What our judges had to say:

🏆 The Movement Award
Mele Broomes – through warm temperatures
In through warm temperatures Mele Broomes opened Edinburgh Art Festival with a mesmerising performance, working with collaborators including cellist Simone Seales. Thought-provoking and intimate, we wanted to recognise the work and its position within the Edinburgh Art Festival, as an opening event commissioned to set the stage for a rejuvenated programme of radical work.

🏆 The Narrative Award
Adania Shibli – Against Forgetting
Palestinian author Adania Shibli’s event at Edinburgh International Book Festival, titled Against Forgetting, delved into her 2017 novel Minor Detail in conversation with Esa Aldegheri. Taking place across two timelines – one year after the events of the Nakba and the present day – Minor Detail explores hauntings of memory and narrative, and the stories we choose to record and forget. The sold-out event felt wholly necessary, a compelling insight covering writing as an act of love, the shifting meaning of language and the cartography of displacement.

🏆 The Debut Award
Wonderfools – Òran
Fest editor Arusa Qureshi reviewed Oran early in the festival: ‘Òran is theatre company Wonder Fools’ debut production at the Fringe – the team of Robbie Gordon and Jack Nurse, who act in and direct the show respectively, further cementing their position as innovators in the Scottish theatre scene. The show is a real feat of collaboration – Gordon is outstanding as Òran, emphasizing the urgency and power of Owen Sutcliffe’s lyricism, accompanied by an otherworldly score composed by Scottish duo VanIves.’

We also wanted to recognise Wonder Fools for their creative social engagement projects with communities around Scotland through their innovative youth theatre programme – Positive Stories for Negative Times.

🏆 [the gender euphoria award]
Wet Mess for Testo – Here and Now Showcase
The Skinny’s Theatre editor Rho Chung described TESTO thus: “It confronts the estrangement thrown on trans people by a country that scapegoats and highlights our bodies as things that are unacceptable, but in a fun and sexy way!”

🏆 The Collaboration Award
Liam Hurley and Jo Mango – A Giant on the Bridge
Devised by theatre maker Liam Hurley and songwriter Jo Mango, featuring Louis Abbott (Admiral Fallow), Kim Grant (Raveloe), Louise McCraw (Goodnight Louisa) and Solareye, we wanted to celebrate this work of gig theatre for its collaborative approach and its real social impact. Working with the community and people who have been part of the criminal justice
system, A Giant on the Bridge platforms an important discussion, beautifully framed through music. Part of the Made in Scotland showcase.

🏆 Radgie Award
Piotr Sikora – Furiozo: Man Looking for Trouble
The team were united in agreement that Piotr Sikora’s Furiozo is an absolute radge. He has revealed in an interview that his character was at least partly inspired by observing the people of Scotland on a night out, so the work feels deeply connected to its Fringe context. Other team members remarked: “Wordless physical comedy with real heart.”; “He punches the shit out of a
teddy bear at the beginning of the show!”; “He’s a radge!” The Skinny’s comedy editor Polly Glynn sums it up: “Smart commentary on toxic masculinity”.

🏆 The Solo Award
Yolanda Mercy – Failure Project
In Failure Project, Mercy plays Ade, a young woman navigating a writing career in a white dominated industry while juggling an opinionated family, a somewhat unsatisfying situationship, and a host of anxieties. Mercy’s performance is exacting, measured with a careful intimacy that doesn’t give too much. It’s a performance which demands our attention – the subtle set placing emphasis on Mercy’s power and grace as a performer and the impact of her writing.

Keep an eye on Capital Theatre’s channels throughout August to see more about The Besties, produced in partnership with The Skinny, Fest Magazine and Premier Scotland.