What’s on at Edinburgh Festival Fringe: Showcasing performing arts, dance and theatre events from Denmark
#DANISH is the Danish showcase at Edinburgh Festival Fringe this year founded by Danish producer Karen Toftegaard, CEO of WILDTOPIA, with a vision about Danish companies rising together and connecting with people in Scotland and from all over the world. It is supported by and partly curated by the Danish Arts Foundation – and first came to the capital city in 2020 and returned last year. The collection promises to be an eclectic mix of shows spanning various genres, which are set to delight and inspire, being a feast for the eyes as well as challenging our minds.
Here they preview seven shows to give you a taste of what’s in store.
Harvest: A dance performance connecting you with nature, at ZOO, Southside
A contemporary and a neoflamenco dancer perform in this specially choreographed work which explores the notion of the working body across agriculture and dance.
Described as “a strong dance piece” by “Two amazing and musically very different dancers” it asks how do humans shape and cultivate nature and how does trade shape us? The two performers work with soil and grass to as the question, with music provided by Rums of Resonance, who transform solid surfaces into resonating speakers.
THE INSIDER – personal story about huge financial fraud, presented at ZOO Southside
Teater Katapult is a company which is a widely recognised theatre in Aarhus, Denmark, with two stages – a modern black box stage and a small studio stage. Katapult develop, produce, and present new contemporary drama with political and existential themes. Here they look into the human face of greed – live acting, visuals and a binaural soundscape that promises to give you the chills.
Headphones and 3D sound create an intimate connection with the cynical financier on the stage, as he is interrogated. It is billed as “A performance about ingenuity, deception and greed.”
TOURIST – physical theatre about how encountering others can bring both the best and the worst out in us
Don Gnu’s Tourist is also on at ZOO Southside – a Danish company that has come to the EdFringe every year since 2017.
In this piece of comic theatre-cum-circus, three loveable tourists find their dream vacation turning into a nightmare – a chaotic battleground over the claim of uninhabited landscapes, swimming pools and roasted pigs.
The performance promises an action-packed, physical comedy about life as a tourist and how encountering others can bring out the best, and the worst, in us.
MASS EFFECT – dance performance that pushes you past the limits at Summerhall
Himherandit are one of the leading Queer Art Companies in Denmark. They are an award-winning troupe who specialise in performance art, physical theatre, immersive theatre, dance and large-scale video installations. Often tackling difficult to approach subjects, means their projects can push, provoke and engage audiences into debate and discussion.
Described as a high-intensity performance Mass Effect sees the cast pushed to their physical limits, dealing with exhaustion, motivation and group dynamics as they create patterns on the stage with complex running formations.
They’re joined by members of the local community towards the end of the performance on one exhausting last push, which really pumps up the energy. It’s a performance which aims to fill the theatre with an energetic pulse, vitality and joy.
SENSUOUS GOVERNING – an immersive and otherworldly journey into the governing structure of our society, presented by Summerhall
Described as: “An immersive and otherworldly journey into the governing structures of our society,” this production by Sisters Hope, an acclaimed and award-winning Copenhagen performance group, promises to help you explore your poetic self – as well as hopes and dreams for a potential future society called Sensuous Society. It’s set in a new world, where everything is governed by the principles of the aesthetic dimension.
You will meet several of the Sisters Hope performers who will guide and facilitate you on your journey in this immersive performance which explores different aspects of what they call a Sensuous Society.
DARK NOON – a unique mind-blowing theatrical experience which has just received 5 stars from The Guardian, presented at EICC by The Pleasance
If history is written by the victors then this performance bucks the trend, the story here is told by the vanquished.
One review said it was “Fresh, arresting and not a little troubling”. Fix&Foxy, who have been producing theatre and performance art for over a decade, promise audiences a unique and mind-blowing theatrical experience.
You’ll be taken back into the dark parts of American history, in what is described as a “brutal reimagining” told by seven South African actors, who tell the story of the 35 million poor, hungry Europeans who fled across the Atlantic and the Native Americans, Chinese immigrants, and African slaves all in a race for land, gold, Hollywood’s silver screen, and ultimately a home.
STONE-FACE-BOOK – a dance performance about a man and some stones at Dancebase / Assembly
This solo performance with award-winning dancer Mikolaj Karczewski, comes from Granhøj Dans, an internationally acknowledged dance company that has its base in Denmark.
The dance, which got a five star review in the Morning Star, is based on personal material and made in collaboration with the obstruction master Palle Granhøj. Drawing on his father’s background as a miner, Mikolaj uses whimsical choreography to breathe life into the stones, finding music in them, and from that music and dance arise.
Book now
For more details and to book tickets visit the website here.