THE
Gilded
THE GILDED BALLOON This is the 16th year of the Gilded Balloon and we have had many different venues during that time, however, we are very proud to present our first year at Teviot Row House. It will be known as Gilded Balloon II at Teviot and has five venues, seven bars and a bistro style cafe. Shows, visual physical theatre, contemporary and cabaret dance, strong new plays, comedy from character, sketch, comic plays and standup comedy. There is something for everyone. There is even the couple that get married on the 4th August and are spending their honeymoon at the new venue to entertain the Festival audiences. The most exciting drummers from Korea will also entertain you all. We have an outdoor piazza with refreshments and free entertainment. We have not forgotten late night entertainment with some of the best clubs in Edinburgh and beyond, with dancing for all tastes into the very early hours. We aim to make it the place to be . We have not forgotten our roots the Cowgate operation will be in full swing with the very best in new innovative comedy and entertainment. We present musicals, new bands, standup, completely new ensemble comedy, very good music and the late night haunt that no fringe goer can miss, Late’n’Live. Channel Four are once again sponsoring the best ever stand up comedy competition “So You Think You’re Funny” and Graham Norton has already agreed to compere the Final. We should like to thank Channel Four for their continued sponsorship. We would also like to show our appreciation to Marlboro for sponsoring our combined comedy festival, they are also sponsoring the new venue and Lighten Up Late’n’Live. We thank them very much for this and their continued support. Most importantly, we look forward to you coming to the Gilded Balloon and having the time of your life. Bring on the excitement!!
Karen Koren
Karen Koren
Artistic Director
Tony Aherne
Operations Manager
Martyne Green
Assistant Operations Manager
Steve Forster
Press & Marketing Manager
Andy Meldrum
Administrative Assistant
Sarah Coffay, Lorna Giezot
Box office Managers
Justine Watson
Administrator
Marc Swanson
Production Manager
Sarah Milne, Andy Cummings
Press Officers
Richard Carrington Bar Manager
Nell Keay
Venue Manager
The Scotsman
Teviot Jo Mitchell, Aaron Mathison
FOH Managers
Katie Duke
Press Assistant
Kaye Rooney
Finance Manager
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Bars & Cafes Gilded Balloon has wide range of bar and cafe facilities available throughout the festival this year. In the Cowgate the GILDED SALOON continues to be at the very hub of activity with impromptu entertainment from the public and performers alike offering a slice of the action both day and night! And to soak up all the beer the cafe at LOCA will serve a full range of snacks and light meals to help you re-fuel for the rest of your adventure! This year Gilded Balloon launches it’s new venue at Teviot and to help you enjoy the vibrant atmosphere fully we have provided seven bars, a large cafe and restaurant to help you wind down and catch-up with the latest news on the Festival and Performers. In front of Teviot the outdoor cafe & bar will let you catch the sun, relax and take advantage of the cream of street entertainment in Bristol Square. The restaurant will serve a fantastic menu for every palette.
Glided Balloon Theatre 233-237 Cowgate Edinburgh EH1 lJQ Box Office: 0131226 2151 Admin: 0131226 6550 Fax: 0131226 6554 e-mall: info@gildedballoon.co.uk web site: www.gildedballoon.co.uk Gilded Balloon at The Peppermint Lounge 36 Blair Street Edinburgh Glided Balloon 11 at Teviot Bristo Square Edinburgh
Tickets for all shows available at all venues
Windsor Road Productions
14:00
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Lilia by Libby
Skala Studio £7.50 (£6.50) £8.50 (£7.50) An autobiographical one-woman show about the life of actress Lilia Skala, Oscar-nominee for Lilies of the Field, as seen through the eyes of her granddaughter. “Absolutely dazzling acting, brilliant .” CBC Radio “A beautiful piece. The way Llbby Skala plays her grandmother Is incredible.” Daily Courier. “A winner.” Winnipeg Free Press.
Theatre Cap-a-Pie
14:45 The Great BooBoo
Gilded Balloon 11 Dining Room £7.50 (£6.50) £8.50 (£7.50) A secret, a deadline, a sad little bar, a quirky band of dreamers. Sarah Brignall (Rejects Revenge, Told By An Idiot) directs a crazy cartoon tale. Physical, funny, short and very sweet, this one’s for everybody. You’ll laugh, you might even cry. ”It’s the best thing l’ve ever seen, except Carmen” Haston Poad, aged 8.
The Scotsman
18:00 Rather Me Than You by Brandon Reed
Backstage III £6.50 (£5.50) £7.50 (£6.50) A dazzling new play about what happens when someone is removed from the food-chain. Hitchock crossed with Wilde, wit and thrills, laughs and gasps. Features an incredible cast this is THE play to see this Fringe.
17:00 Ed McCabe
The Balloon Debate
Gilded Balloon 11 Nightclub £7.50 (£6.50) £8.50 (£7.50) Celebrity Big Brother meets The Weakest Link. A sinking hot air balloon contains major personalities of the 20th century. Join our panel of top Fringe comedians to decide who should be thrown out first. Who’s your hero? Elvis Presley or Marilyn Monroe, Winston Churchill or Nelson Mandela, Charlie Chaplin or Albert Einstein? Guess the correct outcome and you could walk away with £50.
40 Gilded balloon in association with Channel 4 presents:
So you think You’re funny The original and best Stand up comedy competition for newcomers final to be hosted by Graham Norton Final 26 August show starts 8.45pm tickets £8.00 and £9.00 Gilded balloon venue 38 233 Cowgate EH1, Box office 01312262151
Tickets for all shows available at all venues
cotsman
HE
ssembly
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The Scotsman Savour the pages that follow and get a flavour of the event, but look out for Clive Anderson, who will be firing up the festival with conversation and performance from his pick of the best talent; The Reduced Shakespeare Company; Theatre Babel with their remarkable production of Medea starring Maureen Beattie; the fantastic Soweto String Quartet; Alan Davies; Perrier Award Winner Rich Hall; a wonderful production of John B. Keane’s play The Matchmaker; and our fantastic series Best of the Fest (sponsored by Intagen) which almost nightly through the festival keeps you in touch with the best comedy talent in Edinburgh. And of course many more, including Guy Masterson, Rodney Bewes, Richard Morton, Jackie Clune, Jack Klaff and Rich Fulcher, all of whom have appeared with us many times over the years.
Years of success
WILLIAM BURDETT-COUTTS
artistic director
Welcome to the programme of events run by Assembly Theatre in the Assembly Rooms during the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. This year promises to be the best programme so far with a host of old friends and new talent creating a feast of theatre and comedy. For the three weeks of the festival the Assembly Rooms transforms into an entertainment machine second to none, the remarkable historical grandeur of the building transforming into six teeming theatres that operate from the morning of one day to the early hours of the next. Forget “changing rooms” and “changing gardens” - here the realm of the imagination changes with barely a whisper from remarkable drama to side splitting laughter.
Thanks to our sponsors, without whom we could not sustain our operation. The Scotsman is again our in-title sponsor and we owe them enormous thanks for their continuing support. Intagen sponsors Best of the Fest for the first time and we thank Scottish Brewers for their support of the bars and Marlboro for sponsoring the Lighten Up Comedy Festival across the three venues. All our sponsors can be seen on the sponsorship page 5. Thank you to Edinburgh for a remarkable time thus far at the Assembly Rooms. In true Fringe form I arrived at the Assembly Rooms by accident in 1991, shortly after coming to this country from Zimbabwe, and took on this building as a somewhat mad project. That it has survived so long is testimony to the wondrous shows and people that have passed through the doors during the festival; and to the fact that so many performers and staff give way beyond the normal to contribute to this magnificent event. Survival has not been easy, but we are still here and looking forward. Help us celebrate being 24 in the best way possible, buy a ticket and enjoy a show; and then take a risk and come back and see another show!
We look forward to seeing you.
Bars & Cafes All our bars are generously supported by Scottish Brewers.
“Doing the Fringe” is thirsty, hungry work. Thankfully we have thought of this and provided for your every need ...
ASSEMBLY UNDER BALCONY BAR
- on the first floor. A coffee bar with snacks for all the family between 10am and 7pm, a busy theatre bar from 7pm till lam. Breakfast is served between 10am and 12.30pm.
ASSEMBLY LANE BAR
- Open from 10am till 3.30am. Situated conveniently beside the Assembly Rooms, this extremely popular bar is a welcome haunt for festival goers all day and late into the night. Food is available from midday till late from SOBA - soup, noodles, sushi and good things to refresh you.
Both bars are licensed (and usually buzzing!) until 3am.
NOKIA ORANGE CLUB BAR
- an exclusive club for artists, press and VlP’s, open to members only.
The Scotsman
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William Burdett-Coutts Artistic Director
Mary Shields
Associate Director
Kath M Mainland
General Manager
David Inns
Technical Manager
Richard Hull
Project Development
Liz Smith
ian Nicholls
Head of Lighting
Press & PR Manager
Olaf Mackenzie Louise Kidd
Marketing Manager
Staff List
Alison Mussett
Head of Press
Jo Harte
Head of Sound
Stuart Ledger
Bar Manager
Kirsten Gooday
Box Office Managers
Press Officer
Lee Barry
Cameron Burke Steven Gove
Beck Palmer
Clare Walters Fiona Hutchison
Administrator
Technical Administrator
Front of House Managers
Sponsorship Manager
Thanks The Scotsman Assembly would like to thank the following for their help and support: The Scotsman Assembly Box Office, Front of House, Bars and Technical Staff, Assembly Theatre Board of Directors, Adrian Morris, Andy-Hanna, Ann Russell, Delta Sound, Glen Bennett, Hazel Shanks at the Clydesdale Bank, lain MacDonald, Jackie McGlone, Judith Murrell, Paul Gudgin and all at the Fringe, Rachel Dodd, the Scotsman Newspaper and all our sponsors, Stage Electric’s, Stewart McRobert and all at Design Links, Georgia Sawers, Shiel Yule. And especially Tony Aherne.
Assembly Theatre Ltd 2/2 50 George Street Edinburgh EH2 2LE Tel: 0131 624 2442 Fax: 0131 624 7131 Email: admin.assembly@btinternet.com Box Office: 0131 226 2428 Press Office: 0131 226 2842 www.assemblyrooms.com
The Scotsman
10 Riotous Assembly
The Scotsman Assembly happy birthday
The book is available from the Assembly Rooms or the Fringe Office, or online at www.assemblyrooms.com. Price £10.
Over the twenty four years that Assembly has run the Assembly Rooms over 1000 companies have played in the building to an audience of around 2.5m people. From a building that was nicknamed “the mausoleum”, it has been transformed into a centre piece for the Fringe described variously as “the Jewel in the Crown of the Fringe” to “the National Theatre of the Fringe”. The building itself has a remarkable history at the centre of social and political life in Edinburgh and was built to be a focal point for the New Town over two hundred years ago. In its early days it was established to run “assemblies”, a series of dances for the gentry instigated as a national phenomenon by Beau Brummel. Our use of it during the Fringe reflects the energy of our age and “riotous assembly” is a pretty good description of the hustle, bustle and entertainment of the festival; where the building positively throbs. To celebrate our birthday Assembly is compiling a book of photographs of a range of people that have appeared with us over the years. With a forward from Jackie McGlone the book will include photos of the following names and more: FRENCH & SAUNDERS, RIK MAYALL, LENNY HENRY, RORY BREMNER, SIMON FANSHAW, LEE EVANS, JACK DEE, ALAN DAVIES, THE SNOW SHOW, DARIO FO, CIRCUS OZ, THE END OF EUROPE.
It was Henry Fonda’s fault Written and performed by Owen O’Neill Presented by Guy Masterson & TTI
15:35
Ballroom £9.00 (£8.00) £10.00 (£9.00) Owen O’Neill’s FIVE STAR 2000 hit returns The hysterical, illfated realisation of a lifelong obsession to ‘get to Hollywood’ - as engendered by his ex-stuntman-for-Henry-Fonda, projectionist mentor - Jazz Hegarty in the flea pit cinema of Cookstown, Northern Ireland. Brilliantly observed, fantastically told, O’Neill recounts taking his 1997 award winning hit Off My Face to L.A. with hilarious results. “Incisive candour and hilarious self-deprecation relayed with genius provoking tears-rolling-down-your-face laughter!” The Scotsman “A seriously heartwarming experience” The Stage “Absolutely charming” Independent on Sunday “Kicks into overdrive with vivid humour, gusto and com pelling frankness” The Herald A sellout in 2009 - Don’t miss it.
The Scotsman
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The Scotsman
19:30
Goodbye - We Were The Nualas Ballroom £10.00 (£9.00) £11.00 (£10.00) The legendary Irish all-girl super group bid farewell. Your last chance to experience them live. “I’m knocked out by their vocal prowess” “Phenomenally funny” The Herald “They are simply resonantly hilarious” Dublin Event Guide
“The new rock’n’roll” The Inependent “Something rare” The Sunday Times “Genius” The Scotsman
Ireland Off The Kerb Productions in association with Play UK presents
An evening of comedy in aid of STONEWALL
20:00
playhouse £16.00 (£15.00) Off The Kerb Productions presents the biggest names in comedy for the STONEWALL BENEFIT. Acts already confirmed include: JULIAN CLARY, RICH HALL, PHILL JUPITUS, MIKE WILMOT, ADAM HILLS, JOHNNY VEGAS and CYDERDELIC (Check press for details). Previous years have featured PAUL MERTON, LEE EVANS, BILL BAILEY, DYLAN MORAN and many more. Book early to avoid disappointment.
3rd, 4th & 5th 20:00 6th & 13th 22:15 7th & 8th 00:00
Tickets for all shows available at all venues
CLIVE ANDERSON’S FRINGEWhere is it?
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Musk Hall £12.00 (£9.00) The star of Clive Anderson Talks Back, Clive Anderson All Talk, Whose Line Is it Anyway? and-other top TV programmes returns to the Fringe with a live show which will feature some of the biggest and best performers appearing in Edinburgh this year. Each performance will be different, but expect comedy, conversation, improvisation, and provocation. A veritable show of shows featuring everything except, as it happens, Clive Anderson’s fringe. Its a particular pleasure to welcome Clive back to the Assembly Rooms as he appeared here in a show in 1981, in the first year of Assembly productions.
Soweto String Quartet South Africa
18:00
Musk Hall £10.50 (£9.50) £12.50 (£10.50) South Africa’s internationally renowned Soweto String Quartet make their Fringe debut with their full nine-piece touring show. SSO and their band present a unique approach to classical music, combining contemporary and classical instruments to produce a fresh, vibrant, funky sound. “A moving and superbly accomplished outfit, gloriously combining traditional African township rhythms with pop and classical styles:’ Time Out The SSO visit the UK direct from the Rainbow Nation, where they are a household name and have three hit albums, to present a collection of their finest music to date. “The sound of new South Africa:’ Evening Standard www.sowetostringquartet.com
Tickets for all shows available at all venues The Scotsman
eorge quare
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george square theatre
Well here we are! following a year of building site mayhem, George Square Theatre and Old College quad have joined forces with “The Big Three’’ in our first venture into a new brochure. We are thrilled with our exciting programme this year which promises a host of international and home-grown entertainment to challenge, titillate and delight. Don’t miss out on our zany children’s shows, inspirational dance, riotous music, cult musicals and stirring theatre.
Come round to our Theatre cafe, Bar2, and sit with the peaceful outlook of George Square Gardens. Bar2 will be open 10am to late, serving drinks, snacks and refreshments
On A Role Productions
15:20 Return To The Forbidden Planet
George Square Theatre Preview 3rd Aug £4 £8.00 (£6.00) “Ladies and Gentlemen, on behalf of the Captain and his crew, we would like to welcome you aboard Scientific Survey Flight Nine”. Join Captain Tempest and his intrepid crew on an intergalactic mission that’s out of this world! Monsters, mad scientists, fire breathing robots and Shakespeare as you’ve never heard him before.. . be prepared for the journey of a lifetime! Bob Cariton’s Olivier Award winning rock’n’ roll musical, presented by On A RoJe Productions, promises an extravaganza of science-fiction, Shakespeare and music that will have you dancing in the aisles! Goodness gracious, Great Balls of Fire!
Tickets for all shows available at all venues
The Scotsman
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20:40 Korean culture comes to the Fringe with a bang and the sounds of TOKEBI! These seven young master drummers of PungMuAk create their own rhythm and music in a spontaneous fusion of ancient traditional Korean percussion and the rhythms of 2001. TOKEBI, the mischievous party loving Korean goblins, pay a visit to a wornout office worker who willingly escapes into their dream world of orderly chaos and disorderly fun. A high-energy percussion collage of Korean legends to lighten the burden of modern life. “A feast for the eyes as much as the ears - rhythm rocks!” Korea Herald Also appearing at Gilded Balloon II - Teviot
14th 15:15
20:45
15th 15:15 16th, 15st-23rd 14:00 24th-25th 20:45
Tickets for all shows available at all venues
PungMuAk - Tokebi
Ballroom £9.00 (£8.00) £10.00 (£9.00)
Box Office 020 7609 1800 tickets@pleasance.co.uk
Pleasance London Carpenters Mews North Road London N7 9EF
Fax 0131 556 4472
Press 0131 556 6557 press@pleasance.co.uk
Reception 0131556 1513 reception@pleasance.co.uk
Box Office 0131 556 65 50 tickets@pleasance.co.uk
Pleasance Dome 1 Bristo Square Edinburgh EH8 9AL
Pleasance Courtyard 60 Pleasance Edinburgh EH8 9T
7 days a week 17 hours a day 17 venues - 7 new 17 years on 170 shows 170 staff 170,000 visitors 7th heaven Administration for all programme enquiries 020 7700 6877 festival@pleasance.co.ukB Fax 020 7700 7366 www.pleasance.co.uk
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Tickets for all shows available at all venues
Tomorrow Never Knows The Scotsman
Pleasance Preview 1st-3rd Aug £3.00 £7.50 (£6.50) £8.50 (£7.50) Set a stone’s throw away from West Ham football ground, this gritty musical is a story of love, jealousy and reconciliation. Observed by an omnipresent narrator, the characters traverse through their ordinary lives in extraordinary ways. All human life is here; the ups the downs and the bits in between.
13:20
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The Scotsman
Tambar Productions
Weekend in Rio
Pleasance Preview 1st-4th Aug £4.00 £8.50 (£7.50) £9.50 (£8.50) £10.00 (£9.00) After a week long workshop at the Steppenwolf rehearsal studio in Chicago earlier this year, award winning director Laurence Boswell, (Hamlet, Ben Elton’s Popcorn), has created an enthralling setting for this new comedy by the young American wordwizard Steven Froelich. Come and meet the other passengers on board a bumpy flight to Rio.
16:30
Scotsman Assembly 0131226 2428 www.assemblyrooms.com George Street, Edinburgh, EH2 2LE Counter and telephone sales July 24 -Aug 2 11.00am-18.00, Mon-Fri Aug 3 - Aug 19 Every day, 10.00 - 00.00 Aug 20 - Aug 27 Every day, 9.30 - 00.00 NB Counter sales in EAST LANEWAY bside the Assembly Rooms Festival Fringe Box Office Counter Sales 0131226 0000 Jun 18 - July 22 Mon - Fri 12.00-15.00 July 23 - Aug 27 Everyday,10.00-19.00
Gilded Balloon 0131226 2151 233 Cowgate, Edinburgh, EH1 lGO Telephone Sales 16 July -1 Aug 10:00 -18:00 2 - 27 Aug 10:00 - 01:00 Counter Sales 31 July - 2 Aug 11:00 -18:00 3 - 27 Aug 10:00 - 00:00 Gilded Balloon II at TEVIOT Bristo Square, Edinburgh Counter Sales 3 - 27 Aug 10:00 - 00:00 Administration 0131226 6550 Press Office 01312261431 Fax 0131226 6554
George Square Theatre 0131 662 8740 www.georgesquaretheatre.co.uk George Square, Edinburgh EH8 9LH Telephone sales from 16 July -10.0018.00 from 3 Aug -10.00-22.00 Counter Sales From 3 Aug -10.00-22.00 Old College Quad South Bridge, Edinburgh EH8 9YL Tickets available from George Square Theatre or from the venue half and hour before the show. GST Press/Production 0131668 4890 Fax: 0131668 4717
Pleasance 0131 556 6550 (only £1 handIing fee applies) www.liv4pleasance.com 60 Pleasance Edinburgh EH8 9TJ Telephone sales until Aug 111.00 -18.00 Aug 2 - Aug 28 09.00 - 22.00 Counter sales July 31- Aug 111.00 -18.00 Aug 2 - Aug 28 11.00 - 01.00 Administration 0131556 1513 Press Office 0131556 6557 Fax 0131556 4472
General Information TELEPHONE BOOKINGS Before the Festival: Ticket sales on 0131226 2428 for all four venues: The Scotsman Assembly, Gilded Balloon, Pleasance and George Square Theatre. During the Festival: The Scotsman Assembly, Gilded Balloon, Pleasance and George Square Theatre have a linked box office system. Tickets for all shows in this brochure will be on sale at all four venues as well as the Festival Fringe Box Office. A £1.50 handling charge (£1 via Pleasance) Is levied-on all telephone bookings.
POSTAL BOOKINGS Complete form below CREDIT CARDS Visa/Mastercard/Switch are accepted at all box offices. All credit card telephone bookings should be collected by the credit card holder 20 minutes before the performance. CONCESSIONS For all performances, concession prices(where listed) are available to children under -16, students, registered unemployed, Young Scots/Stage Pass holders, OAPs and disabled persons. Proof of status must be shown when purchasing or collecting tickets.
EXCHANGES AND REFUNDS We regret that it is not possible to exchange tickets or refund money. PLEASE CHECK YOUR TICKETS CAREFULLY BEFORE YOU LEAVE THE BOX OFFICE. LATECOMERS It is not possible to admit latecomers to performances. ALTERATIONS The Scotsman Assembly, Gilded Balloon, Pleasance and George Square Theatre reserve the right to alter the published programme. Management refuse the right to refuse admission. All seats are unreserved.
DISABLED ACCESS Most of our theatres are fitted solely for the festival and therefore access is sometimes difficult. We will always do our best but please check with the box office when booking and arrive 20 minutes before the performance starts. Our staff will do their utmost to assist. Please see venues intro pages for details. George Square Theatre is fully accessible with a lift to the auditorium and facilities. There is ramped access on George Square - please call the Box Office for full details. Old College Quad is accessible via a ramp on South College Street but please call George Square Theatre Box Office first for information. Assembly Access - Wildman room 5yd flat; Edinburgh Suite and Supper Room enter by side lane 20yd; Ballroom and Music Hall, Lift available; Drawing Room no disabled access. WC (adapted ground level W22�). Please check with box office for assistance.
Contents “This year promises to be the best programme so far with a host of old friends and new talent creating a feast of theatre and comedy.”
WILLIAM BURDETT-COUTTS
artistic director, Assembly Theatre
“...we look forward to you coming to the Gilded Balloon and having the time of your life. Bring on the excitement!!”
artistic dirrector, George Square Theatre
“7 days a week /17 hours a day / 17 venues - 7 new /17 years on / 170 shows /170 staff /170,000 visitors - 7th heaven!” Christopher Richardson dirrector, Pleasance Theatre
Cover illustration by Joanna Swiderska
Louise McNaught
Cover design by Joanna Swiderska
“Don’t miss out on our zany children’s shows, inspirational dance, riotous music, cult musicals and stirring theatre.”
Design by Joanna Swiderska
artistic dirrector, Gilded Balloon
Brochure co-ordinated by
Karen Koren
04 Listings The Scotsman Assembly 06 Intro 08 Theatre 20 Comedy 30 Music 33 Exhibitions Glided Balloon 35 Intro 36 Theatre 45 Comedy 62 Music George Square Theatre 67 Intro 68 Theatre Pleasance 75 Intro 76 Theatre 93 Comedy 116 Music/Cabaret 118 Visual Art/Childrens comedy 119 Booking - information 125 At a Glance Guide 126 Map
Using This Guide Start time
Each theatre is colour coded: The Scotsman Assembly Gilded Balloon George Square Theatre Pleasance Part of the British Council showcase
Guide to the
2010 Edinburgh Festival Fringe 1-27 August The Scotsman assembly Gilded balloon George Square Theatre Pleasance Lighten up Comedy Festival