off". Climate change is - deservedly and obviously - an important issue at the moment, with concern over global warming clearly growing apace amid fears that time is running out to address the issues. In this critically acclaimed show, Canadian journalist, playwright and author Alanna Mitchell addresses that topic, and in particular the state of the oceans, telling a tale of "her journey to the bottom of the ocean, the demons she discovered there, and her hope for the future". Listing here.

From Carbon's Casualties To Climate Solutions | Charlotte Square Gardens | 11 Aug (pictured)
It would be easy to panic, of course, about climate change, and I think we're probably all doing it from time to time. But in the interests of trying to stay calm, I thought that next we could perhaps head over to the lovely and somewhat peaceful Charlotte Square Gardens to witness a discussion that will look at a possible way forward. Taking part are 'headliner' Josh Haner, the New York Times photographer who has been visually documenting the consequences of global warming, Australian novelist and campaigner Tim Winton, and Laura Watts, author of 'Energy At The End Of The World' also appear. Listing here.

When The Birds Come | Underbelly Cowgate | 1-25 Aug
Not sure this show is exactly about climate change, but the issue of global warming is certainly integral to the play's narrative. And of course I didn't just stick it in this section because of the environmental connection, I stuck it in because it sounds really good, and it's the work of the very clever Tallulah Brown. "Margaret has always told her little brother Stanley it's his fault the ice is melting. She doesn't want to live in the Alaskan tundra. She wants to run away and be a normal teenager in Anchorage. Years later, the rift between the siblings has seismically grown. In a fast-melting world, will love be left behind?" Listing here.
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