Edinburgh Fringe Theatre reviews: REVENGE: After the Levoyah | Old Man | Disco Dick | FUFC + more...

In our critics’ latest Fringe theatre round-up, a Tarantino-esque heist built around plot to kidnap Jeremy Corbyn turns out to be a frequently laugh-out loud caper, while a strong stomach is required for a bloody and nihilistic play that maybe owes a debt of inspiration to Fight Club author Chuck Palahnuik

Dylan Corbett-Bader & Gemma Barnett in REVENGE: After the Levoyah | Pic: (c) Alex Brenner

REVENGE: After the Levoyah

Summerhall (Venue 26)

★★★★☆

What a frenzied, hilarious treat for the imagination this play is, especially given the way its one-line sell suggests a piece of work which really could go wrong on every imaginable level. Other opinions may vary, but a pair of Jewish twins getting involved in a Tarantino-esque heist based around a plot to kidnap Jeremy Corbyn sounds like fodder for an ill-conceived student Fringe drama which all concerned will probably never speak of again.

Instead, however, Nick Cassenbaum’s play and Emma Jude Harris’s direction of it are absolutely masterful, a breakneck, frequently laugh-out-loud caper which turns upon the visceral performances of actors Dylan Corbett-Bader and Gemma Barnett. The pair play Essex twins Dan and Lauren, but they also embody a mass ensemble cast of characters which by the end of the play includes Mossad, MI5 and the CIA. On occasion the actors are required to deliver breakneck, desperate dialogue with themselves, which works to a sublime comic tee.

The levoyah of the title is the Jewish funeral for their grandfather, where the pair meet elderly Essex wideboy Malcolm Spivak, who tells the pair lurid stories about past sexual conquests and carving up racists with his butchery tools. He concocts the plan (or at least, believes he does) to snatch Corbyn, for the barked, dismissive reason that “’e ‘ates us!” Malcolm is just one of many expertly-drawn comic characters here, along with the milquetoast liberal rabbi who doesn’t want kidnapping Corbyn to affect her chances of standing for Labour, or Moishe, the monosyllabic nonagenarian body disposal expert.

The near-endless laughter brightens the darkness, but it doesn’t extinguish it. Lauren’s encounter with a brutish, conspiracy-theorising racist boiler engineer is terrifying, especially in this real-life moment, while the beautifully-drawn portrait of contemporary Jewish life in Britain is laced with fear and anger about antisemitism. The excellence of this play is the way it lampoons all sides while disrespecting none, with an overriding tone of disturbed confusion which feels very now.

David Pollock

until 26 August

Old Man

Summerhall - Red Lecture Theatre (Venue 26)

★★★☆☆

There’s a Yiddish word for someone who is not just senile, but stupidly so. Comically so. Jonathan Tilley’s Old Man is a clown show where an ‘alte kaker’ takes centre stage.  

For the most part it is a barrage of low octane hijinks. Babbling around in a dressing gown, trousers pulled up offensively high, he stumbles about fighting against his own fragility. He tries and fails to complete mundane tasks in a room where everything is clad in a BBC Radio 4 shade of beige. Equal parts bubbly and manic, Tilley channels Ken Dodd, shooting schoolboy grins at his audience after each imbecilic gag.

But there’s a darkness lurking beneath the surface of the silliness. We detect an absence of someone early on; the old man pours over a cardboard box marked “Daniel’s things” – DVDs, and a rugby ball. His imagination spirals re-enacting scenes from the films: an absurdly overblown shootout and bullet dodge from the Matrix, the entirety of the prologue of Raiders of the Lost Ark.

But Daniel’s identity is kept tantalisingly ambiguous. We never learn what their relationship is. A son, lover, or brother? Are they even dead or alive? His absence echoes loudly to the extent that it begs a poignant question: is the larking around cloaked in melancholy? The fact we can’t tell if he is lonely or grieving makes it all the more magnetic. Tragedy and comedy seem like polar opposites but often they go hand in hand.

Alexander Cohen

until 11 August

Disco Dick

theSpace @ Symposium Hall (Venue 43)

★★☆ ☆ ☆ 

Coming out can be a challenge in normal circumstances but Fran (Eloise Sladden) is caught in bed with her girlfriend before a family meal. Charlotte D'Angelo's absurd comedy gets increasingly chaotic with the delivery of a light-up strap-on. Harriet Pringle is hilarious as frantic mother, Emma, who struggles to even say "lesbian”. Her himbo husband is played with awkwardness by Todd Bell and they make a perfectly dysfunctional pair. Throughout the meal, the family create wild distractions to keep Grandma from discovering Fran's sexuality; the absurdity peaks with a sexualised cake. Though some action is inexplicable, the awkward moments provide a funny, yet somewhat poignant, look at a family navigating unexpected revelations.

 Suzanne O'Brien

until 10 August

FUFC

theSpace on the Mile (Venue 39)

★★☆☆☆

Mark Jackson’s play about two middle-aged friends who meet on a Sunday league football pitch and discuss how one of them has received a prostate cancer diagnosis is easy to admire – even though it’s hard to imagine a losing goalkeeper getting this long to stand chatting on the sidelines. The dialogue often feels like a public information film as it outlines the processes and treatments surrounding such a life-changing event, but it still offers powerful encouragement for audience members to think about their own health, with a couple of funny lines in there as well. It’s a raw piece, though, with some dialogue confusingly repeated in its opening performance.

David Pollock

until 10 August

Why Did I Crush My Balls? And Other Tales from the Generation of Too Much

Bedlam Theatre (Venue 49) until 11 August

★★★☆☆

The title IS the content warning in this impressively nasty stream-of-incipient-unconciousness that plays out like the Portnoy’s Complaint of aberrant sexuality. This starts out bloody and the protective plastic sheeting covering the width of the stage promises that things are just going to get worse — and they do. American writer and actor Aidan Dominic Roche, clad only into a pair of bloody boxer shorts, tears into an understandably panicked justification for his self-mutilation, one that probably owes a debt of inspiration to Fight Club author Chuck Palahniuk’s sense of nihilism, and which is performed with real confidence and energy.

This all stems from a fight he had with his brother, you see — oh no, wait, maybe it was his first sexual encounter, or perhaps one of the subsequent ones. The women in our bloody protagonist’s life are all strikingly portrayed by Miranda Faria whose presence anchors the production and stops it from descending into a full-blown panic attack. Psychologically, this is not entirely convincing but it’s strikingly staged, skilfully performed and if it has some of the hallmarks of a young writer who’s not yet outgrown his influences, it is worth braving if you’ve got the stomach for it.

Rory Ford

until 11 August

I Am Yours Sincerely

theSpaceTriplex (Venue 38)

★★★☆☆

The 6th of August 2024 marks 80 years since John Cox’s first parachute jump into occupied France. His extraordinary story as part of the Special Operations Executive during World War Two is now being told by his step-grandson, Ed Saunders-Lee, using text from personal letters and memoirs. Saunders-Lee gives a compelling and emotional performance, capturing John’s admirable spirit even in the face of adversity. Each challenge is met with determination, although the impact of John's experiences has a profound effect on him. The script is transparent about the lack of training, knowledge and awareness the spies had about what they were getting involved in, which may not be surprising, but is, nonetheless, still shocking to hear.

Dan Hill's sound design enhances the sense of place, transporting audiences into war zones and the Far East, while voiceovers introduce different characters, adding to the immersive feeling. Sensitively directed by Lillie Prowse, this story not only brings to light a remarkable man who parachuted behind enemy lines, worked with resistance groups and carried out espionage missions, it serves as a reminder of the countless sacrifices made by everyday people during times of war - many of which will remain unknown and unacknowledged.

Suzanne O'Brien

until 10 August