118 stories by "David Kettle"
Our compulsion to consume and our acceptance of outsiders investigated in two visually impressive shows
FOOD, The Studio ★★★
There's no denying it: Los Angeles-born …
Three outstanding shows at the Traverse Theatre tackle unexplored life choices, uncertain trauma and Section 28
Heaven, Traverse Theatre ★★★★★
Male violence, Greek myths and a modern-day cyclops in three strong shows
Stuntman, Summerhall ★★★★★
Three solo shows at Summerhall cover family secrets, untrodden life paths - and poultry celebrity
The Death and Life of All of Us, Summerhall ★★★★
Victor Esses…
Celebration of Scotland's iconic comedy legend Billy Connolly is a moving portrait of a nation
Anyone expecting to see the Big Yin himself, Gary McNair breathlessly explains as he dashes on …
It might sometimes whizz by, but Lesley Hart's stage adaptation has all the power, passion and profanities you could ask for
How do you cram a thousand-page novel, a cast of dozens and profo…
Zinnie Harris reimagines Shakespeare to compelling effect, making the audience complicit
You'd hardly call a director particularly perceptive for highlighting Lady Macbeth as the true power…
Kingship, tolerance and the trappings of power are among the many themes of Rona Munro's passionate, timely new play
"The poem is real," intones entertainer-turned-courtier Ellen solemnly as…
An energetic, lithe gig-theatre adaptation of Édouard Louis's 2014 trauma memoir can't escape the book's limitations
Those working-class people really are appalling, aren't they? Racist,…
A slow-burn gothic horror plays with our sense of reality to intelligently creepy effect
In many ways, The Stones is what the Fringe is all about: a new theatre company (London-based Signal …
Two plays by Scottish writer James Ley set out to shock, provoke " and provide belly laughs too
Ode to Joy (How Gordon Got to Go to the Nasty Pig Party), Summerhall ★★★★
James Thierrée joyfully collides together dance, mime, acrobatics, music and more - but what does it all mean?
"I feel I owe you an explanation." That much James Thierrée concedes partway …
A multi-layered, multi-generational theatrical epic is one of this year's stand-out offerings
First, a bit of housekeeping. Maybe it was the three-and-a-half-hour duration, or maybe the unfa…
Two performer-less shows on the theme of work set the audience to - well, work
Temping, Assembly George Square Studios ★★★★
Sarah Jane is away in Hawaii. But don't w…
Theatre about theatre? There's plenty of it about at the Fringe: here are two fine examples
Every Word was Once an Animal, Zoo Southside ★★★★
Three shows at the Traverse take in gritty realism and no-holds-barred farce
The Last Return, Traverse Theatre ★★★★★
Two shows at Summerhall explore issues of identity - though with contrasting outcomes
Boy, Summerhall ★★★★
Nature or nurture? It's the perennial question behind so m…
Strong constituent parts in Alan Cumming's Burns dance show - but do they add up?
In retrospect, all the clues were there. A star actor embarking on a new performance genre; a fresh reapprai…
Deeply moving verbatim show from a bright new London company
The popcorn on offer as you enter the Pleasance's performing space at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre quickly fills…
Frances Poet offers a luminous meditation on suffering and death at the Traverse
Ageing Mick wakes up on Portobello beach with two gold rings in his pocket, and embarks on the bender to end …
A head-spinning thriller and a heart-wrenching monologue at Assembly
Fear of Roses Assembly Roxy ★★★
An elusive eco fable from Grid Iron makes glowing sense in its forest setting
There's always a tricky balance to be struck with site-specific theatre. What's more important: the show itself,…
Two shows shine in a converted army reserve centre amid a depleted festival
Tunnels Army @ The Fringe ★★★
Autobiographical refugee story feels like a boy's own adventure
Urgent, fast-paced, seemingly never pausing for breath, How Not to Drown is a real-life boy's own adventure, an appeal for com…
Messianic devotion and audience complicity in a slippery new work from Tim Crouch
It's the end of the world as we know it. At least according to Miles, scientist turned messiah, who lost hi…
