Traverse Festival 2019 Receives Exceptionally Strong Audience, Critical and Award Reception
News 27 Aug 2019
Traverse Festival 2019 celebrated a range of stories and artists, both emergent and established, speaking to our year-round commitment to new writing, and resulting in us being hailed as ‘the best for original plays’ (The Times) and ‘a cornerstone of the Edinburgh Fringe’ (The Independent).
Audience numbers and reactions reflected the strength of the programme – with total numbers reaching 35,754 across the 256 production performances. Strong critical praise brought a total of 42 five-star reviews, and overwhelming audience demand for several productions resulted in additional performances for Enough, Mouthpiece, Burgerz and Frankenstein: How to Make a Monster.
Touring
Of the record-breaking seven productions bearing the Traverse Theatre stamp, several immediately move on to further engagements with audiences elsewhere:
- Crocodile Fever (Traverse Theatre Company in association with Lyric Theatre, Belfast): The Lyric, Belfast (3-8 September)
- How Not to Drown (ThickSkin and Traverse Theatre Company, in co-production with Tron Theatre and Lawrence Batley Theatre): Tron Theatre, Glasgow (11-14 September) and Lawrence Batley Theatre, Huddersfield (16-19 September)
- What Girls Are Made Of (Raw Material and Traverse Theatre Company, in association with Regular Music): Live Theatre, Newcastle (4-6 September), Soho Theatre, London (9-28 September) and Melbourne International Arts Festival (3-13 October)
- Rich Kids: A History of Shopping Malls in Tehran (Javaad Alipoor and HOME, in association with Traverse Theatre Company): HOME, Manchester (23 October-2 November)
Other Traverse Festival 2019 shows with upcoming tour dates include Trying It On (UK tour, 3 September-31 October); Until the Flood (Arcola Theatre, London, 4-28 September); and Burgerz (UK tour, 9 October-23 November).
Awards
Carol Tambor Best of Edinburgh Award:
- Mouthpiece
Fringe First Awards:
- Enough
- How Not to Drown
- Rich Kids: A History of Shopping Malls in Tehran
- The Patient Gloria
- Until the Flood
The Stage Edinburgh Awards:
- Angus Taylor and Shauna Macdonald in Mouthpiece
- Dael Orlandersmith in Until the Flood
Herald Angel Awards:
- Dritan Kastrati in How Not to Drown
- The Patient Gloria
Total Theatre Awards:
- Travis Alabanza in Burgerz (Emerging Company/Artist)
- Frankenstein: How to Make a Monster (Innovation, Experimentation and Playing With Form)
BroadwayWorld Edinburgh Fringe Festival Awards:
- Crocodile Fever (Best Production)
In addition, there was a SIT-UP Award shortlist for How Not to Drown; a Holden Street Theatres Award shortlist for Mouthpiece, and a Carol Tambor Best of Edinburgh Award shortlist for Burgerz.
