The biggest arts festival in the world, the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, is just around the corner!
There's some amazing Northern artists heading up to Scotland this year with their incredible shows, with so much to choose from we thought we’d round up some of our top picks of artists we’ve either supported or are local to West Yorkshire who are heading up to the Fringe.
One of our missions here at Lawrence Batley Theatre is to nurture local artists and help them to achieve on a national stage, we're proud to see shows we've helped develop or artists we've given support to showcasing their work at a festival as renowned as the Edinburgh Fringe and are excited to see where these artists and shows will go next (some may even be making a homecoming later this year!)
This is just a handful of the incredible artists taking work to Edinburgh this year, click here to browse all the shows at this year's Fringe.
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Shellshocked
𝟯𝟭 𝗝𝘂𝗹𝘆 - 𝟮𝟲 𝗔𝘂𝗴𝘂𝘀𝘁, 𝗣𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘁𝘆𝗮𝗿𝗱, 𝟭𝟬:𝟱𝟬𝗮𝗺 Philip Stokes is a critically acclaimed writer based in Leeds. We co-produced his award-winning show Jesus, Jane, Mother & Me in 2022 which recieved ★★★★★ from The Stage and won Theatre Weekly's Best Solo Performance and the Adelaide Fringe Holden Street Theatre's Award . Shellshocked is Philip's explosive new play which looks at the consequences of the horrors of war on the mind of a young solider.
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LASH
𝟯𝟭 𝗝𝘂𝗹𝘆 - 𝟮𝟱 𝗔𝘂𝗴𝘂𝘀𝘁, 𝗣𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘁𝘆𝗮𝗿𝗱, 𝟭𝟭:𝟭𝟬𝗽𝗺 LASH is another award-winning show from writer Philip Stokes which we have supported, returning to the Fringe after a sell out run last year. The recipant of Theatre Weekly's Best Monologue and nominated for an Offie, LASH is the perfect late night Fringe show, part gig, part theatre that takes you on a wild night out exploring what life is like for the youth of today.
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Look After Your Knees
𝟯𝟭 𝗝𝘂𝗹𝘆 - 𝟮𝟲 𝗔𝘂𝗴𝘂𝘀𝘁, 𝗣𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘁𝘆𝗮𝗿𝗱, 𝟮𝗽𝗺. Natalie Bellingham is a theatre maker based in Wakefield. She was once a tutor for our Young Company, has brought her show The Polar Bear (Is Dead) to us and runs Seaglass Collective theare classes here. Look After Your Knees is Natalie's Edinburgh Fringe debut using comedy, storytelling, movement and interaction to celebrate being human in all its banality.
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Tones: A Hip Hop Opera
𝟭 𝗔𝘂𝗴𝘂𝘀𝘁 - 𝟮𝟲 𝗔𝘂𝗴𝘂𝘀𝘁, 𝗥𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 @ 𝗦𝘂𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹, 𝟲:𝟱𝟬𝗽𝗺. Wound Up Theatre are a critically acclaimed theatre company based between London and just down the road in Marsden. Their show Tones combines the gritty underground sounds of hip-hop, grime and drill with the melodrama of opera to present a piece of gig theatre like no other, as Jerome, aka The Professor, takes us on a journey through the depths of Black-British culture, class and belonging,
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I Really Do Think This Will Change Your Life
𝟯𝟭 𝗝𝘂𝗹𝘆 - 𝟮𝟲 𝗔𝘂𝗴𝘂𝘀𝘁, 𝗣𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗗𝗼𝗺𝗲, 𝟭𝟮:𝟭𝟱𝗽𝗺. ThickSkin are bold Northern theatremakers. We've co-produced a number of their shows including How Not To Drown, Blood Harmony and Peak Stuff. Their latest show is a funny, fierce, and feminist tear down of get-rich-quick schemes. Featuring bold, immersive video design with creative captions and a pioneering approach to accessibility, this fast-paced, multi-disciplined show is a finalist of The Stage Innovation Award 2024.
