Visiting the Edinburgh Fringe?

You'll have noticed by now that neither Hugh Hughes or Hoipolloi can be found at this year's Edinburgh Festival Fringe. In the years that we haven't performed, it often feels like a bit of a mixed blessing - I'm not having to worry about how many people are booked for today's show but also, I feel a little left out, missing that kind of daily adrenaline charge.

Last year I didn't even have a visit to the Fringe but I can't stay away for long and so last weekend I was pounding the cobbled streets looking to be entertained.

I thought I'd share some tips for the best stuff I saw. Oh, and by the way, I'm also heading back to the Fringe from 24 to 28 August so if you have any tips on what to see during that period, I'd love to hear them!

Right, here goes...

The Adventures of Alvin Sputnik (Underbelly, 18.00)

I'm going to start with the best show I saw during my three days because if you get bored of reading this blog post, I don't want you to miss out on a real gem!

The Adventures of Alvin Sputnik: Deep Sea Explorer - Trailer from Tim Watts on Vimeo.

Delightful, magical, charming, irresistible - lots of adjectives that I'd use to describe this show. It's a beautiful love story mixing animation, puppetry and music and I'd defy you not to fall in love with it. I saw it on Saturday and have been raving about it to anyone I can find (including you now). I've noticed that in the last two days it's been sold out so definitely one to get booked in to in advance.

Shows with a Hoipolloi connection

As I've mentioned, we don't have a show of our own on this year. But if you're craving some form of Hoipolloi-related show, why not try the following...

3rd Ring Out (Pleasance, various times from 18 August)

This hasn't started yet but Steffi, our Associate Director, is performing as part of it once it opens. Taking place inside a container, you're immersed straight into disaster emergency planning and your responses will effect the future. I saw this piece last year at PULSE and it's a really thought-provoking piece on climate change and our ability to deal with a changing world.

To Avoid Precipice Cling To Rock (Bedlam, 16.30 until 13 August only)

You've only got a few days left to catch this one and enjoy a bit of Hoipolloi history. Josie, Shon and Steffi's daughter making her Fringe performance debut! Josie is of course a Fringe veteran in many ways, having grown up spending August flyering for various Hoipolloi productions over the years. But it's great to see her taking to the stage as part of this fantastic ensemble of young female performers.

Show Me The World (Underbelly, 12.00)

This one's connected to me, as I've been mentoring the company for the last few months. Winners of IdeasTap's Edinburgh Award, this is a show written specially for and performed by a really exciting group of talented young performers. Some of the language in the show isn't for the faint-hearted but it really captures those late teenage moments of growing up and moving on. EDIT: they've just got a 4* review from Whatsonstage

Other gems that I enjoyed...

Vertigo (Bedlam, 15.25 until 13 August only)

Another show to catch if you can in the next few days. I really loved the charm and wit of the two performers and towards the end, a delightfully emotional twist caught me by surprise.

Cloud Man (Hill St Theatre, 11.00 until 24 August only)

A really enchanting piece for young audiences about the search for the elusive Cloud Man. Worth catching even if you don't have any children to take, I adored the detailed puppetry in this.

2401 Objects (Pleasance Courtyard, 16.40)

I first saw Analogue's work in 2007, receiving a Fringe First on the same day as Hugh Hughes (for Story of a Rabbit). I've enjoyed following their development over the last few years and I was so excited by this piece. It's fantastically confident and assured, capturing beautiful fragments of a fascinating true story.

Hoipolloi's interns storm Fringe Festivals!

I'm really excited that two ex-Hoipolloi interns are also performing on the Fringe this year -although only one is on in Edinburgh, the other is performing in London as part in Camden Fringe.

You can catch Sara (who worked with us in 2007/08) in Sold at Pleasance Courtyard at 11.10 and David (who worked with us in 2008/09) in Hamster Town at the Camden People's Theatre until 17 Aug.

Right, I think that's all for now. If you see any of these, I hope you enjoy them and looking forward to hearing your tips for what to catch when I return to Edinburgh at the end of August.

Posted by Simon Bedford (Executive Producer, Hoipolloi)

With thanks to the Edinburgh Blog for the photo

Hoipolloi statement on Arts Council funding decision

Hoipolloi has been invited to join Arts Council England’s new national portfolio of organisations with support for our programme of work through to 2015.

We understand that the Arts Council have had to make some very difficult decisions over the past few months. It is not clear today what impact the funding cuts will have on the environment we work within.

We will now concentrate on how best to move forward from here, assessing our plans in the light of this challenging new climate.

Up until this point, Hoipolloi has received a combination of RFO and lottery funding. Our new national portfolio settlement offers the company a much more secure position to build on the successes of the past 17 years and find exciting ways to increase our engagement with audiences in the future.

Over the next few years, Hoipolloi will build on the success of our partnership with Hugh Hughes, work that has a proven capacity to reach and inspire people. We will also continue and improve our use of digital media as a creative tool, looking at ways of furthering the links between our live and digital work.

A Message From Hugh Hughes

Hello! I hope you enjoyed Saint David’s Day yesterday. Or the day of Dewi Sant, as we call him in Wales.

A big part of my shows is about meeting people and making connections with them. If you’ve seen one of my shows, maybe Hugh Hughes in...Floating or Hugh Hughes in...360, you’ll know that I like to get the audience involved a little bit. I like us all to have a nice time together. We are sharing a space together, after all, and we might as well enjoy our time together, in that space, together.

The purpose of this blog post here is for me to invite you to come and share some time and space with me again. Or maybe even for the first time. You never know, it might just put a spring in your step.

If you’ve seen one of my shows before, you might like to know that I’m performing all three of them in March and May this year. So you could come and see one that you haven’t seen yet, perhaps, or remind yourself of one that you have seen. If you enjoyed it and you know someone else who might like it too, why not bring them along and introduce us all to each other?

All of my shows are being performed under the title The Wonderful World of Hugh Hughes, which you can find out about on my new website here: www.hughhughes.me/wonderful-world-of-hugh-hughes.

Let me tell you the important bit here though:


15 –19 March at the Drum Theatre in Plymouth (tickets on 01752 267 222 or here)
22 – 26 March at The Junction in Cambridge (tickets on 01223 511 511 here)
17 – 21 May at West Yorkshire Playhouse in Leeds (tickets on 0113 213 7700 or here)

Sometimes people contact me through my website saying ‘Hugh, I really wish I’d brought my sister/brother/friend/mum/dad along to see your show, I think he/she would have really loved it, but we’ve missed our chance now’.

Well, you still have the chance to make sure your sister/brother/friend/mum/dad does see the show!

I’d love to see you in Plymouth, Cambridge or Leeds – so why not come and see me, and bring a friend along!

Best wishes,
Hugh x

Hugh Hughes in Canada with Floating

As you may already know, Hugh Hughes is touring his theatre show, Floating, in Canada at the moment. He was very excited to catch the plane over this weekend, and he’s already been reporting back to us here in the UK with stories of his adventures – more of those at a later date.

If you’ve already discovered Hugh Hughes at a theatre performance in Canada (or anywhere else, for that matter), and just want to find out a bit more about him, then why not have a look at his new website? It’s something he’s been working very hard on, so that you can use it alongside his live theatre performances and find out what he’s up to when he’s not performing Floating.

You can find his site at http://www.hughhughes.me/

Hugh very much hopes you’ll delve deeper in to his Wonderful World and that you and he can become that little bit more connected.

If you haven’t come across a Hugh Hughes theatre show before, and you’re in Canada, then this is the perfect opportunity to discover our charming Welsh friend. Floating will be performed in three different Canadian cities through January and February, in a tour covering British Columbia and Ontario.

Vancouver, BC,
part of the PuSh International Performing Arts Festival, with the Arts Club Theatre Company
20th January – 5th February
Details here.

Victoria, BC,
at the Intrepid Theatre
10th and 11th February
Details here.

Toronto, Ontario,
at the Harbourfront Centre
15th – 19th February
Details here.

This picture comes from Hugh's flickr stream - there are more photographic snippets of Hugh's life on there.

Hoipolloi offers a Master Class in London

Following Hoipolloi's month-long residency with Hugh Hughes at the Barbican and tours to Edinburgh, Dublin and Newcastle, our Artistic Director, Shon Dale-Jones offers you the chance to be part of a Hoipolloi Master Class. This will be a day-long event, running from 10am to 6pm, on Sunday 5 December 2010.

Revealing the secrets behind improvisation and free play which underpin the creation and development of every Hoipolloi show, this Master Class allows you to enter the fantastical world of Hoipolloi as rehearsal room meets playground.

Driven by imagination and laughter, Hoipolloi will help you unlock your creative potential and find the drama and the comedy inside every anecdote and experience. This is your opportunity to release and revel in the anarchy of the imagination.

You can find out more about Hoipolloi's work with emerging Welsh artist Hugh Hughes on his website at www.hughhughes.me

The Master Class takes places in the Jerwood Space on Union Street, London.

There is a strictly limited number of places, so book early to avoid disappointment! Master Class places cost £65 per person and can be booked by contacting Richard on 01223 322748 or via email on richard@hoipolloi.org.uk

Hoipolloi: Where the rehearsal room meets the playground
Sunday 5 December, 10am to 6pm
Jerwood Space, Union Street, London (nearest tube: Southwark/Borough)
Cost: £65 per person