The posters are being hung. The flyers are being printed. The final preparations are being made.
Excitement is growing with this year’s Edinburgh Festivals just around the corner!
As always, our talented students, alumni, colleagues and friends are involved in a number of shows throughout the month of August.
To help with your planning, here’s our helpful guide of all things ENU to provide you with a little bit of festival inspiration.
Read on for more!
Student shows at this year’s Fringe
All at Venue 39 – Space 3 @theSpace on the Mile
8-28 August
Angelshark
Sign up to Saving Squatina: a summer camp focused on Shetland's returning population of Angel Sharks! The only catch? You might have to solve a marine murder whilst you’re at it. Camp members Mira, Harry and Lottie decide to take things into their own fins and dive deeper into this mystery. The three will have to push against the tide of the island to find the truth that lies beneath the sandy exterior, but what surfaces will force them to confront themselves, scales and all.
The Hypochondriac
A satire comedy about a wealthy eccentric, Argan, with delusions of illness. His greed for answers has led to him arranging his daughter, Angelique, to marry a doctor to selfishly fuel this obsession, whilst she pines for her true love. Hilarity ensues as Argan's family and his witty maid attempt to guide him to see reason as he falls further into his hypochondria due to a capitalistic healthcare system feeding his fantasies. Will Argan break away from his wife? Will Angelique end up with her true love? Or will Argan succumb to his hallucinations?
Turn the Screw, Tickety-Boo
Have you ever wondered what it’s like to find yourself trapped by destiny in an independent bingo hall? So has Jo. Jo’s life has taken a turn for the worse. She’s eighteen, grieving the loss of her mother, and at risk of losing her flat. Through a mix of desperation and a pull of fate, she stumbles into her local bingo hall. As events unfold, Jo is offered a job and becomes part of the hall’s great history. Can she overcome her anxiety, find out the truth and turn her life around?
It’s Always Sunny on Olympus
The Olympians have won the war with the Titans. The cosmos is theirs. Zeus, Poseidon, Hades, Hermes and Athena find themselves in the uncomfortable position of organising everything. Roles must be chosen, leaders must be appointed, worlds must be created and cared for – this is not what they signed up for. Egos clash, relationships are stretched thin, and the Earth is in peril from day one. The universe might be doomed before it’s even begun.
Living the Dream
Scotty, Spider, Adam and Ryan are desperate to score tickets to see the Oasis Be Here Now tour. The year is 1997 and their whole future lies ahead. But as they share a frantic 24 hours, they come to see that they can, indeed, only be here now: stuck in Kirkcaldy, and trapped by their unspoken fears. As the sun comes up, they wonder: will their friendships survive? Can a night of confessions really be the start of something big? And will that light finally brighten the darkest of their secrets?
Follow Me
'I know that life won’t break me, when I come to call, she won’t forsake me – I’m loving Angel instead...' Some say you should never meet your heroes, but four die-hard superfans are about to get closer than ever to theirs. Angel is a global sensation: chart-topper, social media goddess, the voice of a generation. She’s perfection. She’s family. She’s fantasy. Tonight, after the final show of her tour, dreams are coming true backstage. But in a world built on likes and curated connection, how real is love and fame? And who’s truly following who?
Edinburgh Napier University Drama Society
Venue 236 – Greenside @ George Street – Ivy Studio
A Queen’s Way
A kingdom built on murder, thievery and chaos. Can an unwilling and inexperienced teenage peasant really take over the throne? One stupid mistake may have altered Karalyne’s life forever, and changed the fate of her country. Now overcome with new responsibilities and threats, Karalyne wonders why so many aspire to rule the world and if fame is worth the stress. In this medieval satire, characters and audiences alike will ask the question: what is the value of power? 24-29 Aug.
The Provocateurs
Various shows with Edinburgh Napier academics
All at The Stand Comedy Club
The Weakness of Vulnerability / Should You Trust Anyone?
We like to think vulnerability deepens empathy. From TED talks to philosophy, we celebrate it as the key to empathy and courage. Dr Adrianna Zabrzewska (Edinburgh Napier University) explores what happens when vulnerability isn’t gentle or liberating but exploited for political gain. What do we know about trust? Do we even need to trust anymore, when we can just look people up online or track their movements? Dr Michael Stirrat (Edinburgh Napier University) explores trust and relationships. 7 Aug.
What’s the Point of Trees? / Pax Physica
Wood scientist Dr Dan Ridley-Ellis (Edinburgh Napier University) asks what we all think about the purpose of trees. How should we decide which kinds of trees to plant so that future generations won’t be annoyed by our decisions? Physicist Dr Tyler Shendruk (The University of Edinburgh) applies physics to biology. But lately he's started wondering... Is he an unwitting soldier in physics' imperial conquest of science? Is he the bad guy? A comedic reckoning with scientific imperialism. 7 Aug.
When Silence Listens / Your Robot Bestie
Can hearing someone you know change brain recovery? Roseminu Varghese (Edinburgh Napier University) reveals how familiar voices influence consciousness in comatose patients and why human connection may be a powerful clinical tool. Franziska Heck (Edinburgh Napier University) takes a critical look at robot companionship through media narratives, emerging AI products and ongoing research. As engagement is engineered and companionship comes at a price, she questions what we are building and who benefits from it. 10 Aug.
The Weakness of Vulnerability / Brain Health Roulette
We like to think vulnerability deepens empathy. From TED talks to philosophy, we celebrate it as the key to empathy and courage. Dr Adrianna Zabrzewska (Edinburgh Napier University) explores what happens when vulnerability isn’t gentle or liberating but exploited for political gain. Actively building your brain health or leaving it to chance? With growing evidence of the lifestyles and environments that are important, Professor Alan Gow (Heriot-Watt University) explores stacking the odds in favour of being brain healthy as we age. 12 Aug.
When Silence Listens / Galactic Archaeology
Can hearing someone you know change brain recovery? Roseminu Varghese (Edinburgh Napier University) reveals how familiar voices influence consciousness in comatose patients and why human connection may be a powerful clinical tool. The Milky Way hosts billions of stars, but how did they get here and what can they tell us about our galaxy's history? Dr Veronika Dornan (The University of Edinburgh) reveals why our Sun is so lonely and what sausages have to do with galaxy mergers. 13 Aug.
Midwife Crones Fight Back / When Superbugs Kill
Trained by an Edinburgh man-midwife (1786), Highland midwife Mrs. Cowper recorded 4000 births and no maternal deaths. Nicola Ring and Ness McHugh (Edinburgh Napier University) ask why the 100s of women Edinburgh’s world-leading men-midwives trained are historically invisible and dismissed as incompetent crones. A cut. A cough. A routine infection. What happens when the medicine stops working? Superbugs are on the rise and they’re closer than you think. If you’re not scared yet, Professor Clare Taylor (Edinburgh Napier University) will terrify you. 14 Aug.
Horror Therapy / Ethical Innovators?
Horror films can be cathartic, validating and meaningful. Can they be more helpful than counselling or therapy for dealing with anxiety, depression, grief or trauma? Trauma therapist Dr Amy Beddows (Edinburgh Napier University) and hardcore horror fan thinks so. Can you create a new and exciting innovative business and still be ethical? Join Provocateurs regular Nicola Osborne (The University of Edinburgh) to explore if new ideas and technologies – including AI – can still be ethical and inclusive. 15 Aug.
No Booze, No Boogie? / What’s the Point of Trees?
Alcohol-free nightlife is an oxymoron to many. But why do we rely on alcohol as social lubricant? Beth Meadows (Glasgow Caledonian University) asks what are the consequences, why some groups (e.g. LGBTQIA+ communities) are at greater risk of alcohol related harms, and what could alcohol-free nightlife culture mean for public health? Wood scientist Dr Dan Ridley-Ellis (Edinburgh Napier University) asks what we think about the purpose of trees. How should we decide which kinds of trees to plant so that future generations won’t be annoyed by our decisions? 16 Aug.
Performing Possibility / No Booze, No Boogie?
Professor Zack Moir (Edinburgh Napier University) asks whether universities deliver the bright futures they promise. Through arts education, he explores how students are encouraged to imagine change, yet often trained to fit broken systems. How might higher education nurture justice, collaboration and better futures instead? Alcohol-free nightlife is an oxymoron to many. But why do we rely on alcohol as a social lubricant? Beth Meadows (Glasgow Caledonian University) asks why are some groups (e.g. LGBTQIA+ communities) at greater risk of alcohol related harms, and what could an alcohol-free nightlife culture mean? 18 Aug.
Your Robot Bestie / 999 WTF
Franziska Heck (Edinburgh Napier University) takes a critical look at robot companionship through media narratives, emerging AI products and ongoing research. As engagement is engineered and companionship comes at a price, she questions what we are building and who benefits from it. Professor Chris Cummins (The University of Edinburgh) asks whether linguistics can do anything to benefit the critically ill. Or indeed anybody. 23 Aug.
Performing Possibility / 200 Monks, 1 Dead Frog
Professor Zack Moir (Edinburgh Napier University) asks whether universities deliver the bright futures they promise. Using arts education as an example, he explores how students are encouraged to imagine change, yet often trained to fit broken systems. How might higher education nurture justice, collaboration and better futures instead? In 1746, a priest electrocuted 200 monks to measure the speed of electricity. According to the monks the answer was 'Aaaah!' Physicist Dr Nick Werren (Heriot-Watt University) traces electricity's shocking history through sordid science, countless dead frogs and the Corpse Matinée. 24 Aug.
Mixed Signals / Horror Therapy
Is it me, you or everybody else? Communication underpins everything we do and yet so often we misunderstand one another. Dr Bryony Buck (Edinburgh Napier University and University of Dundee) explores how divergent brains and bodies can make even simple communication difficult, and possible ways to address this. Horror films can be cathartic, validating and meaningful. Can they be more helpful than counselling or therapy for dealing with anxiety, depression, grief or trauma? Trauma therapist Dr Amy Beddows (Edinburgh Napier University) and hardcore horror fan thinks so. 24 Aug.
Good Predictions, Good Decisions? / Human-Robot Uncanny Collision
Good predictions don’t necessarily mean good decisions. Dr Lars Schewe (The University of Edinburgh) shows how mathematics is not just about making predictions, but can help to make decisions under uncertainty and what this means for future energy system planning. The Uncanny Valley describes the unease we feel toward almost-human robots. But as cosmetic surgery makes human faces more artificial, are people entering the valley themselves. Dr Carl Strathearn (Edinburgh Napier University) asks could this shift help robots eventually escape it? 25 Aug.
This Library Needs a DJ / Hard Drugs
Should libraries be quiet? Dr Rachel Salzano (Edinburgh Napier University) asks whether libraries are (still) quiet places, what communities think about sound in public libraries, and what people really want to hear in the library. Choose profit, choose western diseases, choose fast solutions, choose easy targets. Dr Mary Wheldon (University of Dundee) didn't. She chose to work on neglected diseases. She talks about the realities and challenges of doing not-for-profit medical research. 26 Aug.
AI and Economics / Midwife Crones Fight Back
Economists promised AI would boost productivity, raise wages and create better jobs. So why are the numbers flat and wellbeing shaky? Dr Elena Papagiannaki (Edinburgh Napier University) cuts through hype, asks who benefits and investigates whether today’s job losses are truly AI-caused, or conveniently AI-washed. Trained by an Edinburgh man-midwife (1786), Highland midwife Mrs Cowper recorded 4000 births and no maternal deaths. Nicola Ring and Ness McHugh (Edinburgh Napier University) ask why the 100s of women Edinburgh’s world-leading men-midwives trained are historically invisible and dismissed as incompetent crones. 27 Aug.
Resistance Is Not Futile / Human-Robot Uncanny Collision
Dr Lorena Fernández-Martínez (University of Glasgow) is getting her hands dirty hunting for new drugs to tackle antibiotic resistance. Could future medicines be hiding in the soil in your garden? The Uncanny Valley describes the unease we feel towards almost-human robots. But as cosmetic surgery makes human faces more artificial, are people entering the valley themselves? Dr Carl Strathearn (Edinburgh Napier University) asks could this shift help robots eventually escape it? 28 Aug.
Should You Trust Anyone? / 200 Monks, 1 Dead Frog
What do we know about trust? Do we even need to trust anymore, when we can just look people up online or track their movements? Dr Michael Stirrat (Edinburgh Napier University) explores trust and relationships. In 1746, a priest electrocuted 200 monks to measure the speed of electricity. According to the monks the answer was 'Aaaaah!' Physicist Dr Nick Werren (Heriot-Watt University) traces electricity's shocking history through sordid science, countless dead frogs and the Corpse Matinée. 28 Aug.
Hard Drugs / When Superbugs Kill
Choose profit, choose western diseases, choose fast solutions, choose easy targets. Dr Mary Wheldon (University of Dundee) didn't. She chose to work on neglected diseases. She talks about the realities and challenges of doing not-for-profit medical research. A cut. A cough. A routine infection. What happens when the medicine stops working? Superbugs are on the rise and they’re closer than you think. If you’re not scared yet, Professor Clare Taylor (Edinburgh Napier University) will terrify you. 29 Aug.
This Library Needs a DJ / Superhero Porn
Should libraries be quiet? Dr Rachel Salzano (Edinburgh Napier University) asks whether libraries are (still) quiet places, what communities think about sound in public libraries, and what people really want to hear in the library. Dr Hailey Austin (Abertay University) undresses the secret origins of superhero comics, revealing how 19th-century nude photography and 1920s erotic pulp magazines created iconic superhero characters like Superman, Wonder Woman and Spider-Man, and influenced their revealing spandex costumes. 30 Aug.
AI and Economics / Forensic Jewellery
Economists promised AI would boost productivity, raise wages and create better jobs. So why are the numbers flat, and wellbeing shaky? Dr Elena Papagiannaki (Edinburgh Napier University) cuts through hype, asks who benefits and investigates whether today’s job losses are truly AI-caused, or conveniently AI-washed. Follow the curious trail from jewellery to justice as you embark on a true-crime adventure with the world’s first forensic jeweller, Dr Maria Maclennan (The University of Edinburgh). All that glitters is not as it seems... 30 Aug.
Edinburgh Napier at the Edinburgh International Film Festival
Screen Academy Scotland Shorts in celebration of its 20th year
EIFF is delighted to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Screen Academy Scotland with a selection of new films emerging from the academy.
The event will take place on Saturday, 15 August at 4pm at EIFF @ Cineworld, Screen Two.
Featured films include Abuela, Bergamot, Horizons, Ñuuyii (Earth), Skerry & May, Passing Place and User.
Screen Academy Scotland is delivered by Edinburgh Napier University.
Edinburgh Napier at the Edinburgh International Book Festival
Rob Drummond, Dave Hook & Orla O’Loughlin: Hip-Hop Wallace
An exhilarating collision of Scottish rap and historical mythmaking, Wallace: A Musical is a playful, humour-filled retelling of the story of William Wallace that packs a punch. Join playwright Rob Drummond, director Orla O’Loughlin, and rapper and Edinburgh Napier’s own Dave Hook as they talk about what it takes to reinvent a national legend. And in a Festival first, audiences will be treated to a delicious live sample of the show itself, before it heads on tour this autumn. 16 Aug.
Edinburgh Napier Alumni Network shows
Ostrich
A solo show about a single woman with a dead parent and no prospects? Not another one! Yet here she is. Tilly's ferocity and Scottish humour provide a guise hiding her fragility. She's lost her Mum and broken up with the love of her life. Distraction appears to be the perfect solution to her problems, running away to London from her small town in Fife. In an attempt to escape, new problems arise; the misogyny of modern dating and classism. Oh and turns out, moving city doesn't cure grief. Can she really bury her head in the sand forever? Featuring Edinburgh Napier alumnus Isla Fairfield. 5-16 Aug (not 12).
BearGirl
Bear suits, bereavement and big scary feelings... Oh my. When a grief-stricken widow struggles to cope with her husband's death, she finds comfort by donning a bear costume. Thus, BearGirl is born: an unfeeling, thick-skinned beast who doesn't care what happens to her next. But when the voice of her lost love starts to haunt her, she's reminded of a past mistake that she desperately wants to outrun. Can BearGirl ever truly disappear? Or will reality turn predator into prey? A new play about making peace with the beast within, written after The Bear by Anton Chekhov (1888). Written by Emery Schaffer & Directed by Edinburgh Napier alumnus Kate Stamoulis. 5-31 Aug.
Artists at Patriothall
A selling exhibition of work by professional artists based at Patriothall Studios in Stockbridge. The show includes a range of artwork – ceramics, jewellery, mosaic, painting, print and mixed-media – and is run by studio artists, many with national and international profiles. Featuring Edinburgh Napier alumnus Shelagh Atkinson. 9-24 Aug.
Other Edinburgh Napier shows
Edinburgh Magic Circle Showcase
An evening of magic brought to you by the magicians of Edinburgh's premier magic society, including Edinburgh Napier's Head of Communications Ross Burns. Liquid Room – Studio (venue 276). 10, 17, 24 August a 9pm (Ross is appearing on the 24th).
Beethoven 7 & Ortiz
Join the LA Phil, conductor Gustavo Dudamel and singers from the Los Angeles Master Chorale for a feast of sonic beauty.
The Grammy Award-winning partnership of Gustavo Dudamel, the LA Phil and singers from the ‘perennially superb’ (New Yorker) Los Angeles Master Chorale for the first concert of their International Festival residency, filled with rhythmic vitality and sonic beauty.
This event has received additional support from Edinburgh Napier University. 14 Aug.
Rain at the National Library of Scotland
When people think of Scotland, they often think of rain. Scots, in turn, have always had a lot to say about it! Our relationship with rain is both practical and deeply woven into our culture, landscape and national identity.
This exhibition makes a splash as we dive into Scotland's relationship with rain. From weather forecasting, fashion, and film, to rain-soaked love stories, climate emergencies, and everything in between.
Environmental artist and Edinburgh Napier's Ryo Yamada presents a site-specific installation demonstrating future sea levels within Summerhall’s in Vitro Gallery. A delicately constructed architectural experience, <In Vitro / Zero Metre Above Sea Level> invites us to consider environmental change. Runs throughout August.