Edinburgh Fringe 2026
Carmilla
Mermaids at the Fringe
Genre: LGBTQ+, New Writing, Theatre
Venue: Thistle Theatre at Greenside @ Riddles Court
Festival: Edinburgh Fringe
Low Down
Productions of ‘Carmilla’ often have a tendency towards lesbian fetishisation. This production instead views Carmilla through a more empathetic lens, and uses the queer themes of the original to put a spotlight on lesser known queer history.
Review
Carmilla is a retelling of the original novel by the same name, written and performed by University of St. Andrews students. Similar to the novel, the story follows a girl named Laura through her adolescence and her entanglement with Carmilla. However, this production sets the story as a frame narrative during the Red Scare, beginning in Laura’s adulthood and flashing back to her childhood. As an employee of the State Department, Laura is interrogated by the federal government for her potential involvement in anti-patriotic activities. The interrogator’s grandiose speech about the great threat America faces implies at first that Laura is accused of being a Communist, but it is then revealed that she is instead accused of homosexuality. This ‘Lavender Scare’ really did happen during the Red Scare, as the U.S. government tried to create a unified, ‘anti-communist’ moral standard.
The writing melds this version of Carmilla with the original novel beautifully. It mirrors the beginning parts of the novel of how Laura and Carmilla met, but diverges in ways that give it its own distinct identity. The language is rich and decadently beautiful like a novel, yet feels appropriate for the era and is easy to follow. The language around homosexuality is also perfectly done, in that there is very little. References to homosexuality are carefully skirted around; it is called a ‘sickness going around,’ or not acknowledged at all. The characters’ reactions to becoming ‘afflicted’ with this ‘sickness’ are devastatingly poignant. This brilliantly encapsulates the taboo nature of homosexuality and queerness during that era, and the self-hatred queer people were taught to have.
The McCarthyist angle is what makes this production of Carmilla stand out from its Fringe peers and its Carmilla-inspired predecessors. Though the subtlety around the queer themes was a good choice for realism, there were moments during the interrogation where information about Laura’s current position in the government and why she was under scrutiny could have been a bit clearer, or at least made clearer earlier in the story. Because the Lavender Scare is, unfortunately, a much lesser known part of the Cold War, those who don’t know much about queer history may have had a hard time following. This would be an excellent opportunity to bring awareness to such a dark part of U.S. history.
As a student production, the writing and thematic work of Carmilla was astounding. The set and technical production were simplistic, but this did not hinder them from giving a great performance. That being said, with a little higher production value and polishing, I could foresee this show having a very successful theatrical run.
