Edinburgh Fringe 2026
Diary of a DL Trade
Louis Utieyin
Genre: LGBTQ+ Theatre, One Person Show, Queer Theatre, Theatre
Venue: Carbon Lounge
Festival: Edinburgh Fringe
Low Down
At the beginning Utieyin warns us that this is a work of fiction and he is neither an actor nor a stand-up comic. This is about a black Nigerian gay man growing up in Glasgow, which is exactly who Etienne is. Through a variety of set pieces, including a strong relationship with his mother, he takes us along an emotional roller coaster as he is trying to satisfy what society wants him to be as opposed to what he is.
Review
This is a developing piece of work directed by David Hewitson one of the visionaries behind Theatre 118 in Glasgow.
As a piece of fiction based in reality this has great merit but is undercooked. It comes across well at times though there are ropey bits which could do with a little bit of finessing. Hewitson has done a good job in managing to keep things focused throughout as there are times when it could have gone off in different directions. What keeps it together is the narrative of a gay man who marries, has kids and then ends up divorced. What adds to it is the central relationship with the mother. It anchors and keeps it together.
He of course plays himself and his mother in a very well observed piece of work. It allows him to bounce things off her and give his own truth.
As a performer Utieyin is interesting and engaging giving us a really honest account of what it felt like out there – not an easy thing for a Nigerian in Glasgow just now. It has strength but when you start to laugh at your own jokes or using people in the audience to get you through it becomes a little indulgent. However, experience and confidence shall eradicate that because there’s something at the centre of this that is well worth developing and feeling confident in.
This is a man with a microphone, pills that he’s popping to one side and a narrative directly in front of us with lights up. It’s simple staging but means there are few hiding places.
Diary of a DL trade is exactly what we should be seeing at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. It is a developing piece of work which has potential, just needing more polish. Getting the opportunity to put that in front of an audience is one of the great advantages of bringing anything to the Fringe. As part of the Free Fringe, it continues to give actors, producers, writers, directors, creatives of all sorts an opportunity to trial things out and see how they’re going. Long live that spirit and let’s look out forward to the second DL Trade.
