THE INSTITUT FRANÇAIS D’ECOSSE PRESENT VIVE LE FRINGE ! – SEASON 5

THE INSTITUT FRANÇAIS D’ECOSSE PRESENT

VIVE LE FRINGE ! – SEASON 5

7 TO 31 AUGUST 2015

Celebrating its fifth anniversary as a Fringe venue, the Institut français presents a five-show programme featuring Franco-Scottish theatre, circus and children’s shows. From the Randolph Crescent’s gardens to the “Théâtre”, the Institut is 100% Vive le Fringe! this August.

After its first success with How to be a Modern Marvel at the 2013 Fringe (The Stage award nominee for best ensemble), the French director Matthieu Roy and his Cie du Veilleur return to Edinburgh with a new production. Skins and Hoods is the English adaptation (translated by Katherine Mendelsohn) of Même les chevaliers tombent dans l’oubli first presented at the 2014 Avignon IN. For this UK premiere, the production benefits from an all Scottish cast that includes Moyo Akandé, Jennifer Black and Ashley Smith. Written by Congolese author Gustave Akakpo, Skins & Hoods is the story of heroine George, who takes on the playground world, changing skins as she goes along. A play for young audiences about identity, race, and what it is to feel comfortable in one’s own skin.

The Belgian company Théâtre d’un Jour takes over again the gardens of Randolph Crescent with its storytelling circus showL’Enfant qui… which premiered at the Fringe in 2014. In this stunning physical theatre performance, nominated for a Total Theatre Award in 2014, puppetry and live music combine with heart-stopping acrobatics to give shape to the imaginary world of an ill child.

As part of the circus programme and in association with Crying Out Loud (producers of L’Après-midi d’un foehn in 2013), French performer Clément Dazin presents Bruit de Couloir. Combining juggling and dance, this short solo performance is an intimate and brilliant homage to life embodied by a gracious actor with a unique choreographic language.

Also in the circus strand, the street theatre company from Montpellier CheeeseCakeCie presents the clown and mime show The Soundimals Tamer (5+) for their first ever Fringe run. The soundimals - a bunch of funny creatures made out of sounds and controlled live by a teasing sound manipulator - perform all kinds of acrobatic tricks in the spirit of classic circus animal acts. A family show to be seen with the ears.

Finally, Cie Nathalie Cornille’s Madama Butterfly is a dance show for a very young audience (3+). Inspired by chosen moments in Puccini’s famous opera, this solo dance explores the sensations brought when listening to opera. Through a very expressive and aesthetic choreography, Nathalie Cornille gently and subtly brings young children to contemporary dance and classical music.

Vincent Guérin, Director of the Institut français said: “This fifth Fringe at the Institut français is resolutely about welcoming back old friends and experimenting with new forms of supports to companies. I am extremely happy and proud that our Vive le Fringe! platform can accompany brilliant companies such as T1J and Cie du Veilleur in their ambition to develop their international profile. This type of long term professional companionship allows us to imagine and explore new forms of co-production together. I strongly believe this is how Vive le Fringe! as an entity must continue to evolve in the future.”

The full programme for the Institut français d’Écosse Fringe 2015 is on sale from 4 June at www.edfringe.com and at the Institut français: 0131 225 5366




Institut français d’Ecosse / Venue 134 - 13 Randolph Crescent, Edinburgh EH3 7TT. Box Office: 0131 225 53 66 Mon - Sun 9.30 am – 9.00 pm.