Tag: Pleasance Courtyard

Fringe 2022: Luke Wright – The Remains of Logan Dankworth

Luke Wright (UK) presents

LUKE WRIGHT: THE REMAINS OF LOGAN DANKWORTH

Fast-paced, thrilling verse play about marriage and political upheaval, told in blistering verse by one of the UK’s most celebrated poets. ‘Cool poems’ Patti Smith ‘A poet for our day’ The Guardian

The Remains of Logan Dankworth is the third and final instalment of Fringe First and Stage Award winner Luke Wright’s trilogy of political verse plays. It looks at trust and privilege in the age of Brexit.

Logan Dankworth, newspaper columnist and Twitter warrior, grew up romanticising the political turmoil of the 1980s. Now, as the EU Referendum looms he is determined to be right there in the fray of the biggest political battle for years.

Meanwhile, Logan’s wife Megan wants to leave London to find a place to better raise their daughter. As tensions mount at home and across the nation, something is set to be lost forever. This gut wrenching and exhilarating slice of new writing won the 2020 Saboteur Award for Best Show with Luke winning Best Performer in 2021.

‘Sensational writing … human, vulnerable, eminently honest and very, very eloquent.’ The Guardian

The first two plays in the trilogy, What I Learned from Johnny Bevan and Frankie Vah, won praise from Fringe and UK-wide critics and audiences alike for their ‘mature, lyrical and politically relevant poetic writing’ (Exeunt), laced with wit, compassion and laser precision.

Luke said ‘The Remains of Logan Dankworth is the most complex and mature thing I’ve written so far. As with my earlier plays there is a personal story occurring against the backdrop of political upheaval.

“Previously I’ve dealt with Thatcherism and the legacy of New Labour, this is bang up to date and features a man approaching middle age excited by the febrile nature of British politics while trying to hold things together at home.”

Luke Wright is a poet and theatre maker who has been writing and performing his work for over 20 years, touring all over the world. He is acknowledged as one of Britain’s top stand-up poets and one of the principle architects of the now thriving spoken word scene. 

Flamboyant, political and riotously funny, Luke’s published work includes four full collections, three pamphlets and his three verse plays. He is the winner of a Fringe First, a Stage Award for acting excellence and two Saboteur Awards. The Remains of Logan Dankworth is published in book form by Penned in the Margins.

‘Great! A hurtling headlong hour ’ ★★★★ The Stage

The Remains of Logan Dankworth was co-commissioned by Norwich Arts Centre, National Centre for Writing, Colchester Arts Centre, and Freedom Festival. It is written & performed by Luke Wright, directed by Alex Thorpe who also has three Royal Shakespeare Company productions under his belt. Music for the show was written and performed by musician and writer Polly Wright with dramaturgy by Sarah Dickenson and lighting design by Joe Price.

Luke also performs Luke Wright’s Late Night Dance Floor Fillers (poems) at Pleasance Jack Dome 3- 29 Aug (not 15/16/17) at 23.00.

https://youtu.be/OEcE8EoGy4A
Listings information: The Remains of Logan Dankworth
Venue: Pleasance Courtyard, Above (Venue 33)Tickets: £12-£15.50 (previews 3, 4 Aug £7.50)
Dates: 3-29 Aug (not 15/16/17) First review date 3 AugVenue Box Office: 0131 556 6550
Time:   15.45 (60 mins) Online: pleasance.co.uk 

Edinburgh University Students’ Association to open four Fringe spaces 

This summer, the Edinburgh Festival Fringe returns bigger than ever, in this its 75th year, and Edinburgh University Students’ Association is set to re-open iconic venues across the city, in conjunction with its Festival partners, as well as a brand-new spot for 2022: Potterrow Plaza.

New for 2022, Edinburgh University Students’ Association in collaboration with Pleasance London will create a space in front of the Pleasance Dome with food, drink and immersive show experiences. As well as this brand-new spot, classic Fringe venues the Pleasance Courtyard, and Gilded Balloon at are set to return with a number of local favourite food and drink suppliers.

At the Potterrow Plaza, guests will get the chance to experience a séance or a take flight, in two new interactive simulation performances installed by the Pleasance Theatre Trust. Mint Falafel will be in residence with a delicious selection of flatbread wraps suitable for everyone from meat-eaters to vegans. The area will have plenty of seating and a bar and will be a great spot to take in the atmosphere right at the heart of the fringe.

The Pleasance Courtyard will be back at its best for 2022, with city favourites such as the Beach House, Pizza Geeks and Babu Kitchen (rebranded as Total Meltdown with delicious cheese toasties) to name a few.

Barnacles & Bones will be coming with a delicious pasta menu, CEC Catering, the team behind The Garden Bistro in Saughton, will be taking over the indoor cafe and Luxford Burgers, which is run by an Edinburgh University student, will also be at the venue, making sure visitors will never go hungry pre or post show!

The delicious food offering at The Pleasance will sit under the iconic canopy of umbrellas and stretch tents in the series of cobbled courtyards, which makes it the perfect spot to enjoy the festival atmosphere come rain or shine. 

Pizza Geeks, much-loved amongst Edinburgh locals, will have an outlet inside the Pleasance Dome. Their pizzas – inspired by beloved sci-fi and video game characters – can be enjoyed day and night in the Dome; ideal in the event there is August rain! The Pleasance Dome houses several fringe venues and has a dfun, unique atmosphere day and night. The spacious area also gives visitors a good chance of finding a seat to enjoy drinks for a quick break between shows.

The Gilded Balloon at Teviot venueis the perfect spot, day and night. From coffee to start the day, to a pre-show drink, to a DJ backed late-night in the Garden, the venue is in the heart of the fringe, from morning until the wee small hours throughout the month of August.

Linton&Co speciality coffee will be on site for festival caffeination, and food will be available from the team behind the ever-popular Down the Hatch. Drinks will be served from three bars in the Garden. The entire garden is sheltered, and guests can even cosy up in one of the colourful beach huts (which seat 6) if the weather takes a turn.

Inside Teviot, there will be several Grab & Go bars for show-goers to the many Gilded Balloon venues inside. The iconic Library Bar will be serving a wide selection of drinks and a diverse menu day and night.

Along Charles Street, outside the Gilded Balloon at Teviot venue, there will also be a row of food trucks that will take seat for the month, with Bross Bagels and Mac Love serving the best bagels and macaroni cheese in Edinburgh. Screaming Peacock will please meat lovers and veggies with a mouth-watering selection of burgers, and Crema Caravan will satisfy any sweet tooth with delightful artisan desserts.

Drinks will be flowing across all three venues, with Molson Coors products featuring across all locations. Coors, Prahva, Carling, Staropramen, Guinness, Rekorderlig ciders, Johnnie Walker, Gordon’s Gin, Fever Tree softs and much more will all be on offer, so there really is something for everyone.

Cocktails on draught will also be available in all sites so guests don’t have to wait long to be served, and can even grab a cocktail in a can whilst queuing for performances!

Niamh Roberts, Students’ Association President, said: “After lockdowns, the Fringe is back, and it is set to be one of the biggest ever. We want to make sure our guests have the best time,  enjoying an amazing food and drinks offering across our sites.

“We hope everyone gets to experience as much as possible of what makes the Fringe so special.”

All three main venues are open ‘til late so visitors can enjoy the very best food and drink Edinburgh has to offer – whether they’re catching a show or catching up with friends.

To get the latest news from each venues, follow:

https://www.instagram.com/thegardenatteviot/
https://www.instagram.com/courtyardanddome/

Fringe 2022: Pauline

Pauline 

Pleasance Courtyard (Bunker 2), 60 Pleasance, Edinburgh, EH8 9TJ

Wednesday 3 August – Monday 29 August, 12:20pm (not 15th) 

From Breakthrough Memoir award winner Sophie Bentinck comes Pauline, a new dark comedy about finding your nan’s suicide note. Written and performed by Bentinck, directed by Fred Wienand (Twelfth Night, Yvonne Arnaud Theatre), with sound design by Anna Short (Folk, Hampstead Theatre), lighting design by Ali Hunter (Orlando, Jermyn Street Theatre), and presented together with producer Emma Blackman (Bobby & Amy, Fringe First Award 2019), this powerful autobiographical piece explores learning to dance with the skeletons in your family closet. 

Pauline is the story of three generations of women in one family – and the story of the writer who went digging in the secrets file in order to bring them all on stage. Witness a brutally honest and joyfully hilarious glimpse into what it has meant to be a woman in the Bentinck family as far back as 1921. 

Runner up at the prestigious Screenshot 2020 competition, the judging panel which included Olivia Colman and Lolly Adefope, said of Pauline “it is important this story gets told” and Phoebe Waller-Bridge praised the play as “captivating.” Sophie was also selected by acclaimed writer Cathy Rentzenbrink as Curtis Brown’s Breakthrough Memoir Scholar for the adaptation she is writing of the play. 

In 1967 Pauline prematurely died from an overdose, and fifty years later Sophie found and read her diaries. This led to a journey of self-discovery, exploring mental health, loneliness and half a century of female voices, with no holds barred.

Actress and writer Sophie Bentinck said: “I’m the thirty-four year old daughter of Anna, who is the seventy-four-year-old daughter of Pauline. Pauline is dead, Anna has Alzheimer’s; I am writing our story.

Sophie continues: “Covid struck the night before I was due to perform my one woman show for the very first time. A show in which I tried to deal with the inherited trauma of losing my eccentric, guinness and champagne-loving grandmother to suicide.

“However, as I tried to keep the memory of Pauline intact during the pandemic, my mum’s memory faded fast, following a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s Disease. The show has now become, through interwoven conversations with mum and my nan’s diary extracts ranging from 1944-1967, an endeavour to give a sense of the interlapping of memory: my own, my mother’s and my grandmother’s, before she decided she had nothing left to say.”

“Over the pandemic many families were forced to bury their dead without proper funerals or goodbyes. Loss does not always mean physical absence, it can be psychological too. As we begin to take stock of the impacts of Covid, Sophie attempts to combat them and shine a light on some of the darker times.

“From the postponement of this show in 2020, to the ambiguous grief of losing someone to Alzhiemer’s as well as to suicide, Pauline charts Sophie’s journey, against all odds, to get on that stage at the Fringe and tell the story of all of the women whose shoulders she stands on.

Edinburgh Fringe – Ruby Wax: How to be Human

Ruby Wax: How to be Human

Edinburgh Festival Fringe

18-24 August, 16.00

Pleasance Courtyard, 60 Pleasance, EH8 9TJ

Tickets £16 (£15 concessions)/ £18 (£16 concessions)

https://www.pleasance.co.uk/event/ruby-wax-how-be-human/performances /  www.rubywax.net

Based on her bestselling book, Ruby’s new show How to Be Human answers every question you’ve ever had about evolution, thoughts, emotions, the body, addictions, relationships, sex, kids, the future and compassion.

Outrageously witty and smart, blending brilliant comedy and insightful life lessons, How to Be Human is the show you need to help you upgrade your mind as much as you’ve upgraded your iPhone.