My apologies, the last couple of days have been hectic, so here are my highlights.

From Where I'm Standing

From new-writing company :Delirium: From Where I'm Standing is a ambitious piece about inter-connectivity and the weight of the past, centred on a fictional account of a bombing in Mumbai. 

The piece is an illuminating example of the increasing influence of cinema on recent theatrical approaches, particularly in younger companies. I'm not entirely sure whether or not I am in support of the aesthetic; although it can produce some stunning visual results the question of it is necessary for theatre to adopt the practices of its brother is a hard question to definitively answer.

That being said the script of From Where I'm Standing is one of the better ones I have seen at Edinburgh. Its main focus is the story of a bomber in Mumbai, and his last-minute attempt to save a women he meets from the attack. Exploring the roots of his radicalism in his youth, the after effects that his bombing has upon his family immediately, this is also extended into the future, with his daughter's relationship with her potential fiancee greatly affected by his past actions. The story is very broad in its aim, requiring the script to work hard in order to move from scene to scene, which it does with good finesse.  But although the scenes have strong thematic and tonal links, the production could have done with focusing on what the essentials were of the story it wanted to tell. The core of the show felt as if it belonging to the bombings, and the future sections pulled away from this somewhat. Yet, this was very apparently the aim of the production, to look at connectivity and effect, and it certainly achieves this aim. 

The 5 actors did an exceptional job of creating a large cast of characters, and the characterisation and dialogue was brought to life with great energy. 

The set consisted of a large frame of suitcase, with a bed as the centre piece. The use of this was quite inventive at time, but the cast also used hand-held screens throughout for news broadcasts, and later heart monitors, etc. Although this was interesting, it didn't feel essential to the story throughout, though it was linked later on to the future sections. 

A fast-paced and original concept, From Where I'm Standing is one of the better new-writing productions at Edinburgh this year, and :Delirium: are a company to keep a track of.

From Where I'm Standing is playing at Underbelly, Cowgate until the 25th August at 13:20.

Red Bastard

Red Bastard will change your life, whether you want him to or not.

Easily the most outstanding performance I have seen in years, Red Bastard is a kind of Shamanic demon that destroys boundaries allows his audience to escape the expectations of the everyday, and re-examine their own constrictions as a result of this. 

This is not one for the faint-hearted, and from what I've heard is a bit of a marmite experience, but I would heartedly recommend it. The basis of the show sits on 'Something interesting must happen every ten seconds" and it certainly does. 

The nature of the show means it is largely dictated by the audience, making each performance individual and personal. So it is difficult to go into too much detail, and that's the way Red Bastard would rather have it anyway.

Take a chance. Do something extraordinary.

Red Bastard plays at the Bosco tent in George Assembly Square until the 26th August, at 16:40.

The Lost Letter of Cathy G

Touchingly told with real intimacy, The Lost Letters of Cathy G is a journey through the real-life love letters of teenager Cathy G, rediscovered by Paul Harry Allen in a chart shop. Granting a new perspective on the 1960's, the show is perfectly suited to the Free Fringe, and is the sort of production you go up to Edinburgh to find. 

Paul Harry Allen has gone into real detail in order to tell this journey, giving us letters from a string of wooers on Cathy's behalf, as well as pen-pals and friends, photographs and music. His storytelling is superb, he has a real understanding and warmth for each of the people in the story, which soon rubs off on the audience. It's incredible how much of a person's character we can sense in their writing, and you do can a real sense of sadness that letter writing is on its way out after watching the show.

From France to America, from Edgware to Wales, from Jimi Hendrix and Cat Stevens to Mrs Miller, the show travels far in very little time. An absolute pleasure to watch, this is easily top of my Free Fringe list, if not my Edinburgh list.

Here's a little interview with the man himself:

Cathy G - Paul Harry Allen

The Lost Letters of Cathy G is at Laughing Horse @ Finnegan's Wake until the 24th August, at 14:30.

And...

A Young Man Dressed as a Gorilla Dressed as an Old Man Sits Rocking...

This is an event I have missed for the last two years at Edinburgh. But this year I made it. 

It's pretty self-explanatory really. It was, however, simply amazing. I've just reviewed a video I took of it and realised it didn't do any justice to the performance. In a way, it was a lot like the kind of shamanic feel that Red Bastard has. Everyone in the audience was released by the sheer randomness of the show. It was electric. We cheered when he altered his rocking style, or moved a hand, or shifted his weight. We clapped. We mexican waved. We booed those who left. We had in-jokes. 

(One man told us all to get a life. He left after a whole 35 minutes. Least we were dedicated.)

No doubt it was more interesting for the man inside the suit to observe how the audience were behaving, the codes they were making, who was going for the alpha male/ voice of the group, who's offers were rejected (one girl suggested we all change seats. This was promptly denied). 

You keep rocking Gorilla, keep rocking.

A Young Man Dressed as a Gorilla Dressed as an Old Man Sits Rocking in a Rocking Chair for Fifty-Five Minutes and then leaves has been and gone. Next year, hey?