Edinburgh Fringe 2025
I’m Autistic – A New Musical
Genuinely Confused Theatre Company
Genre: Musical Theatre, Neurodiverse, New Writing
Venue: Venue 45 at theSpace
Festival: Edinburgh Fringe
Low Down
I’m Autistic is a new musical following the lives of Lauren, Nat, and Chloe – three autistic young adults who are navigating the challenges of life, love, loss, and learning to exist (and thrive!) as neurodiverse individuals. Written by Leonora Brooks, this production offers an emotional, entertaining, and enlightening insight into what it is to live in the world as an autistic person.
Review
This brand-new musical written by Leonora Brooks aims to accurately represent some of the experiences of autistic young adults. Following the lives of Lauren, Nat, and Chloe, audiences are given an insight into the relationships, experiences, and struggles of the characters as they navigate life with neurodiversity. With simple yet stunning choreography by Olivia Jenkins, and beautiful accompaniment by Musical Director Anto Buckley, this is a well-rounded and well-developed production. The set design consists of four large stage blocks which are used as storage for props and moved by the cast to help establish setting within the space. In most cases, costumes are simple and understated but work well to create a clear and recognisable sense of character.
From their love lives, to friendships, relationships, studies, mental health, and more this 75-minute production provides an impressively in-depth view into the three storylines, allowing audiences to become truly invested in the characters and their journeys. Featuring an incredibly strong cast, the show contains some stunning vocals and harmonies throughout – the choral ‘Hear Me’ a particularly stand-out moment. Liberty Ashford’s performance was captivating as Lauren – she delivered a nuanced and heart-wrenching performance with songs such as ‘Strange Little Girl’ and yet was able to bring playful and comedic moments to the character, displaying incredible acting range. Gabriel Phelan was brilliant as Nat – with clear, strong vocals and a beautifully developed physicality for the character, you couldn’t help but root for him. Overall, the entire cast were phenomenal, consistent, and awe-inspiringly talented. A special mention goes to Maisie Fogg who played the role of Nat’s sister and Chloe’s bully, two wildly different characters but both distinct, recognisable, and skilfully portrayed.
Whilst I didn’t walk away humming any of the melodies, I didn’t feel this diminished the work in any way as the lyrics felt semi-conversational and more narratively driven, and as such they served their purpose to help develop characters and storylines without needing to be ‘catchy’. The use of the blocks to change space was very inventive, and worked well, however I wonder if it was slightly over-used or perhaps it was simply a case that the later scene transitions would have benefitted from a little extra time to get them as slick and smooth as the first few. Performed in a thrust layout, with audiences on all three sides, the cast did a wonderful job of addressing every member of the audience and ensuring there was always something to look at and be enthralled by. That being said, sightlines were a slight issue at points, particularly when actors were seated on the floor, and I noticed myself and a few other audience members struggling to get a good view in order not to miss some of the more intimate, vulnerable moments of the piece. Nevertheless, I doubt there was a dry eye in the house, and the pace and fluency of the piece meant this was not an issue for too long.
Overall, the show goes above-and-beyond with regards to completing its goals; Not only does it provide an accurate depiction of the lived-experiences of these characters and their struggles, but a chance for neurodiverse people to feel represented onstage and reflected in the characters, it’s also a great way to educate audiences without being too preach-y or statistic-heavy. I’m Autistic strikes the perfect balance between education, emotion, and experience, leaving us with an equally thought-provoking and entertaining production.
