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Before @ayo_adenekan brings ‘Homeland Insecurity’ to @sohotheatre.bsky.social from 25 to 28 November, see why our critic considers the Saturday Night Live UK writer a standout Scottish export and a star on the rise ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 🧵👇

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"Nikolai Foster’s current UK touring production, however, jettisons much of that nuance in favour of bright and shiny comedy," our critic writes of Legally Blonde at Edinburgh Playhouse. ⭐⭐⭐ 🧵👇

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"Directorial eccentricity derails the drama entirely: the prophet is portrayed by a melon," writes Alena Shmakova of Changing Perspectives' thirty-minute solo staging of Salome. ⭐⭐⭐ 🧵👇

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TheQR @theqr.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

"The funny thing about good slapstick is that it looks completely out of control, when in reality it requires an enormous amount of control," co-creator Jack Pallister explains of staging a chaotic musical whodunnit amid the tables of Brick Lane Music Hall. 🧵👇

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"Very few players possess the technique to play at such speed while still allowing a tiny chink of light between each note," writes Lindsay McMurdo of Angela Hewitt's fortepiano programme with Dunedin Consort at the Queen's Hall. ⭐⭐⭐⭐.5 🧵👇

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TheQR @theqr.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

"Redmond is perfectly cast and un-knockdownable in every sense of the word," our critic writes of the new @pitlochryft.bsky.social staging of Beckett's Happy Days. ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 🧵👇

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TheQR @theqr.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

"Well, I never thought I would say that one of my theatre heroes – Simon Russell Beale – was awful, but he really is in this production about Liberace," our critic writes of the new @pitlochryft.bsky.social staging. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 🧵👇

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TheQR @theqr.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

"Whoever had the idea of lumping together a TV everyman, a world-famous soprano and a member of a boyband is either a certified genius or just plain certifiable," our critic writes of Hadestown in 2026. Shaun Dooley, Danielle de Niese, and Nathan Sykes cohere surprisingly well. 🧵👇

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TheQR @theqr.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

"Vardimon transforms the clinical monotony of a busy hospital into a surreal arena, ripe with weaponisable medical props," our critic writes of Jasmin Vardimon’s reimagined Lullaby. The production navigates the journey from triage to treatment with athletic endurance and unexpected humour. 🧵👇

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TheQR @theqr.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

To mark 70 years of the Royal Court, BBC Radio 4 & Radio 4 Extra are unlocking their vaults for an 8-day audio drama season curated by Mark Ravenhill. From Ben Whishaw’s Jimmy Porter to Helen McCrory in Top Girls: (Thread 👇)

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"Even if it would benefit from a little more restraint where it comes to effects, Private Peaceful is a powerful piece of theatre." Alone with a wooden bunk, a debut actor counts down to dawn. (Thread 👇)

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"Lloyd-Jones and Palsson are every (middle-aged) woman," writes critic Cath Coutts. Backstage, two veteran dancers face stiff joints, stolen high heels, and the brutal reality of ageing out of the industry. (Thread 👇)

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"Our role is not to judge where an audience has been built, but to assess the quality of the live experience." Aberdeen Comedy Festival - @apawhatson.bsky.social - is ditching online algorithms to test acts in real rooms—and Victorian pub toilets. (Thread 👇)

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Corporate whistleblowers, Civil War exile, and Basque folk horror. @espanfilmf.bsky.social is ditching lone hero tropes to bet 16 films on mutual aid and collective survival across six UK cities. (Thread 👇)

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The Quinntessential Review | Theatre, Arts & Culture Reviews

40 dancers on stage for a single, unscripted performance. Scottish Dance Theatre marks 40 years as Scotland’s resident contemporary dance company with a one-night-only anniversary gala at @dundeerep.bsky.social on 31 Oct. (Thread 👇)

theqr.co.uk

Theatre, Arts & Culture Reviews

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Eighty-year-olds share a stage with seven-year-olds—and nobody had to audition. Barrowland Ballet threw open the doors, letting a 73-year age gap collide without judging a single body. (Thread 👇)

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In 1954, a cult cut the zips off their clothes to wait for a flying saucer. When no ship showed up, they told reporters they'd saved the world. Tonight, Groupwork opens a 6-venue Scottish tour based on the fallout. (Thread 👇)

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TheQR @theqr.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

From 2:22 A Ghost Story to UncannyCon at Birmingham ICC, Danny Robins has turned Britain's quiet paranormal obsession into an arena-scale phenomenon. He speaks to The QR about belief, scepticism, and scaling campfire intimacy. (Thread 👇)

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"Overall, there’s a sense of a cast and crew going all out, but not being made the most of." Nikolai Foster’s touring production of #AnnieTheMusical arrives at the Edinburgh Playhouse, starring Alex Bourne and Claire Sweeney. (Thread 👇)

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TheQR @theqr.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

Faroese brass, live-processed South Indian vocals & 1923’s Hunchback scored live on a 147-year-old pipe organ. Glasgow Cathedral Festival marks 10 years by turning the city’s oldest building into a live acoustic playground (17–20 Sept). (Thread 👇)

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TheQR @theqr.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

Peter Serafinowicz has announced a 13-date UK tour for 2027—and he's using proprietary software to alter his face live on stage. Audiences will see real-time digital transformations into Michael Caine, Paul McCartney & Brian Butterfield. (Thread 👇)

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TheQR @theqr.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

Nordic cow-calling, book smuggling & Nicola Sturgeon debating the 'stateless nation'. The 37th Scottish Storytelling Festival isn't sticking to cozy fireside myths. Under new director Daniel Abercrombie, #SISF2026 takes over 100+ spaces from Shetland to Dumfries. (Thread 👇)

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TheQR @theqr.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

Nearly 40 years after debuting the role at @traversetheatre.bsky.social , Tilda Swinton returns to Manfred Karge’s #ManToMan. Earning ★★★★ from The QR, Sass MacDonald reviews at @royalcourt.bsky.social —ahead of its Edinburgh transfer (29 Oct–7 Nov). (Thread 👇)

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TheQR @theqr.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

Michelle Dockery returns to the London stage in Bloodsport: After Helen of Troy @stratfordeast.com. Quentin Tarantino meets Homer in a paranoid Essex living room. Earning ★★★ from The QR, Franco Milazzo reviews. (Thread 👇)

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TheQR @theqr.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

Earning ★★★★ from The QR, NYC clowning sensations Xhloe Rice & Natasha Roland bring controlled chaos to @sohotheatre with Bigfoot Ripped My Dog In Half I Saw It. Running in London until 26 Sept. (Thread 👇)

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TheQR @theqr.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

The Fringe may be over, but Scotland’s comedy circuit pauses for no one. Aberdeen Comedy Festival kicks off on 19 Sept across @apawhatson.bsky.social venues. Here are 6 shows we wouldn't hesitate to recommend... (Thread 👇)

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TheQR @theqr.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

How did a 22-year-old Bavarian conductor revive Edinburgh’s civic philharmonic, recruit the Duke of Hamilton as Patron, and navigate the arts funding freeze? Ahead of Capella Edina's free Usher Hall concert on Tuesday: (Thread 👇)

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Can Hannibal Lecter work on stage? Earning ★★★½ from The QR, Cath Coutts reviews #TheSilenceOfTheLambs at @captheatres, starring John Partridge & Mollie Gallagher in a bold reimagining of the iconic thriller. (Thread 👇)

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Scotland makes world-class theatre, so why does that talent struggle to cross onto cinema screens? @NTSonline is taking direct action with #FutureActs: 6 original shorts touring @glasgowfilmtheatre.bsky.social, Filmhouse, @macrobertarts.bsky.social & Eden Court 1–5 Oct. (Thread 👇)

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In case you missed our review from the end of August: for his final #EdFringe2026 review, Will Quinn awarded a full ★★★★★ to Harriet Richardson’s Creep at @The Pleasance—a slick, unhinged dive into internet obsession. (Thread 👇)

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In case you missed our review from the end of August: for her final #EdFringe2026 review, Sass MacDonald awarded ★★★★ to Ben Norris’s The Distance at @summerhallarts.bsky.social —a powerhouse, deeply moving solo feat of athletic endurance. (Thread 👇)

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In case you missed our review from the end of August: earning ★★★½ from The QR, Mere Mortals at Edinburgh Playhouse for @edintfest was a colossal, visually stunning examination of AI and humanity. (Thread 👇)

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In case you missed our review from the end of August: earning ★★★★ from The QR, Betyl Theatre's Play Dead at @UnderbellyFest was a gripping, darkly comic descent into obsession, classical myth, and calamity. (Thread 👇)

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In case you missed our coverage from the end of August: capping off an impressive near-daily @edbookfest diary, Sass MacDonald attended the festival finale with Colm Tóibín and Philippe Sands on 'Remembering the Dirty War'. (Thread 👇)

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In case you missed our coverage from the end of August: writing for The QR, Sass MacDonald stepped into the @edbookfest Spiegeltent for Michael Pedersen & Friends, featuring Douglas Stuart, Gordon Buchanan & Iona Zajac. (Thread 👇)

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In case you missed our review from the end of August: earning ★★★★½ from The QR, RÓIS at The Hub for @edintfest was a spellbinding union of ancient Irish keening rituals and ethereal electronic soundscapes. (Thread 👇)

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In case you missed our review from the end of August: earning ★★★★½ from The QR, Circa’s Wolf at @UnderbellyFest was an astonishing, unapologetically physical showcase of contemporary circus at its peak. (Thread 👇)

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Writing for The QR, Harry Conway reviews Fraser Kelsey’s Desperate Wee Gay Boy—a vibrant, rollercoaster drama of queer youth, sharp clubland excess, and daring dramatic twists at #EdFringe2026. (Thread 👇)

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Much Ado About Nothing | Shakespeare's Globe Slick suits, animal-head masques, and stand-up comic timing. Does this modernised romp hit the mark in the yard? Dates: September 10 - October 24 2026 (Thread 👇)

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TheQR @theqr.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

High Society | Edinburgh Playhouse | Trafalgar Theatre Productions Touring a 13-piece band into a 3,000-seat house is a bold gamble. Does the vocal firepower match the lavish staging? Dates: This August (check venue listings for full details) (Thread 👇)

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While major book festivals retreat to polite academic halls, @ptbopoetry treats verse as a live contact sport—from 1,000-poem sprints to gigs on Leith lighthouse boats. Push the Boat Out 2026 | @ptbopoetry | The Pleasance | 12–15 Nov (Preview 31 Oct) (Thread 👇)

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TheQR @theqr.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

Cabaret at Fringe 2026 is bringing pure mischief, Weimar punk satire, and late-night anarchy to the stage. Our nine standout cabaret, burlesque, and variety recommendations for this August: wp.me/p91wLp-zErvr5P #EdFringe

wp.me

The Quinntessential Review

Inclusive independent Arts News, Views, and News.

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Earning ★★★½ from The QR, Hajar J Woodland’s Hajar, Like Badger at Hoots @ The Apex is a warm, musical coming-of-age debut navigating cultural whiplash and family expectations. 📍 Hoots @ The Apex 📅 Fri 07 Aug – Mon 31 Aug | 12:50pm (Thread 👇)

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Earning ★★★ from The QR, Smack the Pony star Fiona Allen brings White Lies to @Gildedballoon—an unpretentious, wry slice of domestic satire turning suburban misanthropy into comedy gold. 📍 @Gildedballoon (Teviot) 📅 Wed 05 Aug – Sat 29 Aug | 6:00pm (Thread 👇)

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Earning ★★★★ from The QR, Katie Norris: Mother Succubus at @ThePleasance is a razor-sharp, gothic-tinged stand-up hour packed with absurdism and formidable vocal power. 📍 @ThePleasance (Pleasance Courtyard) 📅 Wed 05 Aug – Sun 30 Aug | 9:25pm (Thread 👇) Post 2 / Reply 1

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Earning ★★★★ from The QR, Nick Tipa’s Babyface at @paradisegreenuk is a charming, physically astonishing solo show blending pro wrestling bravado with childhood vulnerability. 📍 @paradisegreenuk (The Vault) 📅 Mon 24 Aug – Sun 30 Aug | 12:45pm (Thread 👇)

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Earning ★★★★ from The QR, Colin Currie Group's Steve Reich programme at Usher Hall for @edintfest is an exacting, hyper-rhythmic showcase of immense musicianship. 📍 @edintfest.bsky.social (Usher Hall) 📅 Fri 28 Aug | 7:00pm (Thread 👇)

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Earning ★★★★½ from The QR, Sh!t Theatre’s Evita Too at @zoovenues is a gloriously unhinged, meticulously researched political cabaret directed by Ursula Martinez. 📍 @zoovenues.bsky.social (ZOO Southside) 📅 Fri 07 Aug – Sun 30 Aug | 6:25pm (Thread 👇)

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