Reviews by Jessie Maltin

Songs For A New World was Jason Robert Brown's first produced show. It's unique--hard to describe but full of beautiful music. He has said of the piece, that it's 'about one moment. It's about hitting the wall and having to make a choice, or take a stand, or turn around and go back.' This particular production made me want to choose to run screaming out of the theatre and forget that it ever happened. There were so many things wrong from top to bottom, I don't quite know where to begin. The venue is a church which, considering that the show has songs about Jesus, was either a brilliant or terrible choice. The set is simple, full of small props that are supposed to mean something--except we don't know what. They shine flashlights at you, turn on twinkly lights and expect you to be moved. I was not. There are four actors, each trying their best to convey a bevy of emotions--sadly none of them had any stage presence and some struggled to hit the notes so the only thing I felt was the need to leave. There isn't a band, just one lone pianist, accompanied by the actors who take it upon themselves to be the percussionists using bongos and tiny egg shakers. Here again we are faced with a big problem--the actors appear to have no rhythm. They are shaking and tapping with all their might, just not in tempo with the singer or the pianist. At one point my companion and I debated taking the shakers away from them but thought it best not to disrupt the catastrophe happening before our eyes. I'm a huge fan of Jason Robert Brown, he writes music and lyrics that speak volumes especially at different stages in ones life. He also tends to use a lot of Jewish cultural references, New York accents and yiddishisms. The cast struggled terribly with this, unable to imitate or bring to life the characters as they were written. Being that I know the show well I found it horribly painful listening to them butcher songs so dear to my heart. This is a complicated show when done well, so in this state, you really had no idea at all what was happening. With actors who can sing but definitely couldn't perform these songs, using a stage that was supposedly full of symbolism that wasn't in any way symbolic--well, you basically end up with a huge mess. I can only hope that no one sees this show for the first time with this cast, because they do it absolutely no justice.

Ed Byrne, familiar to audiences from Mock The Week, débuts his newest routine Roaring Forties here at the Fringe. The whole show centres around discovering and embracing his forties. He's married with two young children and is having to deal with the inevitable health issues that begin to pop up with age. He discusses all of these things frankly, honestly, and of course, humourously. Byrne welcomes us into his world, bantering with the audience, most of whom can relate to his situation - which may be the only downfall for the younger attendees. This is most definitely a conversation about a certain time in one’s life, so if that isn't the stage you're currently in it may not be as appealing. One of the best choices he made was asking the audience where they were from so that those unfamiliar with current events weren't left in the dark. In terms of the audience, I warn you, they're a raucous, drunken bunch. Regardless of age, Byrne is amusing and sincere. His observational humour and casual delivery are wonderful, but due to the content of this show, not necessarily universal. This is simply a slice of Ed's life and by the end you feel like you've been listening to a friend, albeit a damn funny one, for an hour.

Fawlty Towers was a short lived but beloved TV series which has been turned into an interactive dining experience. Those people who know the show and characters are well aware of what chaos they've agreed to, but anyone else coming simply because they've read about this popular attraction are in for quite a shock. Basil, his wife Sybil and their bumbling waiter Manuel welcome you into their restaurant and shenanigans ensue.You're seated at long tables, smooshed up against the person next to you in terribly uncomfortable chairs. Your courses are served to you either by the cast who banter and bustle about - or by real employees of the establishment who look positively miserable. It must be said that if you were planning on actually eating your meal you're basically out of luck. Rolls will be thrown, water will be splashed, and garnish will be tossed. When a bit of food actually made it to your plate, you ate it as fast as possible before it was taken away or played with.I can't imagine attempting to fill John Cleese's shoes and unfortunately the actor trying to do so fails rather miserably; a clown with all the subtlety of a stampeding elephant. Sybil is absolutely perfect, coming around and checking on each table. Manuel is endearing and has excellent comedic timing but after a while even his schtick gets old. Some of the audience laughed heartily, some looked terrified at what might be coming next. Manuel could be climbing on you or Basil could be underneath your table. I was bored and annoyed, but others seemed genuinely amused. In the end, this is something you have to experience and judge for yourself.

It's not hard to understand why Piff the Magic Dragon is so popular – he's hilariously funny, tremendously talented and has a teeny tiny chihuahua in a matching ­costume. I've always been a fan of simple old-school sleight of hand; the sort of magic that doesn't ­require bells and whistles but still manages to mesmerise. Piff ­delivers just that and so much more. It's hard to say whether he's a ­comedian who performs card tricks and illusions or a magician who uses comedy because he's so adept at both. His deadpan humour and ­timing are perfect, as is that of his amusingly dour assistant, Amy Sunshine. The show is interactive, calling upon many different ­audience members to partake as they hold things, shred things, sign things and more. He calls them down in a Price is Right-esque fashion, the response often being squeals of joy and glee. I was ­particularly impressed with his ability to suffer fools graciously, as he often had to repeat ­instructions. He mocked his ­volunteers gently and carried on, never ­missing a beat. The Fringe is a unique environment; you never really know what you're going to see – so experiencing a professional manipulate dozens of fragile props whilst ­simulataneously entertaining a large crowd and parading around in a dragon costume with a similarly-attired pooch was nothing short of a pleasure. Piff is quite simply delightful.

First of all, it's important that you ignore the title of this show because it has absolutely nothing to do with what you'll be watching. Essentially, we see several Scottish comedians each doing five minutes of stand-up focusing on their country or countries of origin. It was difficult to warm to any of the comedians and the setup didn’t allow the acts to get much further than the preliminaries, but it acted as a great taster session for the variety of acts that the country has to offer, proving that there is by no means a ‘typical’ Scottish comedian. Their topics ranged from the usual 'my flatmate is so annoying' to the more specific 'don't you hate when the such-and-such train shuts down?' Though the jokes weren’t always accessible, there were enough laughs to keep up the energy. In this particular war of wits, it’s likely that The World won, as the most successful jokes were the ones that could be enjoyed by the entire audience, yet Scotland took the major battles. Though this may not be the best show for visitors ignorant of the mores of Scottish life, this wide variety of comedians will give you a schooling on the types of humour that make Edinburgh the funniest place to be this Summer.

For the last ten years, Out Of The Blue has been entertaining Edinburgh crowds with great success. Their awkward dance moves, silly interactions and sincere audience banter have given them quite the reputation - a clean cut show appropriate for all ages. As they're students at Oxford, the members are always changing as singers graduate and move on. This means you probably won’t be seeing very many of the same people from year to year. Unfortunately, it also means that some groups blend better than others. It's hard to say that I didn't enjoy the performance but I had trouble getting past a few major issues. With fourteen men on stage, it's extremely important for the vocal mix to be impeccable - and it wasn't. They had two microphones, one for the person beatboxing, or vocal percussionist, and another set up at the front for the person singing lead. As a result, the lead could barely be heard over the other thirteen men. These guys are clearly here to please. They certainly want their audience to have a good time: that's why they do an array of songs from pop to ballad so everyone feels included. The upbeat songs were by far a superior choice, since they sounded so much better and had adorable and goofy choreography. The slower ones were more obviously flawed as the singers struggled to find their notes and solidify their sound. While they are funny and charming, I really wish they could have worked a little more on their tuning.

Now in their fifth year of performing at the Fringe, Late Night Gimp Fight is NewsRevue’s dirtier younger sister. This group mixes satire, dance, song, physical comedy, political commentary and, naturally, lots of sexual references. There are several musical numbers that are hysterically funny and extremely well done, however much of the show leans toward the filthier side of comedy, which might not be to everyone's liking. Some of the shorter skits weren't as well thought through, but the audience still lapped it up, willingly participating whenever asked. The five young gentlemen who make up the group are multi-talented and play up each of their skills. It's very clear how much they love performing and making the audience laugh. It's that joy and silliness that washes over the crowd - what they do they do very well and they do it with great enthusiasm and style. Even if you don't find every sketch funny, you'll still end up leaving with a smile on your face simply because everyone there - including the actors - had a wonderful time which is all you can really ask for.

What if I told you that Adolf Hitler was going to do a reading of Mein Kampf for a small audience, offering you tea and biscuits while you sit together and discuss his ideology? Now imagine, for a moment, that you've never heard of Osama Bin Laden. You have no preconceived notions or information about this fellow, he's just a man you haven't met before welcoming you into a theatre to have a conversation. I realise this isn't the simplest thing to do, considering that many of us have extremely strong feelings towards him. The attack on the twin towers, now infamously known as 9/11, is something that will be spoken about for generations to come. Al-Qaeda and Bin Laden are synonymous with terrorism, we have been taught to hate them as they only wish to do harm to anyone who gets in their way. Now imagine if you knew none of that. One of the most difficult things to do in any situation is to see both sides of a story, to weigh each of the parties’ actions evenly and decide who made the more rational choice. Here we are offered a peek at the other side of an incredibly sensitive subject - we meet the man behind the curtain. Sam Redway is Osama Bin Laden and the lead in this one man show. His performance is genuinely superb, he possesses a magnetism and charisma that requires you to watch his every move. He isn't in costume. He has a few very simple props. He's a young handsome British gentleman, blonde haired and blue eyed - not quite who you'd expect to be playing this role but he does it with grace and agility. That is just one of the many things that make this show so powerful and unique. Redway and his writing partner/director Toby Tyrrell-Jones have somehow managed to make this monster accessible. They figured out how to introduce you to a person, not a boogeyman you fear. Here he's just a man telling you about his life, his family, his hopes and dreams, and explaining how and why things came about the way they did. I can say in earnest that I never thought I'd care to learn more about this terrorist, however this show did something most cannot even dream of achieving - it made me think. Moreover it made me identify with someone that I can now look at as a human. You must walk in with an open mind and you must be willing to listen. If you do this, you will experience one of the finest pieces of theatre on the Fringe.