A coveted Bobby has been presented to five shows at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe this year. Circus, magic, new writing, LGBT+ themes and even biographical theatre feature in the diverse line up that caught our judges’ collective eyes.
The Bobby Award seeks out those shows that shine even amongst the best rated of the Fringe
Fashioned after the iconic Greyfriar’s Bobby, our golden statuette is reserved for the very best of the best, because in a festival of over 3,500 shows there are a lot of five-star shows. We present only a handful every year; so a Bobby really does mean something.
Our first recipient of 2023 was Early Morning Productions who brought a technology-rich telling of Steve Jobs’ life to Paradise in the Vault called Apple Of My Eye. Written by Joel Goodman and starring Stephen Smith, our reviewer, Ewan Woods, described it as “a wonderful love letter to the development of one of the most important computer forces in history”.
Kate Copstick managed to slip out of her comedy-reviewing duties for The Scotsman long enough to catch Poof! at the Gilded Balloon Teviot, and she simply fell in love. Copstick rounded up her review of Celeste Lecesne’s LGBT+ themed show by saying “Celeste Lecesne has all the stars I never gave, and the red pencil to make them matter the right way. Poof! may be the loveliest hour of your life.”
Cabaret and Variety expert Frodo Allan has over 20 year experience creating the genre, and over a decade writing reviews about it for Broadway Baby, so when something impresses him, you know it’s going to be good. It was N.Ormes at Assembly Roxy that caused Frodo to describe it “like something out of a dream”. Montreal-based circus duo Agathe Bisserier and Adrien Malette-Chenier have smashed the Fringe on their first time here.
Scottish illusionist and America’s Got Talent semi-finalist, Colin Cloud had our Comedy Editor, James Macfarlane, astonished during his week-long run of After Dark at Underbelly. James said “After Dark is a triumph of the highest order. For the next few nights, Colin Cloud will be the hottest ticket in town. His passion, honesty, vulnerability, showmanship and humour are on full display during this jaw-droppingly clever hour.”
Finally our Editor-in-Chief, Richard Beck, revisited a show he had seen at The Vaults Festival earlier in the year and found it to be just as spectacular. A Manchester Anthem which has been in Pleasance Courtyard for the month is new writing from Lyle Productions that Richard described it as “an unfettered outpouring of humour, storytelling and characterisation.”
And that, as they say, is a wrap for this year... unless we spot something spectacular this weekend! The hunt for winners of the craved golden canine goes on.
