EDINBURGH 2023: Review: TIM MURRAY IS WITCHES, Underbelly

Tim Murray is Witches is a show about witches in pop culture and how much these figures meant to him when growing up queer. 

It’s a super fun cabaret opening with a song titled “I Wanna Be Witches” with nods to all of our favourites- the Sanderson sisters, Elphaba, Sabrina and the girls from The Craft. 

Another highlight is a song called ‘I Hate Kids’ which is a reference to the other children at school that told Murray that only girls could be witches. One boy in his class dared to wear a witch hat to school and had it knocked off his head. During the show, Tim Murray reclaims some of the slurs that were aimed at him growing up. The time he felt most free was playing with girls in the neighbourhood who didn’t go to his school and were happy to play at being witches with him. 

One of the more interactive sections of the shows is a game called “Guess The Elphaba” where the audience is played a small audio clip of an actress singing Defying Gravity and asked to play against Murray. 

While I have no issue with seeing shows at the festival on my own, I was pleased that a friend could join me for this seeing as it is a show largely featuring friendship and finding your coven. It just so happens that a member of my coven is somewhat of an Elphaba expert. While Ryan wasn’t willing to get on stage, he absolutely knocked it out of the park and completely floored Tim Murray with his knowledge of his green girls. I’ve never been prouder. 

Tim Murray Is Witches is genuinely one of the most fun hours I’ve had at the festival. I can’t recommend it enough to all of my spooky bitches with a love of musical theatre, pop culture and of course- witches.

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