Fringe musicals & opera reviews: Penelope | Brodie and Co | The Shocking Truth About Flat Earth + more

Penelope ★ ★ ★ ★

Underbelly, Cowgate (Venue 61) until 30 August

Grace McLean gives a confident central performance to reclaim Penelope’s existence and defy her fate as the sad wife waiting on her husband that Homer’s The Odyssey lays out for her. A cabaret consisting of a soothing folk score by Alex Bechtel, a witty script, and McLean’s uncompromising performance, Penelope enables its titular character to embrace her personality and finally take hold of a story that has historically confined her.

It is The Odyssey from Penelope’s perspective, which McLean recites in speech between captivating songs. Penelope waits on her husband Odysseus to return from the Trojan War, dealing with suitors and her maturing son, making her version much easier to decipher than the epic in whole and therefore ideal for the Fringe.

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McLean's Penelope is strong yet shamed, angry yet desperate; she brings nuance and grit that expresses many different facets of womanhood; as mother and lover but no longer solely wife of Odysseus. She pours her heart into Bechtel’s lengthened symphonies, bringing life to music that already feels alive so that her audience may get close to Penelope, who is accessible as she insists on having a drink to endure telling her story.

There are few moments that distract, but Penelope’s revelation that her life is her own, only to embrace Odysseus immediately upon his return is narratively jarring, and there is inconsistency within the performances of Penelope’s band, where some act enthusiastic, and others dejected, which ultimately confounds their role to highlight Penelope.

Still, Penelope’s score is its greatest strength, and with a newfound global interest in The Odyssey, the team behind Penelope may have chosen the perfect summer to debut their show. Róisin McMullan

Brodie and Co ★ ★ ★ ★

Paradise in Augustines (Venue 152) until 29 August

It takes some guts to premiere a new musical based on the life and crimes of one of Edinburgh’s most infamous sons at the Fringe, but Helen Brown and John Moore’s colourful extravaganza is a delightful surprise. It’s bold because until now the double life of William “Deacon” Brodie, cabinet maker and Edinburgh City Councillor by day, turned burglar by night, has proved somewhat resistant to a wholly successful adaptation. For over a century it looked like Brodie was destined to remain an interesting footnote as the original inspiration for Robert Louis Stevenson’s Jekyll and Hyde characters. However, it’s perhaps fitting that this production from Shrewsbury School — who scored a Fringe First for their musical Jekyll! Back in 1995 — is almost certainly the best version of Brodie’s tale currently available.

There’s certainly nods to historical accuracy, but Brown and Moore don’t get bogged down in retelling the actual true-life tale of the disgraced deacon of his local trade guild. It takes evident delight at surprising the audience by opening in London and introducing its main character, Jeanie Watt (Freya Collinge), “a girl ahead of her time,” forced by impoverished circumstances to move to Edinburgh, where she falls in with the sex workers of 1780s’ Auld Reekie (the smokily jazzy number You’ve Got To Pay For It! is a real stand-out).

It’s a clever touch making Brodie (Dominic Turner) a supporting character in his own story as we get to discover more about him, along with Jeanie, who begins to fall in love with him. While the love story isn’t entirely compelling, what’s great about this very handsome production is its pace. Director Helen Brown keeps her large and impressively talented young cast well choreographed throughout while the songs by musical director John Moore are a good mixture of upbeat styles that ensures a very breezy and enjoyable ninety minutes. A well-deserved hit. Rory Ford

The Shocking Truth About Flat Earth ★ ★ ★

Pleasance Dome (Venue 23) until 30 August

“There’s a Flat Earth believer in everyone!” sing American YouTubers Bobby and Brodie at the beginning of this musical, setting the stage for a show which is exuberantly satirical, like The Book of Mormon. However, the show, made at Wolverhampton Grand Theatre, is only partly that. The other part is a poignant human story.

The main character is Sharon (Emma Norman), a lonely middle-aged woman grieving for her mum who falls down the Flat Earth rabbit hole after spending too much time online. A cheer-up trip to Las Vegas with her widowed friend Debs (Emma Thornett) leads to a case of mistaken identity and a madcap trip to Antarctica to find the mythical rim of the world.

Written with plenty of heart by Alex Moneypenny and Adam Tuffrey, this version feels like a cut-back version of a much longer production. Everything happens too fast, and the occasionally rather nasty audience interaction strikes a discordant note. Wonderful as it is to see two middle-aged female leads in a musical, this one can’t seem to make up its mind what it wants to be. Susan Mansfield

READ MORE: Playwright Alex Moneypenny on why conspiracy theorists need empathy

Bipolarcoaster ★ ★ ★

theSpace @ Surgeons Hall (Venue 53) until 29 August

Since her diagnosis with Bipolar Disorder, New York-based performer Amanda Andrews has made more than ten musical plays about mental health issues. For her Edinburgh Fringe debut, she explores her reluctance to accept the diagnosis, insisting that it’s normal to have ups and downs. At the same time, she wants to understand why her life is a series of peaks and crashes, and her friends seem to find her hard work. As Andrews tells us in the show, she has a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Vocal Performance, and much of her story is captured in original songs by Kyle Lacy, which she performs with passion and professionalism.

While there is perhaps a tad too much material here, what she does so well is to communicate what it’s like to struggle with Bipolar Disorder in the midst of ordinary life: attending a friend’s engagement party, making a show, looking for a date. She is insightful about why she finds the diagnosis hard to accept, and decides to adopt an attitude of “courageous honesty with myself” going forward. One can only applaud her courage for taking this journey to the stage – and all the way to the Edinburgh Fringe. Susan Mansfield

Trains in the Night ★ ★

Annexe at theSpace @ Symposium Hall (Venue 43) until 29 August

A sapphic love story takes centre stage in this original musical from Maiden Mother Moan. Celine and Margot are long-distance best friends of the “co-dependent, homoerotic” variety, we are told and for 50 minutes, they earnestly pursue what’s right in front of them.

The two leads are an excellent vocal match, their rich harmonies soaring over what is, unfortunately, a rushed, low-stakes plot. Despite their efforts to convince the audience of their love – and the consequences of pursuing it – their chemistry feels forced and we lack enough context to care. Self-referential jokes about lesbian longing land, but the story fails to give its happy ending the weight it deserves. Mika Morava

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