887, Edinburgh
The Canadian theatrical wizard Robert Lepage and his company Ex Machina have a long relationship with the Edinburgh international festival. This year he returns to write, direct and perform this very personal show about memory in which he delves back into his own childhood in Quebec in the 1970s. Lepage describes the show as “a dive into the waters of my past” but the personal becomes entwined with the political in a piece that looks not just at memory, but also identity and nationhood. As ever, Lepage will be seamlessly melding live action with technological effects in a show which has already premiered in Canada and has been praised for its honesty, intimacy and firework theatricality.
Edinburgh International Conference Centre, Thu to 23 Aug
LG
The Christians, Edinburgh
Belief was a big theme at 2014’s fringe and it’s on the agenda again this year, with the return of Chris Thorpe’s brilliant Confirmation (Summerhall, 22 to 29 Aug), which considers confirmation bias; and the British premiere of Lucas Hnath’s The Christians, set in an evangelical Christian church. What we believe and why, and what happens when we change our minds, is explored in a play that focuses on Pastor Paul (played by William Gaminara) and the congregation he has been slowly building over the last 20 years. But as his flock press into the church to hear his latest sermon, Pastor Paul has something unexpected to say that may not be welcome. Heading to London’s Gate Theatre, W11, after its Edinburgh run (8 Sep to 3 Oct), the show is directed by Christopher Haydon and features a large community choir.
Traverse Theatre, Sat to 30 Aug
LG
A Midsummer Night’s Dream In New Orleans, London
Summer seems to bring Shakespeare out all over the place. A Midsummer Night’s Dream is a hardy perennial of the season, but while its woodland-set fairytale is great for outdoors, the British climate doesn’t always play along. So grab a mint julep and an indoor seat for Ruby In The Dust’s New Orleans-set Dream, where the familiar tale unfolds from the city’s jazz clubs and beyond, and voodoo weaves a spell. There’s live jazz and blues, including the music of Dr John. If you do want your Bard alfresco, Fuller’s Inns’ Shakespeare In The Garden this year offers Romeo And Juliet (various venues, to 12 Sep).
Arts Theatre, WC2, to 30 Aug
MC
Bruises, London
Woven Voices is a theatre company that seeks to tell the stories of those on the margins of society, or those who have fallen between its cracks. Its latest project is Bruises, the debut play by actor Nadia Cavelle, which follows two friends as they attempt to escape their pasts. One-time gymnast Banana and sex worker Jackie have been chums for a decade, but when high-class pimp Mona makes Jackie an offer he can’t refuse, a bereft Banana attempts to find love with a high-flying lawyer instead. Starting a new life isn’t as simple as it may seem for either of them in a piece that playfully examines identity and sexuality and looks at sex work in an “informed and compassionate” way. The cast includes Jean-Claude Fall, who also directs.
Tabard Theatre, W4, Tue to 29 Aug
MC
The Encounter, Edinburgh
Binaural technology is pretty big in theatre at the moment and in Edinburgh this year theatre-goers at the fringe and at the international festival will be able to experience its possibilities. In the case of the former, David Rosenberg and Glen Neath’s unsettling Fiction plays the Pleasance (to 30 Aug), while at the latter, Complicite’s Simon McBurney takes audiences on a journey into the depths of the Amazon rainforest in The Encounter. He tells the story of Loren McIntyre, a National Geographic photographer who in 1969 got lost in the remote Javari valley in Brazil. McBurney creates a 3D soundscape that is transmitted directly into your ears via headphones to create a changed sense of consciousness.
Edinburgh International Conference Centre, Sat to 23 Aug
LG
The Human Ear, Edinburgh
Paines Plough’s Roundabout theatre – a transportable circular auditorium – delivered some of the highlights of last year’s fringe, including the heart-breaking and hilarious Every Brilliant Thing. That show is back this year (to 30 Aug) alongside other hits such as Our Teacher’s A Troll (to 23 Aug) and Lungs (to 30 Aug). But there are plenty of tempting new shows too, including Chicken (to 30 Aug) from Molly Davies, whose God Bless The Child was at the Royal Court recently. Alexandra Wood had The Initiate at this venue last year and now she returns with The Human Ear, about sibling relationships, loss and placing our trust in others. In fact, it’s a busy August for Wood whose acclaimed version of Manfred Karge’s Man To Man is at the Underbelly (to 31 Aug).
Roundabout @ Summerhall, to 30 Aug
LG
