Theatre Picks

Chase Scenes, Summerhall, 1-26 August, not 6, 13, 20, 2:25pm

A collage of high-speed chases, women running from men: Ming Hon’s low-fi, DIY reconstruction of famous film pursuits sounds like exactly the sort of acute, oddball piece that thrives at the Fringe. A comic, accusatory cultural critique, it should ask why violence against women is such a recurring trope in art.

Medea Electronica, Pleasance Courtyard, 14–19 August, 6:30pm

Backed by a pulsating synth-pop soundtrack, new company Pecho Mama bring Medea to Maggie Thatcher’s Britain in this arresting piece of gig theatre. Using retro cassettes and Fisher Price players, Medea Electronica makes an ancient myth anew.

My Left / Right Foot – The Musical, Assembly Roxy, 1-27 August, not 8, 14, 21, 6:10pm

It’s almost 30 years since Daniel Day-Lewis won his first Oscar for playing a man with cerebral palsy in My Left Foot. Disability-led company Birds of Paradise team up with National Theatre of Scotland to spoof actors ‘cripping up’ in this witty new musical about a right-on am-dram company that gets it all wrong.

La Maladie de la Mort, Lyceum Theatre, 16-19 August, times vary

Over the last decade, Katie Mitchell has become one of the most significant directors on the continent, largely thanks to her live cinema stagings. Her Edinburgh International Festival debut is long overdue and Marguerite Duras’s 1982 novella, a thriller about a woman hired to fall in love, sounds perfectly suited to her spot-on feminist gaze.

Old Boy, Scottish Storytelling Centre, 18-19, 24-26, 11am

Grandfathers and their grandsons take to the stage in this piece by Glasgow-based Junction 25’s sister company Glas(s) Performance. There are toddlers and teenagers and greying grown men. Old Boy reaches across the generations to reflect on what we pass on; a meditation on history, legacy and, yeah, love.

Status, Summerhall, 1-26 August, not 2, 13, 7:55pm

It’s quite the Edinburgh collaboration: four-time Fringe First-winner Chris Thorpe and Rachel Chavkin, director of the TEAM. Status has been brewing for a while, but it'll be served up right on time. A reflection on what it means to reject your nationality – the sort of scab Thorpe picks better than anyone.

Queens of Sheba, Underbelly, 2-26 August, not 13, 6:50pm

Greeted with a roar of approval on a trial run at Camden People’s Theatre, Queens of Sheba recounts the story of four black women turfed out of a nightclub over the shade of their skin. A young interdisciplinary company backed by Black Theatre Live, Nouveau Riche picked up an Underbelly Untapped Award to bring this show to the Fringe. 

Square Go, Roundabout @ Summerhall, 1-26 August, not 2, 7, 14, 21, 8:20pm

Local boys Kieran Hurley and Gary McNair team up to look at likely lads in this new show about early-onset toxic masculinity. Or are they going head-to-head? Square Go is the story of a schoolyard fist fight, as two boys battle it out for playground supremacy. This could be a knockout.

Carmen Funebre, Pleasance @ EICC, 16-19 August, 9:30pm

Stilted figures stalk the streets to a thumping bass beat in Carmen Funebre ('Funeral Song') – a desolate theatrical vision of war. Polish street theatre troupe Teatr Biuro Podróży pulled in crowds of a thousand-plus when this show played the Fringe 23 years ago. Sadly, it feels mighty timely once more.

On the Exhale, Traverse, 2-26 August, not 6, 13, 20, times vary

Director Christopher Haydon has kept a keen eye on the US at the Trav. Grounded and The Christians both delved into its core. He’s back this year with Martín Zimmermann’s scrutinous look at its gun laws; a searing solo show set in the wake of a school shooting.

Big Aftermath of a Small Disclosure, Summerhall, 1-26 August, not 13, 20, 2:50pm

A split couple forms the core of Magne van den Berg’s play – one wants to go, the other to stay. If that feels potent, the combo of Purni Morell’s translation and Actors Touring Company’s reputation makes this a must-see. Even the smallest of disclosures can send shockwaves. Expect Big Aftermath to do much the same.

Drip Feed, Assembly George Square Theatre, 1-26 August, not 14, 2:30pm

A rip-roaring, raggedy one-woman show, Karen Cogan’s Drip Feed will inevitably draw comparisons to Fleabag. Shortlisted for the Verity Bargate Award, this account of being a young, queer woman in Ireland puts the shag into shaggy dog story.