From bad Jews to Yiddish gangsters, Danielle Goldstein picks the best Jewish – and Jew-ish – shows at this year’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe

COMEDY

WHAT IS IT? The Worst Jew

WHY GO? David Ellis doesn’t keep kosher, he can’t remember the last time he set foot inside a synagogue and he frequently forgets how to spell Chanukah. Sorry, Channukkah. No wait, Hannukah. Frankly, he’s a terrible Jew, but that doesn’t stop him proclaiming Judaism as a huge part of his life. Join him on a 45-minute journey from bagels to a bris, Seinfeld to shivas, and haroset to, erm, a house of bondage.

WHEN, WHERE AND HOW MUCH? Thursday 1 – Sunday 18 August. 1.15pm. Laughing Horse @ West Port Oracle. FREE.

WHAT IS IT? Leslie Gold: A Chip Off the Gold Block

WHY GO? New Jersey’s self-professed middle-aged divorcee Leslie Gold couldn’t decide what to base her latest show on: identity crisis or a dead dad? Spoiler alert, she opted for both, in what will be her first full hour show. Expect bolshie storytelling, rants that’d delight your nosiest of neighbours, and the most bizarro family drama you’ve ever heard.

WHEN, WHERE AND HOW MUCH? Thursday 1 – Sunday 25 August. 4pm. Laughing Horse @ Bar 50, EH1 1NE. Pay what you can.

WHAT IS IT? Jew-O-Rama

WHY GO? For the past eight years, this award-winning show has gone down a storm at the Fringe. If you’ve yet to see it, make time this summer. Comic collaborators BuJew (Buddhist Jewish) Aaron Levene and 2015’s Jewish Comedian of the Year, Philip Simon, pair up to welcome a rotating roster of guests to deliver the best in neurotic comedy.

WHEN, WHERE AND HOW MUCH? Saturday 3 – Sunday 25 August. 5.15pm. PBH’s Free Fringe @ Whistlebinkies. FREE.

WHAT IS IT? Rules Schmules: How to be Jew-ish

WHY GO? Suzie Depreli doesn’t sound Jewish, but she is and she’s here to prove it through original songs and amusing anecdotes. Sure, she has an Orthodox family that eats pork sausages and an Asian Catholic husband who uses more Yiddish words than her bubba, but this is what it means to be Jew-ish in Britain today.

WHEN, WHERE AND HOW MUCH? Tuesday 20 – Sunday 25 August. 12pm. Just the Tonic @ The Caves. £10.

THEATRE

WHAT IS IT? Revenge: After the Levoyah

WHY GO? It’s a reworked version of a twohander from acclaimed playwright Nick Cassenbaum, who’s responsible for Bubble Schmeisis and the UK’s first Jewish panto. In Revenge… we meet twins Dan and Lauren at their grandfather’s levoyah (funeral), where a Yiddish gangster ropes them into a heist.

WHEN, WHERE AND HOW MUCH? Thursday 1 – Monday 26 August. 3pm. Anatomy Lecture Theatre @ Summerhall. £17, £14.50 concs.

WHAT IS IT? Rebels and Patriots

WHY GO? Created by Israelis and Palestinians, and based on true stories, this multilingual play tells of the impact that serving in the IDF (Israel Defence Forces) can have on young minds. Through a series of characters, themes of protest, self-harm and identity are explored.

WHEN, WHERE AND HOW MUCH? Wednesday 31 July – Monday 26 August. 3pm. Upstairs @ Pleasance Courtyard. £10£14, £11/£13 concs.

WHAT IS IT? Divine Invention

WHY GO? Part fiction, part gay memoir, this life-affirming show about love and identity touches on themes of discovery through both Jewish and Christian lenses. Originally written in Spanish by Franco-Uruguayan playwright Sergio Blanco, this run has been translated and will be performed by Jewish director and actor Daniel Goldman.

WHEN, WHERE AND HOW MUCH? Thursday 1 – Sunday 11 August. 2.30pm. Red Lecture Theatre @ Summerhall, EH9 1PL. £14, £11.50 concs.

WHAT IS IT? Confessions of a Butterfly: An Evening with Janusz Korczak

WHY GO? Janusz Korczak, pen name of Polish Jew Henryk Goldszmit, was a paediatrician, educator and children’s author. In Confessions… we find him in 1942, in a Warsaw ghetto building housing 200 Jewish orphans. As the ghetto is dismantled, can he save them? Discover the true story of one man’s struggle against the colossal force of the Nazis.

WHEN, WHERE AND HOW MUCH? Friday 2 – Saturday 24 August. 3.30pm. Greenside @ George Street. £15, £12 concs.

MUSIC

WHAT IS IT? Accordion Ryan’s Pop Bangers

WHY GO? This singing, running and dancing Jewish American accordionist appeared on Britain’s Got Talent last year. Now he’s bringing his energetic pop music performance to the Fringe. Expect things to get rowdy and hugely humorous.

WHEN, WHERE AND HOW MUCH? Thursday 1 – Sunday 25 August. 10pm. Laughing Horse @ 32 Below. FREE.

WHAT IS IT? Daniel Cainer's Jewish Chronicles

WHY GO? No stranger to the Fringe – and Off-Broadway for that matter – London’s singing comedian returns with his long-running, award-winning Jewish Chronicles. Hear about a Jew who joins a 1950s Christian cult, feuding tailors and a cocaine-addled rabbi, among other madcap stories set to song.

WHEN, WHERE AND HOW MUCH? Wednesday 31 July – Monday 26 August. 1.20pm. Underbelly, George Square, EH8 9LH. £11/£12, £10/£11 concs.

By Danielle Goldstein

This article appears in the Summer 2024 issue of JR.