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Edinburgh Fringe Photo Diary

by Mark Robson

During this year’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe, circus photographer Mark Robson from Inept Gravity documented his days through pictures. Here are some selected images from the shows he saw:

Day 10: From my last Sunday in Edinburgh we have three final shows. Firstly, Assume People Like You by Melon the Human and producers Cluster Arts. A show that is about the uncomfortable feeling of being at a party and not knowing anyone. He managed to recreate that feeling really well. There was also an ice cream break mid show, actually during the show.

A man and a woman in their late 20s sit a couple of feet apart on a large red gingham picnic blanket in a dark studio theatre space. A wicker picnic hamper is between them, and they each hold an icecream cone. The man is poised as if he has just spoken to the woman, and she has her hand to her mouth and crinkled eyes. In the background is an inflatable red pool-ring with a seat back shaped like a heart. A person-sized metal cube frame rests on one corner, wedged inside the ring.
Assume People Like You by Melon the Human
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity

Animal by Cirque Alfonse at the Underbelly Circus Hub. A fun, slightly bonkers, more straight up circus show from some crazy Canadians with some great if unconventional skills.

Three bearded men stand on milk-urns, spaced about six feet apart from each other. They are juggling two heavy cowbells between them. One is flying over the head of the central man towards the man on the right, while the central man swings another to throw to the man on the left. In the background are two slightly raised band stages at either side of the image, one with a keyboardist and one with a drummer. Two other performers look on under blue strip lighting. A large industrial fan apperture hangs on the back wall of the stage above their heads.
Animal, by Cirque Alfonse
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity

Last show in Edinburgh was Humans 2.0, by Circa at the Underbelly Circus Hub, and it did not disappoint. Another amazing show from Circa which was right up my street. Incredible acro skills from performers who were always on the move. Lots of great group pieces plus a little bit of aerial which melded in really well and did not feel out of place in primarily an acro show in the style Circa are known for.

a group of nine or ten people form the shape of a circus tent with their combined physicality. They all wear black mesh body-stockings that stop above the knees and elbows leaving many pale-fleshed arms and legs free. The peak of the tent, or mountain shape, is the head of a man who appears to be lifted by his face by two standing members of the ensemble. Scrutiny of the mass of limbs shows that he is also supported underneath his bottom and around his waist.
Humans 2.0, by Circa
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity

Day 9: Throwback to the Tuesday, and Dreams of the Small Gods by Zinnia Oberski presented by Scissor Kick at Summerhall.  A solo trapeze show featuring Zinnia Oberski. I do not know what to say about this show. Definitely one you need to see as any words I wrote would not be quite right.

A naked woman dances joyously in dark earth that covers the floor of a studio theatre. Her head is thrown back with her mouth open in a wide smile. Her long brown hair covers most of her face. She has dirt on her knees, and the image of her body is notable because her pubic her remains natural, unlike most public representations of female nudity.
Dreams of the Small Gods, by Zinnia Oberski
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity

Day 8:
Saturday
Play 3.0, by Sirqus Alfon, is not your normal circus show. I’m not sure I would call it circus but I don’t know what I would call it. Bonkers high energy band with gadgets galore. Great fun.

three men in orange are on stage, one behind the other. The front man is recording himself on his phone, and the image is facing the audience and also projected on two large screens behind them all. Another man has double bass type instrument that is oddly constructed. It has the word 'suit' written on it. Perhaps it's made from a suitcase?
Play 3.0 by Cirqus Alfon
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity

Casting Off,  by A Good Catch, is brilliant show that is a conversation between 3 generations of women all the while doing amazing circus. It won the Total Theatre Award for Circus in 2018.

Three woman combine this three chairs on top of two tables to form a tower. The top woman is performing a wide-legged handstand on the top chair
Casting Off by A Good Catch
IMAGE:Mark Robson of IneptGravity

Briefs Sweatshop is another show from the Briefs Factory team, giving us more of what you would expect from Briefs but featuring a new compere and cast members since I saw them last. Casting Off and Briefs Sweatshop are both produced and supported at the fringe by Cluster Arts who bring a lot of Australian Circus to the fringe every year.

Two men in female drag outfits are on a catwalk lit in pink and purple. They both lean their hip to the right, and one has a microphone raised to her mouth.
Briefs Sweatshop by Briefs Factory
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity

More day 6 and Day 7:

Thursday night
The Chosen Haram, by Sadiq Ali, is a wonderful show featuring two chinese poles. A great example of narrative circus that really shows that circus can be used to tell stories.

Two men sit on a sofa looking at each other. One is holding an empty beer bottle towards the other, who has his hands firmly in his lap.
The Chosen Haram by Sadiq Ali
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity
Two men support themselves midway up verticla poles. The both hold the same pose and look at each other. One arm reaches up over their head to grab the pole behind them, while the other reaches down to grasp below their crotch. Legs are semi-straddled.
The Chosen Haram by Sadiq Ali
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity

Friday
The Rest of Our Lives by Jo Fong and George Orange. This is not really a circus show although a clown / circus performer is in it, it is much more a contemporary dance show. It is however an absolutely wonderful show that everyone should go and see if they get the chance.

A laughing woman lies on her front on top of a man who lies on his side with his eyes blissfully closed.
The Rest of Our Lives by Jo Fong and George Orange
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity

Kin by Barely Methodical Troupe. A great acrobatic circus show presented with skill, humor, and the idea of a story. Not really sure I got what was going on in the show. Not sure that you were meant to though either.

five men stand on cubic plinths a couple of feet high. They all hold statuesque poses. A woman uses two of them to hold her from the ground by one arm and one leg.
Kin by Barely Methodical Troupe
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity
A man stands looking up, his arms raised, to where a woman lies in midair, on her way up or down from an acrobatic throw. Her legs are in a box split with pointed toes, and the light highlights the contours of muscled arms and shoulders.
Kin by Barely Methodical Troupe
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity

And, lastly, La Clique is back and on form with a great circus cabaret show.

A young man with a big smile on his face rides a unicycle, both legs on one pedal. He wears a dark suit jacket, a wooly bobble hat, his trademark black-rimmed glasses, and his trousers are round his ankles. An entertained crowd are watching him in the background of the shot
Sam Goodburn in La Clique
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity

Days 5 & 6:

Here are the shots from Wednesday and Thursday as I didn’t have a chance to send any yesterday.
Boom is a collaboration between Cirk La Putyka and Kyiv Municipal Academy of Variety and Circus Art. An explosion of circus skills all over the stage, almost all the time.

A crowd of a dozen or so young white people are smiling and clapping. A young man in the centre has a woman standing on his shoulders, but her head is hidden by a whirl of blonde wig and plaits of coloured wool. The costumes are a mismatch of contemporary clothing styles. The backdrop shows printed images in various styles, including medieval, line-drawn cartoons, and early 20th century European. The end of a partially shown caption reads 'snowball fight'.
Boom by Cirk La Putyka and Kyiv Municipal Academy of Variety and Circus Art
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity

Rebel is a circus cabaret set to live David Bowie tracks, from the Aussie production company Highwire Entertainment, familiar to UK audiences from Rouge. It’s a David Bowie tribute band where the musicians are also the circus performers.

A white woman balances her body horizontally on top of a tower of three wooden chairs, supported by one hand. The legs of the bottom chair rest on four beer bottles, decorated with the iconic David Bowie zigzag. The bottles stand on a square wooden table. The acrobat's costumes is black and decorated with silver zigzags that evoke the iconic design on the bottles. In the background another performer wearing a Union Jack themed body suit watched. A row of five seated audience members are all taking photos on their phones
Rebel by Highwire Entertainment
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity

Blunderland, by Blunderland Variety, is a great late night cabaret born out of the New York underground queer nightlife scene

The photo is all in shades of blue created by the stage lighting. A woman is lying on her back on a stage prop that looks like a toilet. Her legs are up in the air, and she uses one of them to balance four paper parasols. They are stacked so that we see them as interlocking circles, one on the acrobat's foot, then two on top of that, then one more at the top.
Blunderland by Blunderland Variety
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity
A white woman with drag clown make-up sits on a stage prop that looks like a toilet. Her mouth is wide open, and she is puppeting a white doctor's coat with one arm, holing onto a red stethoscope. The rest of her costume is a modern take on 1950s style, with a lilac satin blouse and matching headscarf, tight leggings in a black and white check pattern, and strappy red high heeled shoes.
Blunderland by Blunderland Variety
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity

Tulu brings us more of what we expect from Circus Abyssinia.

The photo shows a Russian Swing in action. A long triangular shaped frame extends into the centre of the photo, with it's apex just off the left-hand side and its base forming a near vertical line in the centre. Two black men have their feet on this vertical platform, while their arms grab the slanting side poles of the triangle. Their bodies are nearly horizontal, with a slight bend at the waist. Around ten feet in the air above them is another man, mid-somersault, legs in the air. The face of a fourth male performer can just be seen at the bottom of the picture, watching the swing above him
Tulu by Circus Abyssinia
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity

Heroes, by Losers Cirque Company from the Czech Republic, has really strong imagery with an excellent mime and a company of acrobats.

Against a blue smokey background, a man in a white costume is lifted into the air by the right arms of an encircling group of seven. The seven all wear black, figure-hugging latex and mesh that includes a head covering. They wear head-torches and have bare feet.
Heroes by Losers Cirque Company
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity


Finally, Railed by Head First Acrobats is crazy Australian acrobats doing a cowboy themed show.

Three wooden chairs are stacked on the floor, and a white man balances in a single-armed handstand on the seat of the toppermost one. Another white man watches him and claps, sitting astride another of the wooden chairs.
Railed by Head First Acrobats
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity

Day 4:

Here are 2 more shows from Tuesday. Collision is a high energy circus-come-street-dance show, by Casus (rebranded since we saw them last as Casus Creations) and fellow Brisbaners Mad Dance House. It’s on at Assembly George Square Gardens in the Piccolo tent. 

Two acrobatic dancers, frozen in movement with their backs towards us. Each is supporting their own weight with a single hand, and their bodies are twisted into different shapes. They wear casual looking urban sportswear in red, white and orange.
Collision by Casus Creations
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity

Also with Assembly, but playing at their flagship Assembly Hall venue, are Flip Fabrique with Muse. The high quality circus we expect from Flip Fabrique, this time with a gender theme.

In the foreground of the picture are two white women aerialists in skin-toned lycra costumes. One hangs by her waist from a trapeze bar, holding the other by one arm and one foot. The second woman smiles up at the first. Watching them from a barely lit scaffolding tower structure behind is a black woman wearing red trousers and a brightly coloured top. At the bottom of the image two men can be seen at either side of the structure, only visible from the mid-torso up, also watching the aerialists
Muse by Flip Fabrique
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity

Sorry I don’t have more words in me today, bit frazzled after yesterday!

Day 3:

Yesterday I photographed Brave Space, by Aloft Circus Arts from the USA. You should just drop everything and come up here so you can see it. It is just a wonderful show.

The photographer is looking up directly underneath two female aerialists hanging down towards the camera. One has her knees hooked over a trapeze, and she holds one ankle of the second performer in her two hands. The background is panels of tent fabric joining overhead, lit in shades of pink and orange.
Brave Space by Aloft Circus Arts
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity

I really can not say enough how much I loved this beautiful, lovely, wonderful show. It truly is a Brave Beautifully Brilliant show. If they don’t sell out everyday it will be a waste of someone who could have seen it. If it doesn’t win awards there is something wrong. I will be really surprised if they don’t get loads of bookings out of this. They are doing it in a Spiegeltent, it is going to fit virtually anywhere.

Walls of tent material stretch up above the top of the photo, lit in shades of red and pink. Four female performers in lacy white shorts and crop tops are clustered round a vertical pole in the centre, twice as tall as they are. They are at different heights, holding the pole upright while another woman holds on at the top, hanging upside-down using her legs and one arm to support her weight. Behind this action, seated audience members can be seen, wearing white covid-protection facemasks, looking up at the performers in the the centre.
Brave Space by Aloft Circus Arts
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity

Day 2:

Only photographed 2 shows yesterday. First was a visit to the Assembly Gardens Piccolo venue for Brotipo by Les Foutoukours: Acrobatic clowns from Canada who are very good at what they do. This is a lovely kids show.

One man stands, holding another man over his head with both hands. The second man has his body flat in a horizontal line. They are both wearing lime green sleeveless shirts and tight dark purple trousers with braces and lime green pinstripes. Their noses are painted red and they have white paint around their eyes, outlined in black. The standing man has a big open mouth tuned up at the corners. The man being lifted has a mouth like an O and wide eyes.
Brotipo, by Les Foutoukours
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity

Then over to Zoo Southside for Runners, by Cirk La Putyka from the Czech Republic. I knew circus performers were fit but really this is ridiculous. Pretty sure that this is one of those cases where the performers make it look so easy you do not realise how hard it actually is. Really enjoyed this show.

Against a black background, two blue lights at the top of the image cast triangles of blue down onto a narrow strip of stage that runs from right to left. On the stage is a man-sized metal hoop, stood on its end like the letter O. Facing it, only a foot or two away, is a man captured in mid-run with both feet off the ground. His black trousers flap at his ankles, and his tattooed arms are bent at the elbow in a classic runner's gait.
Runners, by Cirk La Putyka
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity
Against a black background, two white lights at the top of the image cast pale smoky triangles of light down onto a narrow strip of stage that runs from left to right. On the stage is a performer facing us with an aggressively planted stance. They wear hair tied back and a thin blue dress that billows around the knee from a split up to one thigh. They are holding something that might be a toothbrush up to an open mouth. They might be screaming.
Runners, by Cirk La Putyka
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity

4 shows today, not certain how coherent I will be tomorrow…

Day 1:

First show I photographed at the Fringe, taken yesterday at Assembly Roxy (Central). The show is Zoë by A Good Catch, produced in association with Cluster Arts at the Fringe. Loved the show, it was bonkers. Apparently a review called it surreal circus.

Zoë, by A Good Catch
IMAGE: Mark Robson of IneptGravity

‘Atlas’, by Oddly Moving

Circus at Greenbelt Festival

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