Today (Wednesday 04 May), Underbelly is announcing a further 61 shows to go on sale for this year’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe. The additions to the 2022 line-up feature an array of iconic Fringe performers with an extensive and eclectic mix of shows that appeal to a wide range of Fringe fans. Festival-goers can purchase tickets via the Underbelly website from 12pm on Wednesday 4 May – www.underbellyedinburgh.co.uk.
Underbelly at the Edinburgh Fringe runs from the 3 – 29 August 2022 across four sites: George Square, Circus Hub on the Meadows, Cowgate and Bristo Square. The line-up includes:
Cabaret and Variety highlights
Award-winning cult-cabaret mischief makers and circus stars, Briefs Factory are set to go head-to-head with much celebrated and sainted songbird Sahara Beck in a live music cabaret extravaganza called Briefs: Bite Club.
Break out stars of the international cabaret and circus circuit Blunderland, will arrive at the Fringe with a dose of outrageous nightlife naughtiness, club-kid antics, and a heavy amount of arthouse-weird.
Karen is hitting the road and she’s hitting it hard. Festival goers will say goodbye to the 80-hour work week and jump on board the Finance Express for this one-woman journey of self-discovery wile trying out new investing opportunities such as those at VT Markets … in Karen From Finance is Out Of Office. You can also check out this zoom video communications stock forecast here to help with your finances!
Musicals and operas
From multi-award-winning Fat Rascal Theatre Unfortunate: The Untold Story of Ursula the Sea Witch features everyone’s favourite Disney Diva, Ursula as she tells her side of the story accompanied by an electrifying pop soundtrack and the casts trademark filthy humour.
Theatre highlights
This year’s Fringe promises a dramatic roster of thrilling theatre including Love Them To Death a dark thriller set in the borderlands between love and violence. Written by Max Dickins and directed by Fringe First winner Hannah Eidinow.
Based on real events, Swell is a story of two siblings who find themselves in the purgatory of a town ready to be abandoned to rising sea levels. How are we able to understand ourselves when the places we call home crumble around us?
Can kids be parents? When Cassie’s mother disappears, the teenager wants to care for her sisters alone. Award winning Cassie and the Lights is based on real-life events, with live music and Patch of Blue’s trademark warmth and humour. Finally, an equally touching and hilarious deep dive into relationships, Living a Little is a fresh and brave exploration of the trials and tribulations of friendship.
Comedy highlights
This year brings a fantastic mix of comedy acts from Fringe favourites Jason Byrne and Paul Foot to exciting up and comer, TikTok sensation Rob Madge and not forgetting the sensational Rhys Nicholson whose upcoming Fringe show Rhys! Rhys! Rhys! just won Most Outstanding Show at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival Award.
Hilarious movie-based comedy arrives in the form of Dreamgun: Film Reads where every night a different film script is rewritten and performed by unprepared comedians, including Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings and Star Wars.
The award-winning West End smash-hit comedy Austentatious will also return with an all-star cast presenting a hilarious new Jane Austen novel every day, based entirely on a single audience suggestion.
Armed with the rosiest of cheeks and the floppiest of hair, Max Fosh is bringing audiences his hilarious and unpredictable debut live show Mark Fosh: Zocial Butterfly. Award winning Sudanese-Aussie comedian Emo will dig into his experiences of adjusting from life at an East African refugee camp in Emo Majok: Black Santa.
Ever wondered what takes a girl so long to get ready? The award winning Eme Essien reveals just that, in a funny but sincere hour reflecting the internal conflict of a woman trying to achieve modern ideals in Eme Essien: Flat Shows in The Club.
Geoff Norcott is set to bring his brand-new comedy show I Blame The Parents to the Fringe where he will explore personal responsibility, parenting and who should take the blame when things go wrong.
Join the star of BBC’s The Mash Report, Rachel Parris as she performs stand-up and songs about sudden love, the highs and lows of relationships, family, weddings, kids, going viral, going mental, and the baffling state of play in society.
Sami Abu Wardeh will use his body and voice to present an hour of character comedy that may feel dangerous but is probably as safe as milk or houses in Sami Abu Wardeh: Bedu.
Comedian Matt Forde will be joined by former UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown for a special live podcast in McEwan Hall. Join the ex-Labour Leader as he delves into his iconic political career in The Political Party with Matt Forde: Gordon Brown.
Straight off the back of his 2021 Live at The Apollo Debut Emmanuel Sonubi will present a brand-new hour of hilarious comedy.
Following their sell-out UK tour, the Scummy Mummies are coming back with a brand-new comedy show that includes new songs, new sketches and of course new catsuits! Expect hilarity and plenty of fun from the podcasting duo.
James Barr and Dan Hudson will present the UK’s funniest LGBTQ+ podcast live, A Gay and a NonGay with special guests. A laugh-out-loud podcast recording and a hilarious night out for audiences; one is gay, the other one isn’t.
Ali Woods is set to present his highly anticipated debut stand-up hour Ali Woods: Best Friend Ever to the Fringe, tackling all the big topics from Scottish mothers to sex parties, karate teachers, and mental breakdowns.
Children’s Shows highlights
This year’s line-up includes several family friendly shows including previously announced Edinburgh Festival Fringe favourite, The Amazing Bubble Man, Cbeebies legends Maddie and Greg with their show The Wonder Games with Maddie and Greg! and Julia Donaldson’s classic story brought to the stage The Gruffalo, the Giant and the Mermaid. Spectators will enter a magical world of myths and legends in Dragons and Mythical Beasts a fantastical new show featuring the most magnificent monsters and terrifying beasts ever to walk the earth.
Manual Cinema will present their new family show, Leonardo! A Wonderful Show About A Terrible Monster, a visually stunning production adapted from the beloved children’s book by Mo Willems. This spellbinding production will be realized using puppets, paper cut-outs, DIY cinema and original songs.
Splish splashing circus show Splash Test Dummies is making a return to the Fringe with their exciting and splashingly awesome adventures.
It’s a sticky situation. Queen Bee & Worker Bee need to work together to rebuild their hive, but things don’t end up going to plan… Bee Story is a uniquely Australian physical theatre show that the whole family will enjoy incorporating a kaleidoscope of circus, acrobatics, dance and live music.
Music highlights
One to add to lists this year – Camille O’Sullivan: Dreaming will premiere a rare intimate evening of new dark and light songs, including Bowie, Cohen, Pulp, Radiohead, Rufus Wainwright.
Dance, Physical Theatre and Circus highlights
Cirque Alfonse join the previously announced Circus Abyssnia and their highly anticipated spectacular, Tulu as well as five-star Fringe favourite CIRCA. Cirque Alfonse are set to take us through a series of surreal farm fables and fantastic circus feats in Animal, served up with a touch of irreverence, impressive virtuosity and the company’s familiar comedic touch.
Havana Street Party is the new dance sensation from producers of Fringe hits Havana After Dark and Havana Rumba. Celebrating the street dance culture of Cuba, Havana Street Party will bring a skilfully spectacular show to Edinburgh this summer. With talented street dancers from LOS DATWAY, thrilling percussion from Mas Con Menos and sensational contemporary ballet from Kufesa, this show is not to be missed.
Rebel is a circus, rock & roll tribute to the original rebel, Bowie. Stage dive into the mosh pit for an evening of glittering glam rock, breathtaking acrobatics and aerials and spectacular heart-stopping sideshow, to a live rock & roll David Bowie soundtrack.
Starting as a puddle of fabric on the floor, Brave Space grows into a magical blanket fort, enveloping the audience within a dream-like world of circus.
Untapped
The four winners of Underbelly and New Diorama’s 2022 Untapped Award, supported by Methuen Drama, are also revealed today. The Untapped Award is aimed at early-mid career companies looking to take outstanding, highly original work to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and has been run in partnership with New Diorama since 2018.
In Good Grief, multi award-winning physical comedy company Ugly Bucket process the death of a friend the only way they know how: a kinetic maelstrom of outrageous clowning and personal testimony, with a thumping techno soundtrack.
This is not a show about Hong Kong: Max Percy + Friend’s visually stunning dance-theatre spectacle is not about Hong Kong, its people, democracy, or human rights. This is just a show about that deep, sinking, helpless feeling that we can’t quite put into words.
In Caligari, Off West End Award-winning Chewboy Productions present a stylish new adaptation of cult classic German expressionist horror film ‘The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari’ with five actor-musicians telling the story from the point of view of the victims and exposing parallels between post-war Weimar Germany and the UK today.
Chalk Line Theatre blend physical, verbatim and multimedia theatre with cabaret-style direct address in Blanket Ban and to tell the harrowing story of Malta’s total ban on abortion based on the testimonies of those affected.
This latest line-up of udderly fantastic shows hitting the Edinburgh Festival Fringe this year joins the already announced 57 shows currently on sale at www.underbellyedinburgh.co.uk. The shows already part of the unrivaled Underbelly line-up include La Clique, Circus Abyssinia, CIRCA, The Gruffalo, the Giant and the Mermaid with Julia Donaldson, The Wonder Games with Maddie and Greg, Abandoman, Jason Byrne, Rob Madge, Foil Arms and Hog and more.
Charlie Wood and Ed Bartlam, directors of Underbelly, said “We’re very excited to announce another stellar group of acts joining this year’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe line-up. With everything from award winning comedians, critically acclaimed children’s entertainment, dazzling dance to circus performers and unforgettable theatre, Underbelly has something for everyone to enjoy this year!”
