Nangle Natters: Fringe bangs
Less than two months. That’s all it is before the Brighton Fringe takes over our city and it moves from gently simmering with creativity to bubbling over with ideas, colours, concepts and originality, running out onto the streets and taking up residence in every room above a pub/café corner/public room in fair Brighton & Hove. It’s going to be awesome. It always is.
I went along to meet some of the venue managers and show producers to find out a bit about what’s making them excited regarding the forthcoming Fringe. I mean, mine was just an abstract anticipation, but they actually knew what’s in store.
An immersive ‘Trainspotting’ theatre show at King Alfred’s sounds awesome. Sweet Venues (who are putting it on) tell me that Irvine Welsh – author of the book the iconic film was adapted from – says that this production is even more like the original novel than the silver screen version. Prepare to have a strong stomach for some scenes, I think. And book tickets early.
Prepare to have a strong stomach for some scenes
I chatted with some of Northbrook College’s students, putting on their very own originally devised shows at The Warren (gotta love that mainstay pop-up venue that resolutely tells me I can wear summer clothes at any point in the Fringe run). With one promising “magical realism” and a “post-modern musical” taking its songbook from tunes you’d hear on the radio, whilst another exploring ideas of ‘consent’, plus a Pebble Trust Award winner-student offering ‘10 Steps To Happiness’ – who says students learn by rote?! Not this lot! More ideas than Thomas Edison here.
I talked with Tony Jaffe, venue manager at The Old Courtroom. He challenged me to find another 84-year-old venue manager in the Brighton Fringe. I could not meet this challenge. Let alone find one who has recently undergone surgery and is still as passionate as ever about the innovative shows coming to his venue. It’s a high bar Tony has set. Which says a lot about the standards he sets for the shows he’s putting on: I’m especially curious about ‘Ensonglopedia of Science’.
Now the Brighton Fringe brochure is out and I’m taking my time with it. I want to savour exploring its pages, and I’ve started with the sections that can sometimes be overlooked. I went straight to Tours – where in previous years I’ve found some real gems. Walking tours can be a great tonic after a few hours sitting in the dark watching shows. Look at me blinking in the sunlight and learning about Brighthelm’s history! Striding forward to whatever artistic delight I have next. Roll on Brighton Fringe.
