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Held in Scotland's capital, the Edinburgh Fringe Festival is the world's largest performing arts event. Drama instructor GG Grilli guided students through the trip and performance process. "Edinburgh is the only festival of its kind," Grilli said. "Events take place in tiny back alleyways, on the lawn and parks, in streets, and in all kinds of other venues."
This year, students performed through the American High School Theatre Festival, an arts organization accommodating students from the U.S. and Canada. The trip kicked off with two days spent in London, where students watched productions by acclaimed theater companies.
On the third day, students rode a 10-hour trip by coach to Edinburgh, where they took up residence at the University of Edinburgh's Pollock Hall and presented their first show.
For four days, students performed 70-minute renditions of "On the Flip Side," a collection of audience-interactive skits. Grilli created "On the Flip Side" years ago as director of the theater company BrickaBrack. "During the show, a mailbox gets passed around the audience. A postcard is drawn with a prompt on it that we perform," Grilli said. When the performance ends, actors call out, "Delivered!" before the next card is drawn. Each script was created by a student, with styles varying from humorous dialogue to sorrowful movement. With different cards being drawn, every show was unique.
Preparation began months before the big performance. During class, Bentley Upper School students brainstormed creative elements to experiment with, including improvisation, lighting, and even puppets. Rehearsals began in February, and the first live performance was held in Lafayette in May.
"We had been working on this production for about five months," rising senior Josslyn Grover said. "It felt so rewarding to be on one of the Fringe stages."
Edinburgh's frenzied pace required students to think - and perform - on their feet. "Students must have all costumes, props, and scenic pieces ready at the start," Grilli said. "They have just 15 minutes to load in and get ready."
The class arrived at Central Hall, an over 750-capacity auditorium, where students finally performed on the international stage.
"My favorite act was a piece my group created called `Heads Up,' rising senior Annika Svahn said. "It's a silent movement piece where six of us tell a story with bedsheets and no words. It's a calming piece to do - almost like a dance."
Audience volunteers were also featured in a piece called "A Light at the Cabin Door." "Another actor and I narrate a story about love and an alien invasion, and the characters we describe must be acted out by two audience members," Grover said. "It's always fun for everyone involved."
Offstage, students immersed themselves in Scotland's historic cultural scene. They visited Edinburgh Castle, the over 1,000-year-old stone fortress towering over Castle Rock; walked the Royal Mile, the main road running through Edinburgh's Old Town; and woke up at 4 a.m. to hike Arthur's Seat to watch the sunrise. Free time was spent exploring dining options or attending more Fringe shows, including those by other high schools from the American High School Theatre Festival.
Grilli hopes the trip expands students' artistic horizons. "This festival draws top talents from around the world. I'm excited to see how this shifts my students' understanding of what's possible in theater," Grilli said.
Though initially intimidating, performing at the Fringe proved eye-opening, especially for rising seniors. "It wasn't easy living in a foreign country for two weeks away from my parents, but I made the most of it," Svahn said. "Scotland showed me that there's more to life than my small world. Every student should do something like this to shift their perspectives."
Acting onstage in a foreign place tightened bonds among Bentley Upper School's drama circle. "I will take with me the friendships I have made over the process of creating the show," Grover said. "There is a special type of bond created when nineteen people in a tiny backstage perform a randomized order show. It's chaotic but so fun, and there is a trust built by doing the show so many times."
"What I love about theater is that it's connected to the root experience of sharing stories and seeking empathy with others," Grilli said. "It's all those things that connect us."
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Lamorinda Weekly, Moraga CA