The curtains are about to go down on another Edinburgh Fringe – although there’s still time to peruse that chunky festival programme and find some fantastic performances this weekend. We look at our highlights and spotlight the ones-to-watch-out-for on a future stage

Lead image: Camille O’Sullivan

Mary, Queen Of Rock at Assembly Rooms was a rollicking riff on a well kent period of history that had audiences packing into the suitably regal-feeling ballroom venue. A stellar, female-led cast with the pipes to go with it made this a joy from start to finish, with a widowed Mary returning from France in 1561 to find that pesky preacher John Knox trying to stamp out rock n’ roll.

The rock opera, performed alongside a five-piece band, thrums with energy as it takes you through the story we know will lead to a deeply unfair end, one original song at a time. Signed to ‘Presbyterian Records’, Mary gets the country rocking until her duplicitous half-brother starts stirring up trouble, and worse, she provides a flop record for her cousin ‘Queen Lizzie’ down south. This is truly entertaining, Doc Martens-clad badassness right until Mary… well…  finally gets the chop from her label.

Half Man, Half Bull || Part One: Theseus at Summerhall

In the ambience-drenched Dissection Room at the brilliant Summerhall, Half Man, Half Bull || Part One: Theseus take a decidedly original approach to the Greek myth concerning father, son and banished half man half bull creature, the minotaur. This engaging retelling features a group of performers that wins over the audience from the word go, surrounding them in anthemic song and rhythmic spoken word.

You may be familiar with the tale of Theseus and King Aegeus, comprising the former’s tragic flaw and ‘heroic’ journey to slay a minotaur imprisoned in a labyrinth. This Fringe gig of ten tracks/chapters, skillfully imbued with humour, sorrow and ultimately preventable tragedy, has at its foundation the unspoken words between father and son. The contemporary slant provided by UK company Wright & Grainger – no strangers to adapting ancient stories – and actor Oliver Tilney, who collaborated on the double album (turned double show) during lockdown, will stay with you long after the sails of Theseus’ cursed ship depart beyond the horizon.

Ni Mi Madre at the Pleasance Dome

Critically acclaimed Off-Broadway and performed in assured and captivating fashion by Arturo Luís Soria, Ni Mi Madre at the Pleasance Dome is autobiographical excellence. Inhabiting the character of his mother, Bete, Arturo is the queer son who remains offstage – at least as a separate character. Instead, his story is recounted in sometimes shockingly brash but deeply loving form through the anecdotes of Bete – weaved into her own life story, where we discover she was rejected by her own mother for factors outwith her control.

There are some moments of real comedy in Arturo’s portrayal of his Brazilian mother, in all her looks-concerned, sometimes judgmental, extravagant glory. The ‘90s soundtrack to Bete’s life – Cher, Madonna, Gloria Estefan – adds to the vibrancy. But what’s most affecting in parts is the clear pain of intergenerational trauma, and despite trying to be a better mother, the damage Bete has caused her son. It’s also a tale about forgiveness, a shared feeling of not quite fitting in, and the complexities of being part of an immigrant family.

Cult comedy compadres Metroland amusingly master the art of offbeat, leftfield, what the heck is going to happen next sketch. The troupe of five lads from the northeast found their fame online, but made their debut at the Fringe this year with Pleasance show, The Box. An icebreaker that pulls the audience out of their seats to practise a pelvic thrust ‘dance action’ is silliness that can’t fail to get people to crack a smile. Other memorable chuckles include a sketch involving a tardy angel, an ode to a Scotch egg, and some custard pie improv. You might also never look at Glade the same way again.

Special mentions

These solo female performances are our top picks of the 2024 Fringe Fest

MILF & The Mistress

Fringe venue theSpace excels increasingly year on year for theatre that explores the deep, the unrealised and the personal. In this case the unravelling story– one BDSM knot at a time – of a middle-aged woman’s desire to simply feel something. About as excellent a one-person performance as you’ll find, the attention-arresting Jennifer Vuletic easily charms the audience, with a script written by Jane Montgomery Griffiths that’s witty, kinky and sometimes moving. As Ali – a lesbian with a perfectly contented-seeming suburban life – Vuletic peels back the emotional layers of the passing of time and tries latex on for size, in a dramatic piece that’s thoughtful and truly sex-positive.

Hagar: War Mother

Compelling, heartbreaking and utterly relevant to current world events, theSpace show Hagar: War Mother is a difficult but essential watch. There is a lingering emptiness on stage that starts to unsettle as the accomplished Amena Shehab – a Palestinian-Syrian-Canadian and refugee twice over – begins to portray a woman left alone in Aleppo in 2015 during the Syrian civil war. Baring her soul describing her hopes and dreams for her son, she prepares for his first birthday, dragging sandbags across the stage as substitute guests. In pursuit of a better life, she negotiates with people smugglers, resorting to bleak measures to find enough money, before more anguish floods the narrative with a gut-wrenching roar at sea. It’s no surprise that this story, written by playwright Aksam Alyousef, is based on true events, and a recognition of the reality of displaced people globally.

Anti-Heroine

Fantastic one-woman shows abound at the Fringe – this time as part of Greenside’s theatre programme. Written by Pip Carew and starring the brilliant Lottie Burgess – whose quips, dalliances and debacles as ‘Anti-Heroine’ make time fly – the action is set over several sleep-deprived days and nights in Manchester. Debuting at the Fringe, the show boldly traverses the awkwardness of online dating (one subpar sexual encounter at a time), a lack of purpose and a definite lack of money, female friendships, and amorous feelings that could cause complications…

Pip Carew as ‘Anti-heroine’

Camille O’Sullivan: Loveletter

Fringe veteran Camille will give you goosebumps from the moment her sparkling boots Wizard of Oz their way onto the stage. There is a throaty soulfulness to her craft that never fails to fill a room with emotion – in this case, the room is Assembly Roxy and an atmospheric former church. The French-Irish singers purrs at the audience between songs, musing on the more bonkers elements of life, but also enchanting with heartfelt stories of friends and talents no longer with us: Shane McGowan and Sinead O’Connor. O’Sullivan sang at McGowan’s funeral, and the show is a stirring celebration of his lyricism, amongst other gorgeous takes on songs by Radiohead, David Bowie and Nick Cave.