EDINBURGH FESTIVAL 2009: SUMMER IN THE FRINGE WITH GEORGE - A Retrospective Look At Musical Theatre @ George Square.

For anyone who is an unashamed musical theatre fanatic - a breed of which I openly admit to being - a theatrical venue where a host of musical productions and events are presented in four different spaces almost non-stop from mid-morning till late at night for 25 days is pretty much a dream location. And the dream location in question, set in the midst of an elegant Georgian garden square in Edinburgh, is Musical Theatre @ George Square.

The University of Edinburgh Festivals Office, working in association with ChrisGrady.org, set up this festival within a festival  in 2008 and the great success of its inaugural year blossomed into further success in 2009 - with a fantastic programme of 24 musicals (including 15 world premieres), 40 master-classes, a Musical Theatre University Challenge and a free nightly cabaret.

As the 2009 Fringe draws to a close, looking back at the variety and quality of the fare at George Square provides ample testament to its musical theatre pedigree. The venue's premier space, the 484-seat George 1, presented a concert of songs from brand-new musicals from the Perfect Pitch development network plus five full-scale musicals, including three by the prestigious RSAMD's One Academy Productions; a world premiere of a work in progress, the Stephen Weiner/Jason Rhyne/Patricia Cotter musical Rocket Science; Michael John La Chiusa's award-winning White House expose, First Lady Suite; and a thrilling and highly energised production of Richard Thomas and Stewart Lee's deliciously outrageous Jerry Springer: The Opera.

While George 3, situated in a university lecture theatre, hosted a number of free workshops and masterclasses for actors, writers, students and fans, the nearby George 4 was home to an eclectic mix of musicals, old and new. The George 4 audiences could choose from shows such as the old Sandy Wilson chestnut, The Boy Friend; the quirkily funny Gingers The Musical; the controversial Porn The Musical; the show-stopping Showstopper! The Improvised Musical; and Russell Labey and Leon Parris' breathtakingly edgy new musical play, Wolfboy.

And finally there's George 2, an 83-seat studio stage, tucked away at the rear of the main building, which quite possibly housed the best array of musical theatre productions anywhere in Edinburgh in 2009. This delightful intimate space was home to ten shows, including vintage works by William Finn (Falsettoland) and Maltby and Shire (Baby), exciting new shows such as Lee Freeman and Phil Cross's Chat! The Internet Musical and Six Ways (by newcomers Michael Bradley, Paddy Clarke and David Hutchinson); a highly acclaimed solo performance by Martin "The Falsetto" Milnes; and - two shows which provided the icing on an already highly delicious cake - Conor Mitchell and Matthew Hurt's beautifully acerbic Have A Nice Life and Pippa Cleary and Jake Brunger's fabulous The Great British Soap Opera.

Based on the evidence mentioned above, Musicals @ George Square can rightly be described as musical theatre heaven. And I am already earnestly hoping Chris Grady and his wonderful team will be there to take me and fellow musicals fanatics to heaven again in 2010.

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