Edinburgh Fringe 2026
Boobytrapped
No Tits Theatre
Genre: Contemporary, LGBTQ+ Theatre, New Writing, Theatre
Venue: TheSpaceUK
Festival: Edinburgh Fringe
Low Down
Bodyswap romcom chaos: Simon, a trans man, and Kevin, a cis man, meet in a gay club and are instantly drawn to each other. Their hookup derails when Kevin realises Simon is trans, but before things turn ugly, a magical twist traps them in each other’s bodies. Forced to navigate insecurities and prejudice, they must work together to reverse the swap – whether they understand each other or not.
Review
A gay nightclub, pulsing music, glances across the floor, shy smiles, gradually moving closer. There’s chemistry between Kevin (Ermis Makides) and Simon (Freddie Haberfellner), but when they slip off to find a quieter space together, Kevin realises Simon isn’t gay – he’s trans and is horrified. Then something happens, the kind of thing theatre does so well: a fizzing noise, a flash of light, and somehow the two of them have swapped bodies. It’s a shock, made no easier by a talking toilet – or rather, an audio description of the facilities, which is somehow funnier than an actual talking toilet would be.
Even their taste in crisps has transferred, but their conscious selves haven’t – they know, immediately and uncomfortably, that they’re in the wrong body. What follows is a hysterical hour in which both men are exploring and being baffled by the body they’ve acquired, while gradually trying to help the other understand and manage the one they now occupy. The play is sharp on the things we take entirely for granted: Simon banging his head getting into an Uber because he’s suddenly a foot taller, Kevin both intrigued and horrified by having boobs, and the sheer logistical mystery of how anyone gets into a crop top. There’s a wonderfully complex pizza metaphor along the way too. As they work together to try to reverse the swap, they end up learning a lot about themselves and each other.
Written by Freddie Haberfellner, the piece explores insecurity and prejudice around trans experience through a bodyswap premise that could so easily have tipped into gimmick – but never does. It’s wonderfully silly and dead serious at the same time, sharp and emotionally exposed, and built on the kind of lived experience that can’t be faked.
Both actors are superb, never missing a beat in a script that resembles a very fast game of table tennis, delivering characters with real complexity and nuance.
Romeo Lau’s direction holds it all together, moving smoothly between settings within a single set and using the space creatively – including an off-stage character, Simon’s flatmate – without ever interrupting the fast pace of the dialogue. Callie O’Brien’s sound design supports throughout, and Ro Winchester’s work as intimacy director means both performers are visibly at ease in the show’s more intimate scenes, which in turn puts the audience at ease too.
No Tits Theatre have created something genuinely funny, thought provoking and intriguing.
