Rishi Trikha’s show Stuntman received widespread acclaim at the world renowned arts and culture festival.
Date: 12 September 2023
Course leader and Associate Professor in Theatre Arts, Rishi Trikha, returned to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival this year with the hit show ‘Stuntman’. The sold-out performance was part of the prestigious Made in Scotland Showcase, one of a small number of performances featured by the government as examples of world class theatre being created in the country, and also received widespread acclaim in the press.
Stuntman sees actors Sadiq Ali and David Banks recount personal stories about their relationship with violence, progressing from a youthful fascination with action movies to a more troubling understanding of the impact of violence physically and its effects on the concept of masculinity.
Rishi’s latest show saw several five-star reviews from a range of publications, including The Arts Desk who described the show as “stand-out”, and “a particularly playful, even tender perspective on those forbiddingly thorny issues, and a joyfully light-touch appraisal of their crucial impact on male identity and relationships.”
Major arts and entertainment review site, The Recs, also had high-praise for the performance. “Stuntman is a piece that truly engages its audience, not least because this sits ‘ringside’ as if in a boxing match. The exploration of violence and its implications for, and impacts upon, masculinity that it provides could be dour, even alienating, in some hands.
“Yet the obvious chemistry between the piece’s two performers and their empathy with the importance of the themes under exploration mean the show is both dynamic and thought-provoking.”
The show marked the second consecutive year that Rishi has had a sold-out show at Fringe, the largest arts festival in the world. ‘The Chosen Haram’, an award winning theatre-circus show, saw major success at last year's Fringe and toured the world in 2022-23 including visits across the UK, New Zealand, Sweden, and the Netherlands. This weekend, ‘The Chosen Haram’ opened the EuroPride Festival in Malta; an annual pan-European international event dedicated to LGBTQ+ pride.
Asked about his work, Rishi said “it’s really important to me and my colleagues that we continue to work actively as practitioners so we can bring the most current knowledge of the industry to our teaching. Most of my projects involve current students or graduates in different ways because I know that they are amongst the most talented people available.”.
‘Stuntman’ is also likely to travel worldwide, with cities and tour dates to be confirmed shortly.
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