Edinburgh Fringe 2026

Father, Away She Goes

Pierpoint Productions

Genre: New Writing, Theatre

Venue: Zoo Playground

Festival: Edinburgh Fringe

Low Down

Review

“Tell people what they want to hear and they will give you what you want.  As an artist, this means the possibilities are endless”, to paraphrase Sarah Jones, Electra Kolb’s apparently upbeat, effervescent bombshell of an alter ego.  Sarah fell in love with art from a very early age to the point where getting into art school has become a dominating obsession, begging the obvious question – just how far will she go to achieve her dreams?

That’s the premise for Electra Kolb’s Father, Away She Goes, a multi-layered piece of theatre that explores societal attitudes towards ambition, particularly when combined with Machiavellian overtures and a generous helping of ruthlessness – kind of Amandaland meets that lady in Macbeth.

Sarah exudes the hyperactivity of one who is used to getting what she wants and is intolerant of those who don’t get what she’s about – getting into art school as the starting point of her journey to fame (and fortune).  Pacing around Zoo Playground’s tight stage containing an pointedly blank easel (artist’s block, clearly), paints, brushes, a half-drunk bottle of vodka and a seat, she summarises her progress so far, which could be politely described artistically as minimalist or prosaically as chuff all.

Naturally, for this epitome of hubristic narcissism, Sarah blames everyone/everything but her own lack of motivation, effort and inability to tick the boxes in terms of what art schools are looking for from prospective students.  Sarah paints landscapes.  Art schools want EDI compliant and woke friendly material, it seems.  But she’s one determined, manipulative girl, who knows that people will give you what you want if you just tell them what they want to hear.  It doesn’t need to be the truth, just believable.

Kolb’s alter ego relates her tale at pace across sixty minutes of tightly scripted, consummately staged theatre.  Sarah exploits and destroys people as a matter of course; her mother, her friends, the parents of her friends, her art teacher, even casual acquaintances get the treatment.  Her disdain for anyone or anything that doesn’t fit with her rationale of the art world is painfully evident, “chronic British politeness” and the “University of Buttf**k Nowhere” are just two of the epithets spat out with a venom that makes Trump sound like a pussycat.

Sarah seems to be a part of Kolb, yet she’s able to switch effortlessly and very effectively between her alter ego and the broad range of other characters/caricatures scattered across the piece, accents being a particular strength, as is Kolb’s projection, an asset in noisy, cramped Fringe venues.  But it’s the intensity in Kolb’s eyes that are one of the more haunting parts of this play, conveying without words the ruthless determination that lies within.  Chilling.

As Sarah’s story unfolds, so the mood darkens to one of expressionist noir, worse even, given the traumatic nature of incidents that allegedly occur as she desperately tries to “tick the boxes” on her art school application.   But her ultimate achievement of her goal raises more questions than it answers.  Just how far did Sarah go in her quest?  It’s left to the audience to make up its collective mind as it files out of the door, still stunned at the chilling denouement, delivered sans émotion, those piercing eyes hiding a thousand lies.

This deep, cleverly written and staged piece of theatre has the look and feel of a seasoned professional.  All the more surprising that it’s Kolb’s first venture, that she wasn’t old enough to drink that on-stage “vodka” when she premiered the show last year and that she’s still in her teens, yet with the gravitas, delivery and command of an audience of someone twice her age.   Frightening.  Highly recommended.

Published August 22, 2026 by Tim Wilcock