If you’ve never seen Fringe stalwart James Rowland, stop reading and immediately book tickets: you can thank me later. If you have, you’ll know to expect a heartwarming experience, told with warmth and wit, with humour and empathy, and with an endearing, heartfelt sincerity. The show opens with a characteristically friendly introduction. Rowland doesn’t so much break the fourth wall as hug it. What follows surprised me: there wasn’t a singular narrative. Rather, we’re treated to an emotional collage – a series of smaller stories, anecdotes, jokes and observations, touchstones in his life. As he says at the start, though the genesis of this show is his mortality, it’s not about grief. It’s about life. It’s about joy. It’s about love.

Summerhall, until 26 Aug.
tw rating 5/5 | [Andy Leask]