Tag Archives: emerging artists

Documentary, Entertainment News, Global News, THE DEBUTANT

Candice Fox, Cheers, Mom! Eulogy for a Living Parent

August 2, 2025 Rara Avis Leave a comment

NYC-based writer, filmmaker and performer Candice Fox is bringing her show, Cheers, Mom! Eulogy For a Living Parent to the 2025 Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

Following themes from much of her work exploring addiction, family dynamics and the complexities of human relationships, Cheers, Mom! is a wild, hilarious solo show about grief, love and mommy issues. Fox dives into the chaos of loss and a complex mother-daughter saga, blending raw storytelling with striking visuals.

She examines grief in its messy glory, awkward moments and accidental wisdom, navigating the strange ways we stumble forward. This show isn’t just about death, it’s about mourning someone still alive, dealing with estrangement and how addiction distorts family history. Deeply intimate, darkly funny, Cheers, Mom! Is cathartic, relatable and unexpected. You’ll laugh, cry and probably text your mom something unhinged afterward!

Candice Fox, Writer/Performer:

Candice Fox is a writer, filmmaker, and performer based in New York City. Her films have screened at international festivals including the New York Movie Awards and Paris Film Awards, and her essays appear on Medium’s leading mental health platform, Invisible Illness. In addition to publishing the poetry collection Mental Maps, she is also currently working on a feature-length documentary exploring a personal and life-altering trauma.

Preston Mui, Director:

Preston is a multidisciplinary performer who has been on Broadway in Hamilton since 2019, bringing nearly 30 years of experience in dance, acting, and stagecraft. Raised in San Francisco, he trained in singing, martial arts, and dance from a young age, studying at the Ruth Asawa School of the Arts. His career spans TV, film, live stage, and 360 video, with performance credits alongside icons like Janet Jackson, Britney Spears, and John Legend. Preston’s work blends music, movement, and visual storytelling to create deeply immersive experiences.

Reed Luplau, Movement Direction:

Reed Luplau is an Australian-born dancer, choreographer, and performer whose career spans Broadway, film, opera, and contemporary dance. He has performed with renowned companies like Sydney Dance Company and Stephen Petronio Company, and appeared in Broadway productions including Moulin Rouge!, The Great Comet of 1812, and Fiddler on the Roof. Reed’s choreographic work includes Head Over Heels, Broadway Bares, and an ASL production of Spring Awakening. He is currently the co-creator and director of When We Touch, a dance narrative exploring a mother-son relationship under a repressive regime.

Tickets and Info

WHEN: August 1-17 at 13:30 (no show the 4th or 11th)

WHERE: C Venues – Aquila Studio

Roman Eagle Lodge, 2 Johnston Terrace, Edinburgh

“Brutally honest – razor-sharp – and laugh-through-your-tears funny.” – Theatre Beyond Broadway

Documentary, THE DEBUTANT

Acclaimed South African One-Man Play Beggared in S.A. Makes International Premiere at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe

August 2, 2025 Rara Avis Leave a comment

Following a powerful premiere in Cape Town and widespread acclaim at South
Africa’s National Arts Festival, the gripping solo play Beggared in S.A. now makes its international
debut at the 2025 Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

Based on a true story and written by the beggar himself, Stewart Clarke, this raw and redemptive work was shaped over three years in a workshop environment with director Gideon DeWet.
Performed by South African actor Sean Higgs, the play is a searing portrayal of one man’s fall from privilege–and his transformation through the spirit of Ubuntu.

Once a white South African raised with every advantage, Clarke’s life collapses. Homeless and destitute, he takes to the streets with a cardboard sign. But hope arrives from the most unexpected place: a township shack and the poor, black South Africans who offer him more humanity than the world he once ruled. Their belief in Ubuntu–the philosophy of “I am because we are”–rebuilds him from the inside out.

“This is the story of a man who lost everything–except his soul. And maybe that was the point.” –
Sean Higgs

Performed with unflinching honesty, dark humour, and deep compassion, Beggared in S.A. is a 60-minute solo tour de force that invites audiences to question what we truly value–and who we become when the masks fall away.

A once-privileged white man loses everything in post-apartheid South Africa–and finds redemption
in the townships through Ubuntu. Based on a true story. Written by the beggar himself. Raw, funny,
haunting. Performed by Sean Higgs. Directed by Gideon DeWet
Fringe

Gideon DeWet

I bumped into Stewart Clark, a former ballet dancer and hairdresser, and he told me he was living on the street and begging by the robot (traffic light).
I told him to write it all down as I could not help him financially. He did and I spent the next two years editing and directing Stewart in the play.
After 3 performances and 2 fundraisers that raised enough money for his cataract operation, Stewart developed epilepsy and did not want to go on a stage again.

I then approached Sean Higgs to take the part of The Beggar.
Previously we met at the University of Cape Town Drama School in 1984 and have done a lot of theatre work thereafter.
We rehearsed for 6 months via Whatsapp until Sean came to South Africa and we had 2 weeks of face-to-face rehearsals before opening Beggared in Sa at The Masque Theatre. So far, a total of 19 performances in 7 venues in Cape Town and in the Eastern Cape, including the National Arts Festival, formerly known as the Grahamstown Festival.

Review: Beggared in SA, heart warming and moving play

Documentary, Entertainment News, EVENTS, Film, Global News, Music, THE DEBUTANT

Julián Fontalvo Returns To The Edinburgh Fringe For The Third Time!

July 31, 2025 Rara Avis Leave a comment

Julián Fontalvo Presents THE IMITATOR

Winner–United Solo Theatre Festival, New York, Best International Show 2024

Music and songs are the key elements that trigger Julian‘s memories, and set him off on a journey back to his childhood in South America where he discovers his passion for music and his gift for imitating voices. From there, he faces struggles in New York and Europe as he pursues his dream of becoming an artist.

Singer/actor Julián Fontalvo portrays different characters that play a part in his story and imitates 70 artists such as Sting, Bob Marley, David Bowie, Amy Winehouse and Tina Turner.

Julián Fontalvo returns to the Edinburgh Fringe for the third time with his acclaimed show The Imitator, this time at a new venue: Assembly Checkpoint.

He previously performed in New York at the United Solo Festival, the world’s largest solo theatre festival, where he was awarded Best International Show.

Additionally, Julián has presented the show over seven seasons in Madrid and at the prestigious Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas, as well as during two previous editions of the Fringe.

An international showman, he has appeared in over 60 cities across 23 countries, performing for celebrities such as Michael Douglas and Anne Hathaway.

He has been cast in Spanish productions of We Will Rock You, Monty Python’s Spamalot, and Avenue Q.

He is also highly sought after for exclusive corporate and private events; he even had the honor of being the sole performer at tennis champion Rafa Nadal’s wedding, at the personal request of the sportsman

“Outstanding show.”★★★★★Patricia Silver-FringeReview.co.ok

“A brilliant and uncanny impersonator of all the great singers. He brings a hundred characters with him.”★★★★★Roger Taylor, Queen

BOOKINGS

mORE INFO

Comedy, THE DEBUTANT

“My boyfriend paid £700 for Oasis tickets then left me when I refused to get him cocaine. What’s your story?”

July 31, 2025 Rara Avis Leave a comment

A gloriously edgy, laugh‐out‐loud confessional hits the Edinburgh Festival. The only show
at the Fringe where the audience can win £700 Oasis tickets for Murrayfield.

LP Kent invites audiences to unload their most scandalous and hilarious stories as part of her debut show: “My boyfriend paid £700 for Oasis tickets then left me when I refused to get him cocaine. What’s your story?”

Each night, festival‐goers will share their own cautionary tales live on stage. The filthier, funnier and more disastrous, the better. And the best story from the whole run – chosen entirely by LP Kent’s
questionable decision-making skills – wins the titular tickets: two standing tickets to Oasis at Murrayfield on 8th August.

This is a comedy show about sharing our truths and standing up to ridiculous demands, whether from people you love or 90s Britpop bands.
Expect confessions, chaos & truth-bomb explosions. Will your story be the one everyone remembers?

About LP Kent

This is LP Kent’s Edinburgh debut. She is more often found promoting events and compering cabaret in London. Horrified by resale ticket prices, LP has combined a desire to find a truly deserving
recipient for the tickets, and her comedic storytelling skills, with her passionate belief that sharing our stories can save our lives.

LP is also being filmed for a short documentary about what it’s like to put on her first Edinburgh show in less than a month.

THE DEBUTANT

STUART THOMAS : BAD FATTY

July 31, 2025 Rara Avis Leave a comment

Comedian Stuart Thomas, Brings Stand-up Show, “Bad Fatty” To The Stage At Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

As part of the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, comedian Stuart Thomas is bringing his sharp and unapologetic stand-up show, “Bad Fatty” to the stage.

A hilarious exploration of life as a fat Welshman, Stuart blends his working-class roots with a modern, no-nonsense approach to comedy that is both thought-provoking and outrageously funny.

In “Bad Fatty,” Stuart grabs diet culture by the scruff of the neck, exposing society’s absurd expectations of fat people with a blend of biting wit and heartfelt humour. From his upbringing on a sheep farm in Wales to navigating the intersections of body image, sexuality, and mental health, Stuart turns his personal experiences into an
extraordinary comedy show.

Stuart Thomas isn’t afraid to tackle the big stuff. Bisexual and open about his mental health struggles, he masterfully combines vulnerability with laugh-out-loud moments, flipping fat-shaming on its head and turning it into a celebration of self-acceptance and joy. His candid, no-prisoners approach to stand-up comedy leaves audiences inspired and in stitches.