A busted August

Like most of us, this is not the August I imagined. I won’t bore you with the same tale, you have heard told again and again. Suffice to say, the image on the left tells its own story. What I would like to talk about is new work, the emergence of a new medium, and […]


One in, one out?

By Fringe Review, Scottish Editor, Donald C Stewart Right now I would normally be working through my big book of Fringe possible and whittling down to the top 10 Scottish and the top 10 Youth theatre shows for Paul to put up on our website but I am not this year. The Fringe is, however, […]


The quiet before the storm

It’s been a hectic 2 weeks and I must say that between the unbearable heat and the tons of things I’m doing at the moment I’m on the verge of a breakdown. Now, that happened before and it’s not a tragedy. It’s a good way to know what your limits are and how far you […]


Me, Beckett and Aye…

By Donald C Stewart I can’t stand the work of Samuel Beckett. There I said it. Make me an artistic pariah if you want but I don’t care. This week I may have had an epiphany because I suddenly got an insight into his work that hitherto I had never had. I have not seen […]


Man is a rope, tied between beast and overman – a rope over an abyss. A dangerous across, a dangerous on-the-way, a dangerous looking-back, a dangerous shuddering and stopping. Friedrich Nietzsche – Thus Spake Zarathustra   A short post… I haven’t written anything in two weeks and sooooo much has happened since them. Among the […]


Equality, Diversity, Artistry?

By Donald C Stewart The last season of Silent Witness was again heralded by the appearance of Liz Carr in a central role. Such a mainstream win for a disabled actor and activist was seen as evidence that the tide was turning; we were becoming more inclusive. She decided to pursue other challenges at the […]


Writer’s block and things that rock!

This coming Monday theatres and cinemas will be allowed to open in Italy. How many will actually open is another story. In any case, psychologically, it seems the pandemic is behind us as we are adapting to the new normal (I went twice to a restaurant this week). The virus lurks somewhere, hidden in the […]


Lockdown Black and Blues

“Hibernation will allow us to conserve the limited resource we have through the dark winter of Covid-19” artistic director David Greig Theatre is bruised by the whole experience of COVID-19, however twice as many people go to the theatre annually than attend football. Let that sink in for a second. The reality is, however, that we […]


Garlic Theatre Co artistic directors Iklooshar Malara and Mark Pitman travel around the UK performing several different shows that focus on puppetry and movement. They create every show – including a myriad of beautifully crafted puppets, imaginative stories, and original music. Jo Tomalin (in San Francisco) talks to Iklooshar and Mark (in Norfolk) about their […]


No fore PLAY without a CONDOM

On the 15th of June, in theory, theatres should be allowed to open in Italy. It’s a big leap of faith as June is not exactly the best month to open doors…. at least for indoor theatres. June is a month that marks the END of the theatre season for venues, not the beginning. The […]


The picture above comes from pixabay.com, just in case you wonder. The first two months of this earthquake (counting exactly from February 26th when I cancelled all of our shows) were such an emotional rollercoaster it stopped all creative energy. I had all the time of the world but I was blocked, clogged, unable to […]


As part of Brighton Fringe Online, we launched an audio version of Waiting For Hamlet. Lorks! what fun it was! Having never done anything like this before it’s surprising how much there was to learn. There are various posts on our website and social media, showing how we did it. In simple terms, the actors […]


Dear Cabinet Secretary…

Friday, May 8, 2020 Fiona Hyslop MSP Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Fair Work and Culture The Scottish Government St. Andrew’s House Regent Road Edinburgh EH1 3DG   Dear Cabinet Secretary, Firstly, let me apologise. I am no great thinker and no great philosopher. My reason for writing is, however, both personal and professional; such a […]


Wear Sunscreen

Don’t worry about the future Or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing Bubble gum The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind The kind that blindsides you at 4 p.m. On some idle Tuesday Everybody’s […]


To thine ownself be careful with your opinions?

By Scottish Editor, Donald C Stewart It was last year that I was compelled to write about the case of Seyi Omooba. Seyi was the actress sacked or let go, depending upon your point of view, as she had expressed feelings on homosexuality that many, I among them, found incompatible with playing the central role […]


Turning a living play into a listening experience

“Start a blog,” Paul says, “it will be fun,” he adds, before finishing with “don’t worry it won’t take long”. Whenever Paul ‘suggests’ you give something a go, there is always a point when you think to yourself, ‘why did I agree to this?’. Then you wander around for a bit, scratching your head and […]


Summer? Cancelled…

My summer is finished. It didn’t even begin but now it has come to a stuttering end. The Fringe is aff. Not just a wee bit aff, not just a little delay, not even just a postponement whilst we think of something a little more creative. It’s done, dead, no longer and ceased for 2020. […]


I have seen corpses thrown down in front of the temple doors, in front of the altars, to make their deaths even more of a reproach. Some cut off their breath with a noose, and banished, by death, their fear of death, summoning their approaching fate from the beyond. Ovid – Metamorphoses, book VII – Aeacus […]


  The morning….as soon as I wake up. The best time of the day I guess for a lot of people to harness their creative energy. That’s when the the unconscious and conscious are still united for a spell of time before that tiny spider web is swept away by the noise of our mind […]


‘The situation in Great Britain is serious but not hopeless.’ Winston Churchill speaking to Eamon De Valera, 1953 Over twenty days in self-isolation… In my last post I commented how the world as we know it has ended. In a future post I will dwell on my long-term vision regarding the immense geopolitical and economic […]


The end of the world (as we know it)

Today marks my first two weeks in self-isolation. A long time ago I decided I was going to be happy no matter what the circumstances were. It’s a promise I made to myself after having spent years worrying to reach some goal that somehow would have changed the way I feel about life in general. It […]


Theatre and epidemics – A lonely business

And the great licentiousness, which also in other kinds was used in the city, began at first from this disease. For that which a man before would dissemble and not acknowledge to be done for voluptuousness, he durst now do freely, seeing before his eyes such quick revolution, of the rich dying and men worth […]


Stepping into the unknown

I recently met the writer, director and actress, Sam Chittenden, who kindly invited me to see her latest work, Unquiet Slumbers – The Haunting of Emily Brontë at Sweetwerks, Brighton. As a much younger man, I tried to read Brontë, and it’s fair to say I didn’t find it to my taste. Not enough guns, […]


I and my new best friend: Covid-19

Following my last post of the 22nd of February a lot of things changed in my life. Among the many I happened to make a new friend who will stay around me for quite a long time. His name is Covid and I bumped into him almost unexpectedly. Given that Covid is an acute narcissist […]


A series of unrelated events leading to an unexpected conclusion

Last August I reviewed Paul Currie’s Edinburgh Fringe show, Trufficle Musk. It was one of my festival highlights, a joyous trip through the absurd and ‘a brilliant hour of bonkers comedy that makes you happy’. As well as reviewing shows I was working as a producer on Mengele and Judas at Assembly. There was a […]


If you can’t find time – make time

It’s been a busy couple of weeks. This past 7th of February we had the last performance of the month and we then moved on to organize the first edition of an International Physical Theatre Festival in the city of Alba, Italy. I didn’t want to write about it as it was a real shot […]


Whatever Happened to Jaggy Nettles Interview

Scottish Editor, Donald C Stewart caught up with Alan and Carly to talk about their new play by a care experienced ensemble that will bring punk back centre stage in February in Glasgow!! “We’re a punk band. A politically motivated Marxist punk band that want tae bring doun the rich by any means necessary!” It’s […]


Peril at Perth…

“I would like to thank both Mark and Robert for their service and commitment during their time with us … and wish them every success in the future.” * No such announcement comes when there is a parting of the ways with Boards of artistic companies. Resignations and leaving for a mutually acceptable reason seem […]


Writing a story, fermenting wine

“How long does it take you to write a story?” That’s one of the questions people generally ask me. The truth is that the actual ‘writing’ is fairly fast. What really consumes time is the research on the topic I have to write about. As I originally wanted to be a scriptwriter for film (theatre […]


As many journeys mine started solo. It was the effort of a person trying to make order out of chaos on the stage. As I kept pushing and pushing, through successes and failures (a lot of them… more to that in another post) I eventually found a personal style and the types stories to which […]


Still on tour. Today we’re sleeping in a hamlet overlooking the city of Domodossola in Northern Italy (near the Swiss border). Given the majority of my time is consumed in a multitude of tasks that need my attention I’ve decided I’m going to write shorter posts compensating the lack of length with higher frequency. In […]


Oh Theatre of Scotland – Can You Hear Me???

The last season of Silent Witness on the BBC was again heralded by the appearance of Liz Carr in a central role. Such a mainstream win for a disabled actor and activist was seen as evidence that the tide was turning; we were becoming more inclusive. For years on the Archers on Radio 4 there […]


When you’re falling… Dive!

You’re falling from an incredible height. You scream, your arms jerking without control, your legs twitching and kicking in the desperate hope to find something that will halt the fall. How did you get here? It’s not fair. When You’re Falling Dive by Cheri Huber is one of the books I keep in my library and I […]


Taking a holiday from yourself

“One of the symptoms of approaching nervous breakdown is the belief that one’s work is terribly important and that to take a holiday would bring all kinds of disaster. If I were a medical man, I should prescribe a holiday to any patient who considered his work important.”  [Bertrand Russell, The Conquest of Happiness (New York: Liveright Books, […]


Hot stuff and cold meals

It’s 2 am as I’m writing this post. Given that I seem unable to get any sleep I’ve decided to duly fill out our journal with the latest from our tour with the show Brexit. During the last seven days we’ve been pretty much on the road. First, performing in the town of Piacenza (that’s […]


When you feel you can’t carry on – turn around and look behind you

I have to tell you the truth. I can’t take more of this s**t. Today I’m feeling literally exhausted to the point where I’d be happy to throw the towel and quit. Yes. Q-U-I-T. Although it has been a formidable two years with our show ‘Brexit’ I feel mentally overwhelmed. It’s not the acting that […]


How blue is your ocean?

You’re a shark. A hungry mean-looking shark. Like the one below. You are swimming alone in crystal clear blue waters. You’re the only shark there. There’s plenty of fish to feed on. Life is good, after all you’re the meanest killing machine ever devised by nature. You are relaxed, you are happy. When you get […]


In the mouth of the Lyon

We’ve just returned from Lyon where we performed our very first Brexit show of the season. October in Lyon feels more like springtime than fall. Sunshine, 24 degrees outside, such a delightful place to be. This time we have with us Fabrizia, who is starting up this month as an administrative trainee. She came along […]


Ironing clothes with El Cid on my mind – Self motivation is the key

Tomorrow we’re off to Lyon, France. For our first performance of BREXIT. The first performance is always a killer, at least for me it always has been. After almost 100 performances of the same show you tend to take things for granted after a long pause. You lose focus, you get lazy. It’s like cranking […]


The Glory and the Gory

So here we are…ready for a new theatre season with BREXIT and other shows that will follow. As a company we’re on for a tiring 9 months of non-stop touring and I thought it may be useful to fellow artists, or any other person interested in the crazy and delusional world of theatre, to keep […]


Out from the Shadows Comes…

The results are in, the shutter down and Edinburgh, the Festival city is getting ready for whatever extravaganza is happening next – Hogmanay anyone? And the hidden things that people don’t see have had their fanfare. What has been hidden? This year during the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2019, 85 sensory packs were provided for autistic […]


Up The Junction!

It would be easy to over exaggerate and suggest that there is not a year goes by without yet another creative tragedy as this project, that venue or this company have folded due to THE CUTS. I have performed and directed in venues that are closed from the Civic Theatre in Ayr to the Ramshorn […]


Theatrical Clown: Jo Tomalin talks to Áine Donnelly, producer/author/performer from San Francisco about Theatre Infinite and developing her clown character and show Hi. (Jean-Luc Godard). “Inspired by Jean-Luc Godard, clown Rodeo Debbie conducts an aesthetic investigation, where symposium meets jam session, and the audience contributes vital material. Mr. Godard knows a lot, but you are […]


How and why do we set ourselves challenges.  Jo Tomalin talks to producer and performer Natacha Ruck about her work telling other people’s stories – and writing and telling her own story in a solo performance You’re good for nothing. I’ll milk the cow myself. “Natacha stepped into her French grandmother’s kitchen to pick up […]


What does it take to write and perform a solo show? Jo Tomalin talks to memoirist, published essayist, actor and and lecture agent Jamie Brickhouse about creating solo shows and his latest show: I Favor My Daddy. “Daddy Poo adored bikinis and martinis as much as his homosexual alcoholic son. Was he a sodomite lush too? […]


Jo Tomalin talks to Comedic Storyteller Colleen Hindsley from NYC about what is special to her about performing at different fringes, developing new material, and developing and performing That’s Not How it Happened. Listen to our interview with Colleen Hindsley Visit our audio interviews page Visit our main San Francisco Fringe page for reviews


There are many Fringe Festivals in North America and they are coordinated by different organizations. How can fringers find out about them? Jo Tomalin talks to Grant Knutson, a fringe consultant and Managing Director of Minion Productions, who helps independent artists find out about fringe festivals, how to fringe in North America and about the […]


Shakespeare’s plays are just as relevant today as they were when they were written hundreds of years ago, and adapting Hamlet from Hamlet’s own point of view is a fascinating project. Jo Tomalin talks to San Francisco based Laurel Scotland-Stewart about her academic background in philosophy and The Readiness Is All: A Solo Hamlet by William Shakespeare; adapted […]


How does a performer develop a one person show? Jo Tomalin talks to James Sundquist about his creative process, performance style and AEON. “AEON by James Sundquist is the last chapter of good-humored resilience and personal pain that has been explored in EXPEDITIOUS INTENT (2017) and MINGALABA (2018). Minimalist, Paired Down Monodrama. I’m excited to […]


Telling a personal story is often more difficult to tell than a fictional one. Jo Tomalin talks to Jonathan Euseppi, a comedian and storyteller from Chicago about wanting to create a one person show about his dad, how he couldn’t get started and how he developed Grief is Horny. Listen to our interview with Jonathan Euseppi […]


Bars and Craft Cocktails in San Francisco! Jo Tomalin talks to Brian Waksmunski from Oakland, CA about crafting his experience in this industry and his inspiration for creating and performing his first solo show A Decent Negroni. “Abandoned by another waitress, our bartender takes inventory of his stock.” Listen to our interview with Brian Waksmunski Visit our audio […]


A survivor is always healing. Jo Tomalin talks to Nicia De’Lovely from Oakland, California about her healing process, the community workshops she conducts, theatre as a therapeutic tool and Get Uncomfortable. “Get Uncomfortable is a provocative performance addressing taboo subjects that have been normalized by traumatized silence within our marginalized communities. This one woman recital is […]


Jo Tomalin talks to pioneer lesbian playwright and actress Terry Baum about her work and Hick: A Love Story, Based on Eleanor Roosevelt’s Letters to Letters to Lorena Hickok, written by Terry Baum who also plays Lorena Hickok – Hick. “When Eleanor Roosevelt became First Lady in 1933, she had a lesbian lover — Lorena […]


  The Intrepid Theatre Company in San Diego produces plays for all audiences. Jo Tomalin talks to Sean Yael-Cox, the company’s founding artistic director about the importance of outreach in the community, producing plays that have a message and The Thousandth Night by Carol Wolf, performed by Sean Yael-Cox. “One Actor, 38 roles. It’s Paris, 1943. […]


Many Different Paths

Well, I am back in Sussex and so writing my final EdFringe19 blog post with the benefit of some sleep and a little hindsight. It was a blast and heart-warming.  It was also exhausting, and sometimes disheartening. We had wonderful reactions to our two shows Sary and Metamorphosis; some lovely audience feedback and a handful […]


Mrs Fringereview Blogs: It’s Not The Critic Who Counts

Blog Post: It’s Not the Critic Who Counts  There is a piece of Art work, more specifically a set of four pieces of embroided richly coloured and strikingly large scale Art in The National Art Gallery in Edinburgh by Phoebe Traquair called The Progress of a Soul. Each one with it’s own title; The Entrance, […]


Here are some pictures of Ian performing his show ‘Looking for Wolverhampton’s Latin Quarter’. With some delightful anecdotes from his youth as he found out about working life and the world around him, waiting to be discovered for his creative endeavours. A charming piece that brings back memories of growing up in the 70’s. Return […]


No Animals Were Harmed…..

Reviews are funny things eh? Part of me doesn’t want to look.  Part of me is curious.  Part of me craves some positive feedback (especially from someone who seems to have really ‘got’ the work).  And part of me is praying for a good review to help drive ticket sales. After all, we are at […]


Zero Waste Fringe: BoxedIn get creative at the Greenhouse

A rather casual conversation at last year’s Edfringe about all the waste it creates led to the question ‘could we do it differently?’ and it turns out we can. Or, at least, BoxedIn Theatre can. They have created a zero waste venue, The Greenhouse, and an eco themed programme. It was a bit of a […]


Sir David and His Animals

When you’re a real celebrity there must be many demands on your time, and when you’ve got something really important to say then how do you find any time at all. This was the root of the problem for Clownfish Theatre as they had booked the great man himself to present an anthology of his […]


I photographed Viviana at the Space Triplex Studio venue 38 where she performed a delightful set of songs associated with Marilyn who had captured her heart. This is a homage to her. The show finishes on the 17th so there are only a couple more opportunities to catch this. Return to Richard’s Gallery


Will You Photograph My Show?

My Photography at the fringe I know that I may get it in the neck from the professional photographers here at the fringe but I believe that in general terms a show does not need a paid photographer. There are quite a few photographers in Edinburgh during festival time and probably more than you know. […]


Stand-up Poet – Greg Byron

One of Fringe Review’s must see shows. Occasionally through the performance I found it difficult to concentrate on taking photos as Greg entertained me and the rest of the audience. Several times I had to prevent the camera shaking as he performed his poems. Giggling throughout I have to concur that it is a great […]


Délicieux – Seckford Theatre

I must declare an interest in this theatre group, I always photograph them while I’m here, which is every two years. Seckford Theatre is part of my old school, which incidentally I left 5o years ago this year. 1969 was a wonderful year for those of you that may remember it. Travelling up from Woodbridge […]


World War II recommendations

There is always a goodly sprinkle of shows at the Fringe with a focus on war. These are three that I found around World War II that intrigued me, as telling an unknown story or taking a look behind the scenes of an iconic generation defining moment                 […]


Here are a selection of pics from ‘Mallets‘ a show at Surgeons’ Hall, Theatre 3 that I photographed on Tuesday. A delightfully light, piece of fast-paced comedy showing the underlying currents swirling around during the afternoon of an eagerly anticipated croquet match. Return to Richard’s Gallery


The end approaches

When I arrived on the 30th July those all around the fringe were busy, setting up, briefing the troops and all the other things necessary for this year’s fun. I wandered around watching what was happening and planning my schedule. Now I was onto the Press Launches and selecting shows to photograph. That was then […]


Mrs Fringereview Blogs day 5: All Change

Mrs Fringereview Blogs day 5: All Change  I have only been here in edinburgh for four days and already I am feeling the tiredness hit me – and I’m not even putting on a show. You know when you have seen a lot of the Fringe when you wake up writing a review in your […]


An Edinburgh Breakdown (or two)

Last Friday morning, I was sitting in my car crying. I was on my way to take my very recently bought second hand car to the garage to have the dodgy suspension checked, when it broke down completely.  On a tiny one-way street.  In the Edinburgh rush hour. And the recovery people were having a […]


Mrs Fringereview Blogs Day 4: Fake it til you Make it?

Mrs Fringereview Blogs Day 4: Fake it til you make it? Ah Edinburgh…..where the cobbled streets glisten with a rain so wet it makes you forget the feeling of dry.  My clothes and bags from yesterday’s truly drenched day are still drying painfully slowly on the rattling radiators in this old high ceiling flat. I […]


A week into my fourth Edinburgh Fringe and I am marvelling at how differently I am approaching things this time around. I am doing a full run of 24 shows (in 25 days) of my new stand-up comedy show Shattered. I’ve done a full run before (of my debut show) at the Edinburgh Fringe in […]


Mrs Fringereview Blogs Day 3: The Adventure

Mrs Fringereview Blogs Day 3: The Adventure  In the swing of things now, finding my pace, making lots of notes and finding dry places to hide form the now signature Edinburgh rain. We have had our traditional meals at Chez Jules and Mother India, our routine married bicker while in the queue  (his fault of […]


Mrs FringeReview blogs Day 2: The Landing

Day 2 – Saturday 10th August  It felt really odd being in sunny and mild weathered Edinburgh today; that uneasy climate catastrophe sort of feeling haunted me as I walked around feeling unnerved by local pale skinned Scots blinking bewildered in the sunshine. And then thankfully it rained. Even some thunder and lightening rattled the […]


Here are a few pictures from last Saturday’s Meet the Media. Performers; Publicists and others? queue from early morning to take the opportunity to pitch their shows to members of the media. Lasting all afternoon the orderly queues slowly disappear as the enthusiasm diminishes. However, patience and commitment is necessary to interest these reviewers. Return […]


Day 1 – Friday 9th August 2019 On the train travelling to Edinburgh with my son for 10 days, joining my established fringe loving husband as he relives his blissful Bachelor days, (he always protests when I say this to him –  “I love being married and having a family!” he says, backing out of […]


theSpaceUK Press Launch at the Edinburgh Fringe 2019

Click on the image to see pictures of the Press launch. Introduced by John Rowe this show featured: Teach; Cello on Fire; A Tribute to Alanis Morissette’s Jagged Little Pill; Jeremy Nicholas What Are You Talking About?; Rust; The Good Scout; Predictably Irrational; Microbodyssey; Space Junk; Dream of a King; Lorca: A Theatre Beneath the […]


On Tuesday I was fortunate to go to the sixth annual ‘Death on the Fringe‘ this presentation showcased a few shows which are part of what they describe as a ‘Festival within a Festival. Robert Peacock the director of this alliance introduces over 40 shows in the programme. Have a look at the pictures in […]


Following the international success of Testosterone, exploring the culturally and socially different world a transperson has to learn to navigate, Kit talks about his new play, Passengers, described as: ‘A dark comedy about the epic battles and alliances within the psyche and the beautiful power of the mind to protect itself from pain. Max wants […]


The Female Role Model Project: Kate Saffin talks to the creator, Tjasa Ferme

Tjasa Ferme talks about this ground breaking mix of theatre and multi-media exploring the science of the brain. She describes how the idea emerged and developed into an interactive experience as much as a ‘show’ using live neuroscientific monitoring and recording which the audience see and hear as video and soundscape. And volunteers from the […]


Multi-tasking

Well, we’ve done our previews, and are starting to get small but appreciative audiences in…  A couple of days ago an audience member said something amazing to me about his experience of Metamorphosis (a show I wrote and directed) which genuinely brought tears to my eyes.  I only hope he posts it somewhere! So now […]


It runs in the family: Kate Saffin talks to Joan Lawrence and Christian Gittings about Gilbert & Sullivan

Sometimes things just run in families and it was quite by chance that I learned that Joan Lawrence who sang with the D’Oyly Carte Opera Company from 1956 to 1962, would be watching her grandson, Christian Gittins, perform in Coily Dart’s Gilbert and Sullivan’s Improbable New Musical: Less Miserable The Spaces. Here they talk about […]


Best of the fest from Oxfordshire theatre makers

  Some best of the fest shows coming from the lively, innovative and dynamic theatre making going on in, and around, Oxford. Selected by Kate Saffin, Fringe Reviewer reviewer. If you’re looking for: Work by an all female company (with a mouse who is A therapist-cum-confidant-cum-philosopher) Beyond: Sugar Mice at Paradise Green 15.20 to the […]


Today I was walking along Edinburgh’s Royal Mile when I bumped into a young man called Billy Bullshit. He thrust a flyer into my hand and said “If you like bullshit, you really need to come and see this!” Ordinarily I would have binned it along with all the other bullshit flyers I’m bombarded with… […]


Kate Saffin talks to Jeremy Nicholas about… talking (in public)

Jeremy describes himself as the 11th most famous Jeremy at the BBC and has many years experience as a broadcaster and as an international speaker. Last year he shared some of his most colourful moments at the BBC. This year it’s stories of public speaking. He describes the show as for anyone who ever listens […]