11 shows from the USA to see at the Fringe
Every year, artists from around the world travel to the Edinburgh Fringe to showcase their latest bold and exciting productions. Here are eleven shows from U.S. based artists we've got our eye on.
What If They Ate The Baby?
the SpaceUK @ Niddry St (Upper), 1 – 23 Aug 2025 (not 10 & 17), see press release for timings
What If They Ate The Baby? is an absurd and dystopian take on the 1950's American housewife, where audiences are put into the position of surveillant. Created largely in response to the changing laws surrounding reproductive rights in America, the show explores the same menial conversations between neighbours in the context of surveillance, cannibalism, and queerness, all during an idealised period in American history that was marked by paranoia. Playing two post-war suburban housewives, Xhloe and Natasha use double entendre, green spaghetti and a soundtrack complete with Vaudeville to Rap to interrogate gender expectations and the relationship between surveillance and bodily autonomy.
Whisper Walk
Meeting Point at Assembly George Square Studios, 2 – 25 Aug 2025, every 60 mins from 10.00 until 23.00 (60 mins)
Confessional stories, unuttered truths and personal memories are whispered through headphones in a documentary-style walking tour through Edinburgh created by Asa Wember (Temping 2022 – 2024). Whisper Walk is partly inspired by the Japanese Kaze no Denwa (“wind phone”) and explores how memories are deeply connected to a seemingly ordinary place. Each audience member, equipped with their smartphone and a pair of headphones, is guided through Edinburgh as voices gently whisper stories and personal memories tied to the locations they pass. As participants become trusted confidants, they are invited to contribute their own place-related memory – whispered into a phone placed at the end of the Whisper Walk – to be archived in the ever-growing Whisper Museum.
A Drag Is Born
ZOO Playground, Playground 2, 1 – 24 Aug 2025 (not 12), 18:05 (19:05)
Transforming homophobia into a defiant celebration of queer joy, Edu Diaz’s wordless A Drag Is Born blends clowning, lip-sync, and drag with a touch of audience interaction.The story follows an ordinary man who, through a twist of fate, is magically transformed into the Queen of the Carnival. With advanced age, abundant body hair, and limited talents, he’s an unlikely candidate for the role. Set to a liberating soundtrack featuring divas such as Rita Hayworth, Nancy Sinatra, and Celine Dion, A Drag Is Born reminds us that it’s never too late to embrace your true self.
Channel
Assembly Roxy, Snug, 30 Jul – 24 Aug 2025 (not 12), 14.40 (15.40)
A live electronic music performance encourages audiences to reflect on the overwhelming noise of social media through mindful, meditative listening. Inspired by the sonic meditations of American composer Pauline Oliveros, Channel has been created by Jack McGuire as an introduction to communal and attentive listening. Wet Hands (Jack Mcquire) provides a welcoming space, creating a live soundscape through an experimental approach to layering sound. Audience members are invited to take part in this collective listening experience and encouraged to contribute to and become a part of the ambient soundscape. Channel comprises a physical and audio environment designed to be a peaceful escape, while also fostering a sense of connection and community. Jack McGuire has previously collaborated with Dutch Kills Theater Company at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe on Solitary (2019) and critically acclaimed Temping (2022 - 2024).
The Alchemy of Sadness
theSpaceUK @ Niddry St (Upper), 11 – 23 Aug 2025 (not 16 & 17), Week 1 12:50 (13:50) & Week 2 11:10 (12:10)
Inspired by writer Alex Garcia-Laguer’s personal experiences of working at a high-pressure, fine dining restaurant with an unstable and emotionally demanding manager, The Alchemy of Sadness is a new drama that examines boundaries, power struggles, and the complex energy exchanged between colleagues. Set in a PR firm, the story follows Thiago, a rising young professional, who is assigned to work alongside his demanding boss, Liam, on a high-stakes crisis management project for a renowned chef. Both view the assignment as an opportunity to advance their careers, but as pressure mounts, their relationship becomes increasingly unstable, marked by shifting balances of control, rivalry, and unresolved emotional tension. Incorporating elements of surrealism, the play depicts physical transformations tied to their emotional unravelling, creating a tense exploration of how love and hate intertwine to forge unexpected bonds.
RoboTales
Gilded Balloon, Patter House, 30 July – 17 Aug 2025, 19.40 (20.40)
A fusion of human creativity and artificial intelligence, RoboTales blends live theatre with cutting-edge AI to deliver a one-of-a-kind interactive experience. Inspired by children’s Choose Your Own Adventure books, human performers share the stage with A.L.Ex - a humanoid robot powered by advanced speech recognition and custom-built AI – while the audience suggest the plot for each evening’s show. A.L.Ex analyses the action in real time, throwing in offbeat twists and unpredictable options for the audience to vote on. The robot can even generate unexpected deepfakes of consenting audience members and send surprise lines to actors via augmented reality glasses, blurring the line between scripted performance and spontaneous chaos as the AI, actors and audience build the show together.
And Then the Rodeo Burned Down
theSpaceUK @ Niddry St (Upper), 1 – 23 Aug 2025 (not 10 & 17), see press release for timings
And Then the Rodeo Burned Down is a meta-theatrical subversion of the traditional Western following Dale, a rodeo clown aspiring to be a cowboy, and Dilly Dally, Dale's mischievous shadow. Exploring masculinity, power, and the American Dream in the context of cowboy culture, the pair playfully switch between characters, shift power dynamics, and turn the story around at breakneck speed, challenging the audience to keep up. Dale and Dilly bicker, antagonise and flirt through synchronised physical theatre, dance and clowning, scored by a soundtrack from Dolly Parton, Johnny Cash, and Elvis. The performance is flipped when the duo are forced out of character to reflect on the financial pressures put on performers in the industry. They question the events of the narrative, whether they will be able to afford to find the end, and most importantly, who burnt the rodeo down?
Lolo's Boyfriend Show
theSpaceUK @ Surgeons Hall, Haldane Theatre, 1 – 16 Aug 2025 (not 10), 20:30 (21:30)
A high-energy solo performance blending sharp character work, physical comedy, and quickfire costume changes follows Lolo – daughter of a hardworking single mother and raised by TV – as she recounts past dates to see where she went wrong. With no father figure and a head full of silver-screen love stories, she’s stumbled from one romantic disaster to the next. Set in Lolo’s childhood bedroom after a failed career move, performer Lauren O’Brien takes on 18 characters, drawing from real, imagined, and exaggerated dating stories. Winner of the Audience Choice Award at the NYC Fringe Festival 2024, Lolo’s Boyfriend Show uses minimal set and maximum versatility – featuring projections, music, and fast-paced transitions – to explore identity, love, and self-worth through the lens of a modern woman navigating romance.
Fly, You Fools!
Pleasance Courtyard, Beyond, 30 July – 25 Aug 2024 (not 7 & 18), 15:10 (16:10)
From the creators of 2024 hit Hold on to Your Butts comes an absurdly accurate live parody of the one film to rule them all. Three actors and a Foley artist band together – in fellowship – to present an epic retelling of the first chapter of the most iconic fantasy franchise ever made, compressing 178 minutes of cinematic action into just 60. Combining live sound effects, exaggerated character impersonations and physical theatre, the performers remain on stage throughout, shifting seamlessly between roles within a ring of props. Featuring choreographed mime, shadow puppetry, and a makeshift wind machine, Recent Cutbacks returns with a show that both celebrates the fandom and remains accessible to all audiences.
Hold onto Your Butts
Pleasance Courtyard, Forth, 30 July – 25 Aug 2025 (not 7 & 18), 12.30 - 13.30
Following its critically acclaimed UK Tour and West End debut, the 2024 Fringe sell-out Hold on to Your Butts returns. Performed by just two actors and a Foley artist who creates the sound effects live on stage, the trio re-enact each scene and perform every character (including the dinosaurs). Through comedy, physical theatre and the wildy inventive use of simple props – from cardboard cut-outs, traffic cones and muffin tins – they aim to present the game-changing CGI of the iconic film live and in low-fi.
A Letter To Lyndon B. Johnson Or God: Whoever Reads This First
the SpaceUK @ Niddry St (Upper), 1 – 23 Aug 2025 (not 10 & 17)
Show One: 1 – 9 Aug 13:40 (14:40), 11 – 23 Aug 19:20 (20:20) & Show Two: 21:20 (22:20)
A Letter To Lyndon B. Johnson Or God: Whoever Reads This First is a farcical two-hander that blurs the lines of 1960s American Boy Scouts and drafted US Soldiers in Vietnam. Drawing on their own upbringings in military families and being taught that the USA was the greatest country in the world, Xhloe and Natasha play two scouts who directly address the audience, telling stories, playing soldiers and declaring their admiration for current president Lyndon B. Johnson. Exploring children’s innocence and their relationship with war as well as the androgyny of gender traits that society allows boys to have, the performance is set to a Beatles’ soundtrack, complete with live harmonica and spit-shakes.