The Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society is undertaking its biggest feedback drive in years following the conclusion of the 2022 festival.  With the return of artists and audiences on a scale not seen since before the pandemic, there was heightened interest across a range of areas last August. As the festival joins other global cultural events on the road to recovery, the Society team are seeking input from a wide range of Fringe constituents as it looks to address the key challenges and opportunities ahead.

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We’re at a time where the construct of gender has become a major focal point, an aspect societally quietly entrenched with in everything that we do, these fixed ideas and expectations defining who we are, or at least, attempt to. Exploring gender stereotypes and the feeling of not fitting in with these fixed descriptors, Scantily Glad Theatre present Something in the Water, a satirical, risqué, fun yet thought provoking look at ‘gender norms’.

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With the cost of living crisis a reality dominating the headlines and that many are confronted with, we’re in a time, post pandemic, where we’re examining societal structures and how communities have been impacted – previous conditions only exaggerated and brought to the fore within the past 2 years. Inspired by real life stories and very rightly highlighting working class voices of London in his work Block’dOff, Kieton Saunders-Browne presents a timely portrait of survival in increasingly tough times.

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Societally, it hasn’t been the norm for mothers to speak up about their experiences of motherhood, as if this life changing experience were not allowed to be discussed openly and challenge idealised visions as to what the perfect mother should look like. This incredibly unhelpful, and with it creating anxieties when experiences do not match up to these so called norms. Drawing for her own personal experience of motherhood, Hanna Vahtikari alongside her husband Marzi Nyman present Raging Mother, an authentic account of what bringing up children has looked like to them.

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Previously inhabited by the Taino and Arawak people before its colonisation by the Spanish in the late 15th to early 17th century and then by the French from the early 17th century to the late 18th century, the nation of Haiti would officially receive its independence in 1804 – the nation part of the Transatlantic Slave Trade which witnessed many from West African countries shipped away from their native lands and endure generations of pain and torture. Exploring the little known historical figures that have shaped the Caribbean island’s revolutionary history, writer Emily Aboud and Lagahoo Productions present Bogeyman.

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“A painful feeling of humiliation or distress caused by the consciousness of wrong or foolish behaviour” sums up the feeling of ‘shame’, something we don’t openly discuss, but an emotion that is deeply felt. Three years in the making, Swiss/Russian duo Trixa Arnold and Ilja Komarov present the results of a series of interviews conducted in Switzerland, Russia and Pakistan in response to a time whereby interviewees felt shame. A powerful premise for a show and one that connects us all, Shame on You! allows this emotion to come out from the shadows and in doing so, is examined further.

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In an image based world reinforced by the barrage of photos and videos made easily accessible on social media platforms, we find ourselves at the crossroads of a very toxic realm, the constant comparisons towards others seemingly doing well, motivations to one up and do better – this possibly manifesting itself in the form of overly obsessing about oone’s appearance and in the long run, being of detriment to one’s physical and mental health. An exploration of the impact of a never ending cycle of social media and tech, Modern Day Chronicles present cautionary tale Seen 00:25.

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Caught up between cultures is a tough phenomena to figure out, parents who have migrated from a part of the world to the other clutching on to their cultural roots, whilst their children inherit said customs whilst adopting new ones from their home of origin. For TV presenter Rinkoo Barpaga this has been the case, born to Indian/Kenyan parents of Punjabi descent in Birmingham in the early 70s, he’s felt a cultural pull towards his Indian roots, whilst paving a path for himself in the UK. Performed in British Sign Language, presenting his journey so far from childhood until now, Barpaga presents Made in I̶n̶d̶i̶a̶ Britain.

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Living in the present, the now, is a powerful thing and something you learn to do if you take on any meditative practices. The appreciation of nature and what lies around us, whether visible or not to the eye realms you really learn to appreciate. A spiritual performance focused on the awakening of a wild woman, Zinnia Oberski presents Dreams of the Small Gods, a break away from your traditional production and channelling the energy of Shamanic practice.

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Birthdays are a time of celebration, a time to celebrate an increased sense of wisdom and life experience. They’re a natural occasion to possibly look back at what has gone before – evaluating decisions made and contemplating scenarios experienced and whether they’ve positively, negatively, or both impacted the now. An exploration of age and the passing of time, writer and performer Haley McGee presents Age is a Feeling, produced by Soho Theatre.

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