 |
| Scarlett Whispers © Stephen Sheridan. |
Welcome to the first of our blog series featuring illuminating extracts from performers' press releases.
This year’s Buxton Fringe performers have really pushed the boat out seeking to wow audiences with ambitious and thought-provoking entertainment! Read on for a flavour of what they have in store for us...
For venues, times, ticketing and further information about these and all our Fringe shows, see our What's On listings here. If you are performing at Buxton Fringe and would like us to feature your press release, please get in touch via the marketing officer!
Pump Room Cabaret - Drunk ‘n’ Whispers
One of the most notorious and long-running cabaret shows at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival is making its debut at the Buxton Festival Fringe this July with a special spin off: Drunk 'n’ Whispers’ Pump Room Cabaret. A series of shows will run at the Pump Room, Buxton Visitor Centre & The Buxton Crescent Experience on the festival's opening night, 8th July, followed by two shows on 16th and 17th July.
Cabaret producer, host, Hollywood Hellraiser (and quite the character) Sir Dickie Benson has been producing Sir Dickie Benson’s Midnight Mania at the Edinburgh Fringe for over a decade. Given its popularity, the number of shows will double this year by running alongside a brand new daytime edition, Sir Dickie Benson’s Midday Mania. The new series at the Buxton Fringe sees the next step in the show's evolution: developing as a touring model and adapting for new audiences.
As the show expands, Dickie has teamed up with international award-winning burlesque dancer and producer Scarlett Whispers. Between them, Scarlett and Dickie have over a decade of experience producing and performing on the international cabaret circuit and at clubs and festivals across the country; together they have curated an evening with some of the most charming, talented and incredible acts they’ve met along the way.
In the manner of a true variety show, the cabaret rounds up a range of some of the most crowd-pleasing acts from across the UK’s cabaret circuit. A riotous mix of burlesque, live music, comedy, magic and all manner of variety acts run back-to-back as a fast-paced and intoxicating show. Artists are selected for the high-quality of their performances and as representations of genuine cabaret.
Scarlett Whispers comments:
"I'll tell you a secret... Under the glitter and rhinestones, we are both history nerds! Buxton feels like a treasure chest to us, full of heritage, culture and a rich connection to the arts. And the community spirit in Buxton is electric! As freelance performers, there's something magical about being immersed in that festival frenzy, where the audience becomes part of the performance and the whole town is illuminated by this creative energy. With all the parades, the floats and those fabulous parties, it’s the kind of atmosphere that makes you feel alive. Buxton is passionate, creative and the perfect place to develop our show!”
Dickie and Scarlett have a taste for glitz, glamour and the finer things in life, especially antiquities (much like Dickie) and as such only a venue as delightfully elegant (much like Scarlett) will suffice. The Grade II-listed Pump Room at Buxton Crescent, aptly a historic place for drinking and social gatherings, will host the Pump Room Cabaret, blending history, elegance and entertainment.
When asked for a quote, Dickie said: “What the [EXPLETIVE DELETED] are you doing in my [EXPLETIVE DELETED] parlour? Did that Kenneth [EXPLETIVES DELETED] Branagh send you?!”
You Oughta Be in Pictures - Polis Loizou
Author, performer, storyteller and award-winning* fringe theatre-maker Polis Loizou is returning to Buxton Fringe with You Oughta Be in Pictures – an unsettling one-man show about the seedy side of Old Hollywood, and what filmmaking can teach us about engaging critically with the media we consume.
The hour-long piece sees Loizou reenacting old found footage of a casting session from the 1940s, involving a notorious film director and the young hopeful he’s auditioning to replace the suspiciously-murdered lead in a horror B-movie. Except neither this footage, nor the director in it, actually existed.
“I grew up in the ‘90s,” says Loizou. “I was on the Internet in the days of the Blair Witch hype, reading claims that this footage was shot by people who’d actually vanished. Of course, it was all fake. The filmmakers simply used the early Internet as an innovative, free marketing tool for a micro-budget movie. And it worked!”
Of course, all cinema is fabricated. Images are edited together with sound recordings, usually created separately with totally unrelated objects, all with the goal of implying actions and consequences to tell a story.
Loizou was a film graduate when he became involved in theatre. His love of cinema goes back to his childhood in Cyprus, when he would ask his mum endless questions about how these moving pictures on the TV were made. “I was in love with the artifice as much as the craft,” he says. “I find something hypnotic about the levels of deception in film. And as a longtime cynic, the glossing over Hollywood’s dark side always intrigued me.”
All storytelling requires a suspension of disbelief – and human brains seem only too willing to swallow total fantasies. But that’s where the danger lies: when fabrications are more appealing than fact. With the prevalence of AI in an increasingly unstable and polarised world, it seems more important than ever to encourage people to engage critically with the media they consume.
“I’m haunted by a phrase my film tutor used in the Documentary module at uni: ‘Reality is up for grabs.’ She was right, and I see that more with each passing year. I wanted to make a show about the making of art, and the need to be vigilant about being tricked by it. When we hand over our minds to manipulators, we have so much to lose.”
You Oughta Be in Pictures will be at Underground Spring Gardens on 9, 13 & 20 July.
*Mr Fox (Best New Writing at Buxton Fringe 2021), Back Door (John Beecher Memorial Award at Buxton Fringe and Best Comedy Show at Greater Manchester Fringe 2014)
Art For Health and Wellbeing - Clare Parker Artist and Art Psychotherapist
Discover how art transforms lives. Local artist and art psychotherapist Claire Parker reveals powerful research, moving stories, and real case studies showing how creativity and engagement in art boosts health and wellbeing.
Be inspired, gain practical tools for change, and witness the impact of art on individuals, families, and communities. This talk at Buxton’s Pump Room on 21 July is suitable for anyone interested in how we connect with what we see and how engaging with our senses through the arts brings about new possibilities, learning and connections.
