And the Devil may Drag you Under

"What is it that sent you to eternal damnation here in Hell?" cackles a woman whose face is painted so white that she scarily resembles a porcelain doll. Yes, Hell has officially come to Edinburgh, in all its delicious, dark Vaudevillian glory. And The Devil May Drag You Under is a strange mix of pantomime ("whoops, cheers and sexy noises please"), musical, and burlesque.

Our compere for the evening is the Devil himself, played by Des O'Connor (probably not the one you're thinking of), who claims the Edinburgh Fringe is a type of purgatory for performers. After watching a showcase of acts from this year's Festival, the audience must decide whether they're destined for Heaven or Hell.

And so it begins. For the next hour, numerous different acts are wheeled out to face judgement, including comedy from Greg Wallach, a Burlesque strip act, and finally music from circus composer Sxip Shirley. These are interspersed with sketches performed by the four And the Devil May Drag You Under cast in what proves to be a strange evening of minstrelsy and musical mayhem.

But while this is all a great deal of fun, it is fundamentally let down by the performers themselves. Wallach is just not funny, and the guest Fringe acts are mediocre at best. After promising to "bring together the most exciting music and cabaret acts from London, New York and Berlin," And the Devil May Drag You Under is nothing short of a disappointment.