Fat Blokes @ Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh

"The confusing head space of fat" is director Scottee’s starting point for Fat Blokes; the confusing, shameful, violent, and socially unacceptable status of being fat. The play is a confessional, almost an on-stage therapy session for four men who bravely answered Scottee’s callout and temporarily left the day job to tell their stories. Displaying, revealing and enjoying the performers’ physicality, the piece creates a safe space for their personal experiences and insecurities while demanding the audience question their own biases.

Fat Blokes is a balancing act between Scottee’s at-times cheeky but always defiant monologues and the personal tales of each individual. Interspersed are the seemingly random but intelligently choreographed dance sequences from Lea Anderson MBE. The sequences are not overtly themed, there is no distinctive Devised Movement: often, the performers simply step in angular patterns, perform synchronised hand gestures, or shimmy and roll their bodies in moves more often seen in a club. But neither is it a condescending choreography for non-dancers. The dancers move in sync, looking out for each other, sometimes holding out a hand for support. Their intention and joyful revelry in their performance is whole and honest.

Fat Blokes holds no pretensions, neither does it disappear behind the safety of ‘performance’. These are real men who have experienced bullying and violence and its relationship with the audience is uncompromising. The performers see their audience, and can guess their thoughts. Scottee shouts at them. "Why are you laughing when you see a fat man strut?" he demands when a little laughter erupts from the audience. From the start he probes and tests his audience, constantly tripping the dynamic between stand up comedy and theatre, between a support group and protest.

The soundtrack is a belter, a disco heavy, soft punk libation from raucous female vocalists. It keeps the energy up once when structure of the show becomes familiar. The men gather at the end, nearly naked, and hug each other with a sincerity that testifies to a supportive creative process. Fat Blokes volleys its arguments at the audience, and demands their capitulation; it does not settle in a half way house of nuance.

Does Scottee cajole his audience to force them on his side, his effortless laughter and familiarity planned and directed? Possibly. Would a softer show get his point across? Possibly not. An unrelenting show, with touching and emotive performances from the cast.

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Fat Blokes @ Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, run ended, more info: scottee.co.uk