What's On Scotland 19-26 Aug: Horizon Showcase & more

We're almost into week three of the Fringe, a point at which it's easy to feel there isn't much new on. The same posters, the same shows you've already seen, the same hype. Don't give in to the lethargy quite yet though, because Horizon Showcase are arriving this week with an injection of groundbreaking new theatre.

Running 22-28 August, the programme is a curated selection of cutting-edge performances that push the boundaries both of artistic expression and the type of performers typically given a platform at the Fringe. Highlights from the programme include Peaceophobia, a wrenching examination of Islamaophobia held in a car park; He's Dead, a stunning exploration of Black mental health; and Nutcrusher, a disquieting portrait of sexual objectification and power.

Check out the full showcase here - tickets can be booked through the Fringe website or bought in all the usual places. Here's to a reenergising final week!

Perfume Genius
St Luke’s, Glasgow. 22 Aug, 7pm
Perfume Genius’ latest album Ugly Season has only been out a few weeks but it’s already one of the defining sounds of the year. Dreamy, yearning, and otherworldly, Ugly Season - and Perfume Genius’ music broadly - transforms pop into something both euphoric and pain-ridden, finding queer joy and healing through the act of musical expression. Image: Inez and Vinoodh.

Otherlands Music & Arts Festival
Scone Palace, Perth, 19-21 Aug
A new music festival in August? In this economy?? Turns out Scotland’s summer of festivals has made it to Perthshire, with the inaugural edition of Otherlands in the stunning grounds of Scone Palace. The lineup is equally stunning, with live performances from Joesef, Elkka, and Walt Disco, and DJ sets from Jamie XX, TAAHLIAH, and Folamour. Image: Otherlands Music Festival.

ADVERTISEMENT | SENSE OF CENTRE BY JACK WEBB IN ASSOCIATION WITH FERAL
Dance Base, Edinburgh, 16-28 August, 3.40pm
Sense of Centre is a moving dance solo from award-winning choreographer Jack Webb, combining object manipulation and projection. A compelling meditation on our increasing sense of loneliness, and the human need for a centre of gravity.

Accessible performances are available on: Wednesday 24 August (audio described) Friday 26 August (captioned).

Peripheral Visions: Inklings
CodeBase, Edinburgh. 19 Aug, 6pm
In the last in our series of Peripheral Visions events, we'll be joined by three authors from 404 Ink's groundbreaking Inklings series: Katie Goh, Arusa Qureshi (pictured), and Josephine Jay, hosted by an upcoming Inkling author (and your intrepid newsletter writer) Anahit Behrooz. Get your free tickets here, there'll be cute chats, great vibes, and lots of free gin. Image: Marilena Vlachopoulou.

Shoot Your Shot: Cormac
The Berkeley Suite, Glasgow. 20 Aug, 11pm
Shoot Your Shot, Glasgow's eclectic club night, welcomes Cormac to its decks this Saturday. The queer, Northern Ireland-born DJ is best known for his legendary brand of Italo-house played across Europe, from Berlin to London, and is joined on stage by Shoot Your Shot founder, the Glasgow-based Bonzai Bonner. Image: Tiu Makkonen.

This Is Not a Show About Hong Kong
Underbelly Cowgate, Edinburgh. Until 28 Aug, 2pm
A heartstopping exploration of censorship and state violence, This Is Not a Show About Hong Kong is, supposedly, not many things. It is not a vital performance about the suffocating effects of the Chinese government’s National Security Bill, nor a consideration of the violent legacies of colonialism. But it is, we can state with confidence, essential viewing. Image: Tangle Photography.

ADVERTISEMENT | EXPOSURE
Summerhall @ Artspace, Lyra, 25 – 27 Aug, 7.00pm
Artspace Lyra: (6.30pm FREE bus from Summerhall to Artspace)
“What makes Newham, Newham?”
“What was the most challenging moment during the first wave?”
“And what was your most beautiful?”
47 Newham health workers were filmed talking about their experiences of the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. Presented as part of Horizon Showcase 22.

We are Compost / Composting the We
CCA: Centre for Contemporary Arts, Glasgow. Until 10 Sep
It's the last few weeks of the CCA's summer exhibition We are Compost / Composting the We, bringing together three artists to explore ideas of entanglement, collapse, and human/nonhuman relations. Featuring: moving image work by Asad Raza, a research installation curated by Alexandra Toland and Lea Wittich, and an interactive installation by artist Désirée Coral. Image: Alexandra Toland.

Fruit Salad Queer Cabaret
Paradise Palms, Edinburgh. 21 Aug, 10pm
Edinburgh's homegrown queer cabaret has been taking over the Fringe, with performances every Sunday at Paradise Palms. Join them this weekend for a deliciously queer, unapologetically chaotic show: the full lineup is yet to be announced, but you can expect comic burlesque, kinky drag, and excellent hosting by Jamie McQueer and Kat Amongst the Pigeons. Image: @hannahkdove.