August 14, Scotland: A Whirlwind of a Short Week

We arrived on Sunday afternoon, August 9th, taking a quick drive to the city from the airport. Shortly after settling in, we went outside to walk around the Old Town, which had been completely overtaken by the Fringe Festival.

About the Edinburgh Festival Fringe: Established in 1947 when eight theater companies turned up uninvited to perform on the margins of the inaugural Edinburgh International Festival, the Fringe has grown into the world's largest arts and media festival. 

Every August, the event spans roughly three weeks, attracting over two million attendees and hosting upwards of 3,000 to 4,000 distinct productions across hundreds of venues throughout the city.Polinka had made some show bookings prior to our arrival. It’s impossible to see it all, and very difficult to prioritize with so many options. The program guide is as massive as the old Yellow Pages phonebook used to be. 

The last several days have been a non-stop blur of us running around town, attending three, four, or sometimes even more productions in a day. It was really lovely to see so much life in the city, and we absolutely have to come back to Edinburgh; we kept discovering new parts of it, and we haven’t even taken a proper stab at the museums yet.The city itself is an amazing spectacle of dense crowds, performers continuously lining the Royal Mile, and an endless sea of flyers and posters. You just really, really want to go to ALL of them.

The Shows & Highlights

Some of our most memorable theater experiences were the plays Blackbox, 44 Minutes, and The Jolly Fisherman. These were completely amazing, and we were lucky to see them and would love to see them again. Of course, the main reason for coming was Anechka’s school production of Zombie Prom. We went several times to show our support, but frankly, they didn’t even need it by the time we went the second time; the room was full! It was sold out, and they put on quite a lovely show. It’s a great musical, and we’d love to see it again as well :)

Another major theatrical highlight was attending The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo.

About The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo: 

First performed in 1950, the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo is an iconic annual series of military musical performances staged by British Armed Forces, international military bands, and display teams. Set against the dramatic backdrop of Edinburgh Castle, the event draws an audience of over 200,000 people each summer and celebrates global cultural camaraderie alongside military heritage.

Having previously attended the elaborate and patriotic opening ceremony of Naadam in Mongolia, this had a similar grand feel, with a distinctly British and Scottish slant. It was beautiful to sit in the constructed stadium right alongside Edinburgh Castle and take in all the elements of the performance, including stunning light projections on the castle walls that completely transformed how it looked, fireworks, innumerable pipers, and invited guest military bands from Germany, the US, New Zealand, Bahrain, and other countries.

It was somewhat jarring to hear the German band break into traditional German songs and reflect on how, less than 100 years ago, Germans were involved with the UK under very different circumstances. But they did chase it with a song from Modern Talking to honor the hosts, so it was pretty cool. It was also funny and surreal to watch the US team put on a classic, traditional American show set to cool old rock songs. 

The New Zealand troupe brought a touch of the haka and, strangely, an excerpt from Carmen in French!

Another major highlight happened last night when we went to see The Lady Boys of Bangkok, a beautiful, cool, and fantastic performance filled with immense joy, fun, and crowd interaction. 

The audience was in for a treat (and Danik and Romik were in luck) because a large group of young Scottish men sat right in the front row and became the subject of a lot of playful attention from the cast. The performers were magnificent and staggeringly beautiful tall, young, perfectly proportioned women, trans women, and beautifully performing men, alongside the resident riotously funny house drag queen. It was fantastic entertainment! Judging by the crowd and talking to a few attendees, some people have been coming to this specific show for 20 years; it is a major Fringe highlight for them. Totally on our to-do list when we come back here. We were also lucky enough to score a table at Dishoom right before the show started.

Spontaneous Reunions & Unscripted Comedy

The trip was filled with great, unexpected moments, which seems to be the way things go in Europe over the summer. Zhenia and Julia joined us for drinks at the bar one evening, having randomly decided to fly into Scotland at the last minute. We also briefly met up with Romik’s fun coworker, Mike, for beers after the show last night.

We also caught Baby Wants Candy, a cool and hilarious production where the audience suggests an original title for a musical, and the cast creates the entire show on the fly, complete with lyrics and full songs. I totally appreciate the sheer complexity and difficulty of doing that; the cast has to collaborate seamlessly without even exchanging notes. It was great fun to watch, and we'd definitely see it again. It must be equally tricky for the musicians to read the room, follow the mood of the actors, and spontaneously compose matching music on the spot.

The "Meh" to the Painful
We saw more performances in the span of four and a half days than most people see in several years. It’s so exciting to be in a place where a lot of new work is being launched and emerging performers are starting their careers.
Of course, some shows fell into the "average" to "meh" categories, while others stood out strictly for their badness or discomfort:

• Daddy Issues & ADHD: Pretty "meh."
• Endometriosis: So-so.
• Max Olesker: Making the Cut: This one was infuriating and just painful to watch. While it was technically a good quality performance, the subject matter was deeply uncomfortable; it dealt with the deletion of one's identity. We read up on it afterward and found out it was likely a PR stunt to promote a book on the same topic rather than a wholly truthful account, which made it feel even worse. What did Max's wife sacrifice for their union? Did they touch or have sex prior to his conversion, in which case it feels almost hypocritical? Did he do it just to marry into a wealthy family? Regardless, the one positive takeaway was seeing a Jewish-oriented show without visible security detail; it was comforting to see that space and freedom still exist for such art.

Two Philosophies of the Fringe

Polinka took the first stab at booking our tickets, which made it clear how our tastes diverge somewhat. She gravitated toward somber, heavy subjects: ADHD, endometriosis, cancer and assisted suicide (Afterparty), and child abuse (Daddy Issues). We, on the other hand, opted for cheap laughs with Sexy Circus SideShow v3 and The Lady Boys of Bangkok. 

We did score some fantastic performances on non-trivial topics I mentioned earlier. 

Our big-picture take is this: as we hit and cross 50, all those heavy, somber realities inevitably await us (if we're lucky enough to make it!). Borrowing from Omar Khayyam's philosophy, it is best to spend our current days with friends, good drinks, and lighthearted company (and gurias). Those heavy things will get their due time anyway, so we might as well party today.

Looking at the older folks in The Lady Boys audience, they clearly share that same philosophy.
So with that, we remain: Seize the day. More to come!