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Mary Woodward at the Festivals

She’s Behind You!, Traverse 1 at The Traverse Theatre, Venue 15

Brett Herriot

***** (5 stars)

“An absolute cracker”

Yet again I’ve managed to pick an absolute cracker of a show with which to start my August In Edinburgh!

In the beginning, there was the Christmas panto dame…but a dame is for more than just Christmas…

In true panto fashion, our heroine’s entrance was heralded with loud cries of She’s behind you! A vision in blue gingham and sparkly red shoes made her way down the steeply raked steps of Trav 1 to take her rightful place, centre stage.  Her opening number, into which she managed to get digs at just about every other well-kent Fringe venue as well as the International Festival itself, was greeted with a storm of applause. 

Johnny McKnight has been a pantomime dame for a goodly number of years, and works the audience superbly.  Whether you have extensive acquaintance with pantomime and its peculiarities, or not the faintest idea what this outlandish creature on stage is talking about, in an instant you are drawn into Dorothy Blownagale’s magic spell, a helpless, hapless prisoner.  Whether you will or no, you WILL enjoy yourself!

She’s behind you was originally conceived as part of the Cameron Lectures, in association with the University of Glasgow and the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.  Johnny McKnight has turned it into a wonderfully, wickedly witty exploration of the history and nature of the Pantomime Dame.  When Johnny first played panto, he was cast as the ‘silly billy’ – the naïve, gormless youth who is simply there to be laughed at, who will never, ever, get the girl – virtual type-casting, except that he was beginning to realise that he would much rather get the boy…

For all its seeming anarchy, panto has innumerable, immutable rules inherited from the commedia dell’arte, all the more challenging because never explained.  ‘Goodies’ and ‘Baddies’ can only ever enter and exit from ‘their’ side of the stage – and up to now, male and female characters alike were almost always played by men.  The heroine could be female, but was generally a pawn with little agency of her own: the whole atmosphere was unquestionably heterosexual, even though the ‘hero’ was played by a girl, with much slapping of fish-netted thighs.  Ageism, sexism, misogyny and cruel mockery were rife…

At least, that’s how it was when Johnny first trod the boards as ‘silly billy’.  In due course, he graduated to playing the Dame, and in his first season felt so uncomfortable, so ghastly, so old that he swore he’d never do it again.  Thankfully for all of us, he broke his oath.  I’m not going to outline his trajectory, or reveal his Basic Rules of Panto – they are for him to tell. 

What I will say is that the story of how Dorothy and Johnny grew and developed, of the challenges they faced, and the triumphant emergence of someone completely at ease with who they are both on and off stage, is an outstanding example to us all, and an encouragement to anyone who is trying to find out who they are, and how to be truly themselves.

There’s music, singing, dancing, glitter, sparkle, audience engagement and embarrassment, drama, tension, suspense, tears, fears and cheers in full measure, and we absolutely adored it.  A standing ovation was richly deserved.

This is a wonderful show which every homophobic, self-righteous Guardian of Public Morals should be forced to watch.  Hurry up and get your tickets before they all disappear!

She’s Behind You!, Traverse 1 at The Traverse Theatre, Venue 15 for more information go to: She’s Behind You | Edinburgh Festival Fringe

Brett Herriot at the Festivals

I Was a Teenage She-Devil, Upper Theatre at The Space @Niddry Street (Venue 9) Review:

Brett Herriot

*** 3 Stars

“Packed with energy “

An ode of love to the 80’s horror comedy movies, infused with a rock score and blending the essence of Rocky Horror with Little Shop of Horrors with a dash of Heathers and a huge dose of americana and you get “I was Teenage She-Devil” playing in a late night slot at the Space on Niddry Steet.

With book, music and lyrics by Sean Matthew Whiteford and directed by Rachel Klein and deploying an eight strong cast drawn from across the United States and right here at home in the UK the show is fun if gory romp through one person’s obsession with the 80’s culture and more specifically horror movies. Horror movies that paved the way for the “Scream” and “I know what you did last summer” franchises.

While the show is packed with energy and catchy tunes it does need some refining in the writing to avoid the plot starting to go round in circles. The performance we saw was beset with sound issues especially in the balance between head mics and the backing tracks. Given the intimacy of the space being used perhaps multiply mics need not be used, then again this is a very much a rock musical! Im sure as the show beds into its run it will come good.

If you’re looking for a fun, late musical romp that delivers everything it sets out then I was teenage she-devil is a must add to any fringe goer’s diary. There may well also be life ahead outside of the fringe for a show that’s got plenty of spark in it too! One worth catching for sure!

I Was a Teenage She-Devil, Upper Theatre at The Space @Niddry Street (Venue 9) For more info go to: I Was a Teenage She-Devil | Edinburgh Festival Fringe

Brett Herriot at the Festivals

Sauna Boy, Theatre 3 at The Space @Surgeons Hall (Venue 53) Review:

Brett Herriot

**** 4 Stars

“Delivered with a raw intensity “

Shining a light into the often-dark world of working in a Sauna, especially a gay sauna could lead to many old tropes being re-treaded. However, Sauna Boy is a step apart as its semi-autobiographical with acclaimed writer and director Dan Ireland-Reeves reflects on his time working in a gay men’s sauna on England’s south coast. 

Dan has navigated a world of Lust, friendships and unorthodox working relationships and has seen the power of true friendships outweighing the darkest of sexual desires from men who see saunas as nothing more than a way to satisfied there most depraved wishes.

This 70-minute play pitch perfectly in its evening slot is delivered with a raw intensity that grips from the off thanks to Ireland-Reeves capturing performance that embraces strong language, nudity and a lighting quick pace that belies its 70th minute run time. There are a couple of moments where the narrative does start to repeat itself but the execution of the performance to drive home the cost of the choices made retains the audiences undivided attention with ease. 

The Fringe by its very essence is the testing ground of theatre to push its boundaries and “Sauna Boy” achieves that with grace and style and is a play that is deeply personal as it relatable to all of us who simply wish to be love. The dark side of working in the adult industries in laid bare in a show that wears its heart on its sleeve and will leave you touched in many ways. Engrossing fringe theatre doesn’t come any better so be sure to see the show before it closes its Fringe run on Saturday 16th August.

Sauna Boy, Theatre 3 at The Space @Surgeons Hall (Venue 53) For more info go to:https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/sauna-boy

Mary Woodward Review

IKEA: Magical Patterns, Dovecot Studios, Edinburgh, Review:

Brett Herriot

**** (4 stars)

“a welcome splurge of colour”

Think ‘IKEA’ and if you’re me, you think of furniture.  Simple, affordable, flatpack items designed to be functional and make life easier.  What I don’t really think of is IKEA as a textile manufacturer – but then I tend to think of rooms as neutral spaces against which Life happens.   Other people think of them as blank canvases on which to splurge stunning designs and vibrant colour – and this is what’s very clear in the new exhibition, part of Fringe 2025.  Originally created and displayed by the IKEA museum in Älmhult, Sweden, Dovecot is the first non-Swedish venue to receive this collection, which showcases the talents of many designers.

I was fascinated to learn that IKEA began in the early 1940s in a small shed in Elmtaryd, in the parish of Agunnaryd, in Sweden.  The shed belonged to the family of Ingvar Kamprad, who sought to increase the family income by selling ballpoint pens and other household items.  On 28 July 1943 he registered his company name, created from his initials and those of his location: I.K and E.A…  When the business proved inconsistent, Ingvar shifted his attention to furniture, and the company began to grow.  In the 1950s, he and designer Gillis Lundgren decided to move to selling flatpacks – and the rest is history.

The textile part of the story blossomed in the 1960s.  Ingvar knew that textiles – curtains, rugs, upholstery and other fabrics – were an essential part of interior design.  Swedish interiors in the early 60s were many variations on grey: Danish designer Bitten Højmark and her successor Inger Nilsson brought colour, life, and vigour to textile design, and IKEA’s designers have continued this trend to the present day.  Women started to play an increasingly important part in the development of the company, working as designers and managers, and moving the company away from a male-dominated organisation.  Filmed interviews with some of these women make an interesting introduction to the show.

And the exhibition itself?  Strangely two-dimensional – large pieces of fabric hanging from the ‘ceiling’, sometimes grouped in curved arrangements, mostly in flats.  There are gaps between them, allowing panoramic views of the astonishing range of design and colour on display.  Display cases give insights into the designers’ thought-processes and ways of working – very much hands-on, analog, rather than sitting in front of a screen playing with a mouse or digital pen.

The fabrics are loosely grouped – different sorts of pattern, influences from the natural world, imaginative story-telling, free-form.  Many designers are named and showcased.  There are giant bananas, stylised broccoli heads, slices of oranges, mushrooms, raindrops, small horses, clowns, mouths, eyes, random doodlings, beautifully accurate drawings of leaves and flowers, brightly-coloured splurges, fantastical landscapes, restrained monochrome patterns – something to please almost everyone at some time.

Like most viewers, I found designs I really loved, and ones I couldn’t conceive of living with, and everything in between.  One piece I particularly loved looked almost like a batik design of beautifully-drawn hands on which perched small finches, while a couple of exquisitely-drawn monochrome pieces also caught my eye.  One of the brightest groupings in the show was the collection of designs produced in collaboration with British designer Zandra Rhodes – KARISMATISK – which gave people dazzingly eye-popping colours and designs with which to light up their living space.  

My favourite part of the exhibition was near the end, where a small Aladdin’s cave-like ‘room’ had been set up and crammed with a breathtakingly gorgeous collection of fabrics.  A patchwork sofa strewn with a motley collection of brightly-coloured cushions, and a wooden rocking chair with a jewel-bright patchwork cushion invited you to sit and enjoy the feast of colour.  Not somewhere one might go in search of peace and quiet, but certainly somewhere to hang out when life’s dreary drabness, or the dreich winter weather, threatened to get you down.

The more interested you are in design, the more there is to discover in Dovecot’s latest exhibition.  It’s certainly broadened my appreciation of the extent of IKEA’s product range and influence on the world of interior design, and brought a welcome splurge of colour into my life.  I will continue to be profoundly grateful for my Billies, but won’t be rushing to buy new fabrics any time soon – the Fringe is just beginning, and there’s so much else to see…

IKEA: Magical Patterns, Dovecot Studios, Edinburgh, runs till 17 January 2026 for more information go to: https://dovecotstudios.com/exhibitions/ikea-magical-patterns

Brett Herriot Review

Footloose, Festival Theatre Edinburgh, Review:

Brett Herriot

**** (4 stars)

“Visually Awe Inspiring”

Beyond Broadway Experience mark there tenth anniversary production by turning to Footloose a partial juke box musical debuting in 1988 with music by Tom Snow (amongst others) and lyrics by Dean Pitchford and a book by Pitchford and Walter Bobbie and they deliver a production that is visually Awe Inspiring.

Based on the 1984 motion picture featuring Kevin Bacon it tells the story of Ren McCormark a teenager from inner city Chicago who at his mother behest moves to Baumont Utah, where he encounters a community still struggling with a tragedy that has led the towns minister, the Revered Shaw, to ban dancing it’s all its forms. What follows is a battle of wills, humanity’s forgiveness and ultimate redemption.

Its fertile material and one that’s popular with many companies but can it work for Beyond Broadway who field a massive production that in captures all 17 lead roles but also adds a 183 strong ensemble cast which delivers many awe inducing moments on the eye but equally for its awesomeness it becomes a moving mass of humanity on its own. 

Performances across the board are uniformly excellent with directors Murray Grant, Drew Gowland and Malcolm J Burnett producing a well drilled company that deliver every inch of Grant’s, Laura Proudfoot’s and Sarah Kerr’s inspired choreography with polished pizazz. Bobby Duncan’s “Ren” is everything and more that you could wish for with a gorgeous voice and excellent physicality and he plays well against Rhianne McAllister’s Aerial Moore. She delivers beautiful vocals and a unique turn on the character. Special mention must go to Harry Aspinall as Rev Shaw Moore. He truly takes the character on a journey of emotional discovery yet gives him a rich understanding heart. Aspinall has truly grown into a very accomplished performer. 

For all that’s good about the principals its when the rest of the 200 strong company join the stage that shows the productions power and weakness in equal style. While it beguiling to see such a large company take the stage. The company is so big it becomes a seething mass of humanity and makes individuals hard to pick out. Then again, the extremely large cast is one of the wow factors.

Production wise it’s a breath of fresh air, the decision to blend Neo- Expressionism painted art with the overall production via use of live video screens is an inspired decision that takes the show to a whole new level. This is boosted by Keigan Hawthorn’s excellent lighting design. MM Productions sound design is also on the money and delivers a perfect balance between the cast and musical director Linda Stewart and her 8 strong on-stage band.

This is a Footloose that’s filled with heart but once the audience member accepts just how awesome a large cast looks it does comes across how little so many performers can, actually be used but then again that’s musical theatre in all its glory.

Beyond Broadways production of Footloose raises the bar and never let’s go and that has to be applauded. Wonderful stuff indeed. 

Beyond Broadway Experience presents Footloose, Festival Theatre Edinburgh run ended.