Listings and Preview: Mon 16 – Sun 22 September 2024
What’s on Edinburgh’s Stages this week?
As the countdown to Christmas drops into double figures, this week sees the very first panto of the Season; the most heartwarming feel-good musical ever arrives at the Playhouse; and a new season of PPP opens at the Traverse.
There is also the first public event at Edinburgh Acting School’s new Argyle Studios, while down in Portobello, the youngsters with Stage Door Entertainment let their acting and singing chops loose on “the world’s best-loved musical”.
The cast of the CBeebies Panto: Beauty and the Beast
All quality stuff, to be honest, so starting with the most unlikely: Saturday and Sunday sees CBeebies settling in to the Festival Theatre for the filming of their Christmas Pantomime. Cue cries of “Oh yes they are!” etc.
This year’s offering is Beauty and the Beast (Sat, Sun: tickets), adapted by regular TV Kids comedy writer Isabel Fay and with music from Banks & Wag the panto “takes place in a magical setting inspired by Scottish landscapes”. So one to get the family’s Crimbo jumpers out quick if you want to add some atmosphere – although all the good seats are well gone.
Talking of unlikely: A bunch of plane passengers stuck in the middle of nowhere in the immediate aftermath of 9/11 doesn’t initially seem like fertile ground for a gobsmackingly life-affirming musical. But Come From Away (Playhouse Tue-Sat: tickets) is just that.
A fast, vibrant piece of work it is easily worth the myriad of five star accolades and handful of awards it has won. It’s not just a feel-good piece either, it captures something of that frenetic time, when people didn’t know what was happening – and yet a real life terrorist incident was playing out, live on the world’s TVs.
The kindness of strangers
Oh, and in keeping with the show’s theme, centred around the kindness of the Newfoundlanders who welcomed the stranded passengers into their very small town, the Playhouse is supporting the charity Edinburgh Food Project this week. There is a foodbank donation station in the Box Office where audience members can drop off items on their way to see the show.
The lunchtime theatre: A Play, A Pie and A Pint is one of the genuinely brilliant innovations in theatre-going of recent times. Just how good it can be when it is at its best is demonstrated with the opening show for the Traverse’s autumn season of PPP: The Last Cabaret on Earth (Tue – Sat: tickets).
You’ll need to be nimble or lucky to get in though – Friday and Saturday are returns only, the rest of the week is “Limited”. The play, of a cabaret artist giving one last show in the Earth’s last hour, “has an impact out of all proportion to its small scale” according to our critic. Have a read of Hugh’s review here: ★★★★☆ Impressive.
Marc Mackinnon in The Last Cabaret on Earth. Pic: Tommy Ga-Ken Wan
I was lucky enough to pop into the new Argyle Studios which the Edinburgh Acting School has just taken on, on its opening weekend – and what a braw set-up it seems to be. More of that in a future feature, but for now, the folk from EAS’s innovative Actors Gym are sharing a Scratch Night on Saturday (tickets).
This is as much a chance to meet others and provide feedback to the actors – arrive early, bring your own refreshments and stay after the show finishes at 8.45pm, to repair to the local pub for refreshment and more discussion. Sounds good to me!
Then it is down to Portobello, where the fine company of youngsters with Stage Door Entertainment are putting on the School edition of Les Misérables in the Portobello Town Hall (Wed – Sat: tickets). With a cast of 9-18 year-olds led by a professional production and technical team, and accompanied by a live orchestra, this should be a goody. Not one just to go to, to support the kids themselves, but in its own right as a piece of musical theatre.
Lastly, if you thought CBeebies were getting previous: the latest UK tour of the Abba jukebox musical, Mamma Mia! is dropping into the Playhouse for Christmas 2025. That’s next year. And tickets are already on sale. Further details in our news story Here We Go Again, or go straight ahead, shop early for Crimbo and Book here.
Listings
Click on the name of the show or the Book here link to go to its ticketing site.
Argyle Studios
43 Argyle Place, EH9 1JT.
Scratch Night (EAS Actors Gym)
Sat 21 Sept 2025
Evening: 6.45pm.
Expect new work, existing work, unpolished and unfinished. Expect some note taking, some notepads in hand, expect a showcase scratch night in front of a supportive network of friends. Open to everyone: Be part of the process! The chance to network and socialise is encouraged. The spotlight is on, but expect a warm glow. Book here.
Festival Theatre
13/29 Nicolson Street EH8 9FT. Phone booking: 0131 529 6000.
CBeebies Panto: Beauty and the Beast (BBC)
Sat 21/Sun 22 Sept 2025
Matinees: 1pm & 4.30pm.
NB: This performance is filmed for broadcast over the festive season.
Narrated by Snow Raven (James Mackenzie), the story has been adapted for CBeebies by Isabel Fay and takes place in a magical setting inspired by Scottish landscapes. There are brand-new characters to meet too, including funny garden gnomes, mischievous wolves and a sneaky Thorn Fairy. Expect unexpected twists and turns as the story unfolds. Book here.
Playhouse
18 – 22 Greenside Place, EH1 3AA. Phone booking: 0844 871 3014.
Come From Away 
Tue 17 – Sat 21 Sept 2024
Evenings: 7.30pm; Wed, Sat: 2.30pm.
Winner of four Olivier Awards including Best New Musical in London and the Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical on Broadway, this smash hit show shares the incredible real-life story of the 7,000 air passengers from all over the world who were grounded in Canada during the wake of 9/11, and the small Newfoundland community that invited these come from aways into their lives with open hearts.. Book here.
Portobello Town Hall
147-149 Portobello High St, Portobello EH15 1AF.
Les Misérables – School Edition (Stage Door Entertainment)
Wed 18 – Sat 21 Sept 2024.
Evenings: 7.30pm; Fri/Sat mats: 2.30pm.
The world’s best-loved musical comes to Portobello Town Hall, with the story of Jean Valjean’s quest for redemption with Inspector Javert in pursuit; a revolution and rebellion from the students of Paris; a love triangle; and comedic relief from the mischievous Thénardiers. This Stage Door Experience will feature a cast of local 9-18 year olds; led by a professional production & technical team; and accompanied by a live orchestra! Book here.
Traverse
10 Cambridge Street, EH1 2ED. Phone booking: 0131 228 1404.
The Last Cabaret on Earth (PPP)
By Brian James O’Sullivan.
Tue 17 – Sat 21 Sept 2024
Lunchtimes: 1pm (Trav 2).
Æ review: ★★★★☆ Impressive
The world is going to end. Tonight. It’s a bit shite. Sam knows this, and so does the audience who are choosing to spend their last hour on earth at a dingy cabaret bar. All Sam has ever wanted to do is to make people happy, but is giving one last performance to his loyal audience really the best way to spend his final hours on earth? Book here.
ENDS
