Gilded Balloon Patter House
Until 25th August (13:00)
The Marriage of Alice B Toklas by Gertrude Stein has been brought to The Edinburgh Fringe, 2025, by the New York’s ‘Untitled Theater Company No 61.’ throughout this memoir, diary, and dramatical account of long distance memories from times spent in Paris, the voice of Alice B Toklas will be heard in a one-of-a-kind piece of theatre. A sham marriage, a joke, or even a farce, could all be used to describe this fusion of two people, but not if Alice Toklas has anything to say about it.
The Marriage was written and directed by Edward Einhorn, who is known for his quirky absurd comedy style, and who has left no stone upturned in this epic theatrical wonder. The background research and staging is remarkable – adjusting small alterations to find the desired fit, Einhorn has created a unique dazzling piece of comedy theatre. A cocktail of thirty characters, four actors and a mini glass of champagne all feature highly, and Einhorn harmonizes them together perfectly. Oh Alice, if only there was a rabbit hole to fall down, how things might have turned out differently!
On an unusually hot Edinburgh summer’s day, it was a relief to be indoors and cool off, although the heat still remained via a serving of hot and spicy theatre. The show began… Bang! Alice and Gertrude were sitting calmly on their throne-like chairs. Dressed in white, like Angels descending from above, the impact was immediate. Like Lego bricks, the characters upon characters built up upon each other – how is this you ask? Well, with thirty characters it is no easy feat, but is achieved perfectly.
The meandering, drunken, sex-driven Ernest Hemmingway has a prominent feature in the soon-to-be married couples life. Sneaking, peaking and interfering, Picasso emerges with advice that merits praise and reward. So, Alice is pretending to be Alice, Gertrude is pretending to be Gertrude, Alice is pretending to pretend to be Alice, Gertrude is Gertrude pretending to be Gertrude and so on. Confusing, not at all, as this show is not pretentious, far from it, its just full of people pretending.
Sexy, funny, banging, dirty, clean, diverse and thought-provoking, The Marriage of Alice B Toklas is executed with professionalism, passion and love – and If there is a moral to this story, I think it would be, better to have loved than not loved at all.
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