TUESDAY 31 JULY 2018 THREEWEEKSEDINBURGH.COM
  HELLO THERE. And double hello to all our new subscribers. Welcome to the first TW Daily bulletin of Edinburgh Festival 2018.

It is our 23rd year covering the world's most exciting cultural event and we can't wait to get started. As always, you can check out our coverage via the TW magazine, this TW Daily bulletin or online at threeweeksedinburgh.com.

With the festival about to properly get going, we'll now be landing in your inbox every day. Tell friends, colleagues and occasional acquaintances, they too can receive the TW Daily by signing up for free here.

This week each edition of the TW Daily will feature interviews and my Three To See show recommendations. From next week - alongside more Q&As and Threes To See - we'll also start featuring a daily helping of reviews.

If you are in Edinburgh, don't forget to look out for our Preview Edition, which is currently working its way around homes and venues across the city. In there you'll find interviews with nine great performers plus all my Three To See tips in one place.

If you are performing at the Festival, make sure you have logged your show with ThreeWeeks here. Why not stand out from the crowds by buying an advert here? And check out our new guide to doing cultural stuff at TW:DIY here.

Whether you're here to watch, perform, produce, consume, champion, cheer or critique, have a great Edinburgh Festival!

Caro Moses
Editor, ThreeWeeks Edinburgh

PS: New subscribers, check out our Privacy Policy here and don't forget you can unsubscribe at any time by simply clicking the 'safe unsubscribe' link at the bottom of any edition.

Check out the Preview Edition of the TW magazine. It is being delivered to homes and venues across Edinburgh as we speak. Inside you will find interviews with Allegra Marland and Georgie Oulton, Bryony Twydle, Dan Coleman, Ian Smith, John Pendal, Lisa Fa’alafi, Nick Doody, Oliver Lansley and Yianni Agisilaou. Plus 72 show recommendations!

Find out where to pick up a copy HERE or read it all online HERE.

FRINGE PRODUCER JAMES SEABRIGHT
TW:DIY is talking to people who perform or work at the Edinburgh Festival each year to get their perspectives on what performing or producing at the world's biggest cultural event involves. Today, producer James Seabright.

James has brought over 200 shows to the Fringe across two decades and is involved in ten shows appearing at the Festival just this year. We spoke to him about what exactly a producer does and to get his tips for those producing at the Festival for the first time.

CLICK HERE to read today's TW:DIY interview.
ThreeWeeks Co-Editor Caro Moses helps you navigate the festival with her Three To See tips. Today funny shows for kids, dad-themed stand-up, funny musicals and three theatre shows with eccentric themes.
 


THREE FUNNY SHOWS FOR KIDS >>

The Extraordinary Time-Travelling Adventures Of Baron Munchausen | The Stand's New Town Theatre | 2-26 Aug
If your kid's like my kid (and lots of them definitely will be in this respect) then your kid likes to laugh. And so, my dears, I've made significant inroads into watching all the funny children's shows there have ever been in recent years, and I am always on the lookout for more. This one's made it on to my hit list because it boasts a cast of "top award-winning comedians and improvisers", and so I am of course hoping they'll lend a fair degree of humour to the telling of these "extravagant stories". In any case, I think this sounds like a very promising show for your older children.

David Baddiel's AniMalcolm | Gilded Balloon Teviot | 1-19 Aug (pictured)
The creators of this show describe it as "a vibrant, energetic and gloriously funny musical, combining physical theatre and outstanding storytelling style". Which seems pretty confident, I realise. But I know for certain that it will absolutely turn out to be true, because this is the work of a company who've been making some of the best children's theatre I've seen at the Fringe in recent years: Story Pocket Theatre. It's about Malcolm, who doesn't like animals - problematic, because the rest of his family does - but who, through a series of adventures, ends up far more in tune with animals than anyone else. Definitely promising.

The I Hate Children Children's Show | theSpace @ Surgeon's Hall | 3-19 Aug
Well, it might seem like a bit of a cruelty to take your kids to a show called 'The I Hate Children Children's Show' but it's not. As long as they are the kind of children who are really tough. No, I'm only joking, you don't need to be tough, but you do need to be an older child to appreciate it - this is not one for toddlers. It's won rave reviews over the years (at least one of them written by me, I think) and parents get plied with alcohol, so what in god's name are you waiting for? Get your tickets booked ASAP.


THREE 'DAD STAND-UP’ SHOWS >>

Gary Meikle - Before All This | Gilded Balloon Rose Theatre | 1-26 Aug
As I leafed through the comedy section of this year's Fringe programme, I noticed a few different shows that referenced dads and fatherhood, and as someone who has a dad (remarkable), I was attracted to the idea of collecting some of them together. We start with Gary Meikle, who is ready to spill the details of his past life, with particular reference to the trials and tribulations of being a teenage father, and the challenge of raising his daughter as a single parent. It sounds like he's got a great story to tell, and he's a Scottish Comedy Award winner, so you know he will be good.

Adventures In Dementia: Steve Day | Laughing Horse @ Espionage | 2-26 Aug
"Steve's dad has Alzheimers. There's nothing he can do about it except remember the way he was. Steve has also been deaf since his teens but has new hearing aids so now he's gone through all the music of his youth. It reminds him of his dad". A different approach from this one, then, as Steve Day talks about his own father, in a show that promises music, song and laughter, and I imagine, a few poignant moments. "If you like bittersweet comedy about deafness and memory loss then this is the show for you".

Ken Cheng - Best Dad Ever | Bedlam Theatre | 1-26 Aug (pictured)
You may have heard of him in connection with the fact that he won Dave's Joke Of The Fringe at last year's Festival for his one liner about currency ("I'm not a fan of the new pound coin, but then again, I hate all change"), and he's frankly in good company, given that previous winners of that prize have included the likes of Tim Vine and Zoe Lyons. But I was mainly drawn to the title of this one. Not sure quite how much dad-talk there will be in this, but I think there will be at least some, because he's set to tell stories of his very much atypical upbringing and his complicated relationship with his parents.


THREE FUNNY MUSICALS >>

One Musical To Rule Them All | Greenside @ Nicolson Square | 3-11 Aug
If you are a fan of musicals and also a fan of things like 'Lord Of The Rings' and 'The Hobbit', then this is definitely one you should add to your viewing list. Well, unless you are so passionate about said things that you take them very seriously and refuse to countenance any mockery of them; because this is a parody. "Join reluctant hero Froyo as he navigates the realm of Riddle Earth, guided by ridiculous characters and catchy musical numbers in a hilarious, copyright-free comedy guaranteed to please 'Lord Of The Rings' fans and newcomers alike". Sounds like fun to me.

Thor And Loki | Assembly Roxy | 1-26 Aug (pictured)
"The fate of the gods rests on Thor's mighty shoulders, but he hates violence and prefers writing poetry. Half-giant Loki is out for revenge, but beneath her monstrous form lies a heart of gold. Can two misfits find the strength to be themselves?" This is from House Of Blakewell, creators of Fringe hit 'We Can Make You Happy' - "Treat yourself to a heart-warming hour of laughs, guaranteed to make you smile" - said our reviewer of that show - so I reckon it's highly likely this will be just as good.

Six | Underbelly George Square | 1-27 Aug
This amusing musical first hit the Fringe this time last year, I believe, and I am pretty sure I picked it out as a goer back then. I was right, because it earned rave reviews, and is returning triumphant to the Edinburgh Festival before a run at London's Arts Theatre. And if you didn't see it last year, and don't know what it's about... here you go: "Divorced. Beheaded. Live in concert. From Tudor Queens to pop princesses, the six wives of Henry VIII finally take to the mic to tell their empowering tale, remixing 500 years of her-storical heartbreak into a 75-minute celebration of sisterly sass-itude".


THREE THEATRE SHOWS WITH ECCENTRIC THEMES >>

Passionate Machine | Zoo Charteris | 3-27 Aug (pictured)
"Remember PE kit. Cancel Free Trial. Call mum. Everyone writes instructions to their future selves. But what happens if the future starts writing back?" Hurrah, a show from Rosy Carrick that blurs the boundaries of time and space in some way, I really love things that do that. It features familar people and characters, like David Bowie, Vladimir Mayakovsky and Rocky Balboa, setting them against a backdrop of your favourite time travel movies, while exploring letting go, having the courage to take the untrodden path, and finding yourself.

In Pursuit Of Andromeda | Greenside @ Nicolson Square | 3-25 Aug
I must admit I was attracted initially to this because of its setting, but then I discovered that it’s got a mermaid in it, which made it a great addition to this eccentric themes section. It’s about a fisherman of the Scilly Isles who one day rescues a mysterious woman, singing in an unknown tongue, from the sea. The pair form a strong bond, but it seems as though something a bit sinister might be going on, when reports that locals are going missing from the islands start to emerge. I am expecting it to be rather good.

Paradiso | Zoo Charteris | 19-27 Aug
This is a fab sounding piece from an acclaimed company all the way from Georgia, one with no words, which blends physical theatre with puppetry and music to tell the story of the final days of a group of three old men. Expect hope as well as sadness, and laughter as well as tears: "Paradiso is the magical place where old people turn back into babies. Here, death is not the end – it’s the beginning of the circle of life".
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