Where to even begin with a show whose whole is greater than the sum of its parts? I was impressed by how well the captioning worked in this production. I shouldn’t be, because it shouldn’t be too much to ask for the right words to be displayed at the right time, consistently, but theatregoers who benefit most from captions will be pleased to discover it can be done well (more often than not, it’s a dog’s dinner, to be polite). I appreciated, too, the captioned descriptions of the various styles of music deployed throughout the evening, such as “swaggering bass riff” and “laid back, loungy groove”.
There is good reason for the captioning and accessibility, and not just because the show welcomes people from the d/Deaf community, some of whom were in the audience at the performance I attended. Joe (Jamie Rea) is touched by the kind of music Andy (Dylan Wood) plays, but there’s a caveat: Joe is deaf. He leads a Deaf Choir at the Glasgow Deaf Centre. So how does he even have the foggiest idea what Andy is singing? Well, the show explains all.
Often amusing, the show had some crackling punchlines, resulting in hearty laughter from the audience: it’s not often a gig theatre show at the Fringe gives the standups a run for their money. As a working partnership forms between Joe and Andy – because, it appears, neither has much to lose – the prejudices of senior figures in the entertainment industry are once again laid bare on stage (as they were, for instance, in Beautiful and Tina, musicals on the life and times of Carole King and Tina Turner respectively).
Garry Boyle’s sound design is nothing short of phenomenal: every so often the music lyrics can’t be heard over the music, for instance. A faux pas (at best) in almost any other show, here it serves a deliberate purpose, allowing “hearies”, as Joe and his d/Deaf friends call those of us outside the d/Deaf community, some insight as to how a song can sound like with a substantial hearing impairment. There’s a moment or two, too, when the fourth wall is not so much breached as demolished, and a scene of collective audience involvement provided the audience with a taster of what a Deaf Choir rehearsal would be like.
Also on stage are Hannah Jarrett-Scott and Petre Dobre, both (amongst other characters) so-called Oracles, and sharing the story’s narration. It’s unmistakably Scottish banter, with some words and phrases even captioned phonetically. It’s not exactly a watertight narrative, alas. There was something about the Deaf Centre being told to vacate its premises because the building’s landlord wanted to sell it, but I’ve no idea what ‘actually’ happened, either way, in the end. Still, the idea that everyone has a part to play in proper, realistic and sustained inclusivity is a heartening one. A delightful and enjoyable experience for all.
Review by Chris Omaweng
Performed in spoken English and British Sign Language, with captioning, The Singer follows the unlikely partnership between Joe, a deaf artist, who “sings” with his hands, and Andy, a washed-up musician hungry for a comeback. Joe experiences music viscerally and physically, feeling rhythm through his body and crafting lyrics that pulse with life and exhilarating originality.
As their connection ignites something extraordinary, ambition and belonging collide. But as prejudice and the music industry’s ableist blind spots close in, their bond is pushed to breaking point.
CAST
Jamie Rea – Joe
Dylan Wood – Andy
Hannah Jarett Scott – Oracle and myriad other characters
Petre Dobre – Oracle and myriad other characters
CREATIVES
Director – Cora Bissett
Music & Lyrics – KT Tunstall
Musical Director & Arranger – Michael John McCarthy
Set & Costume Designer – Jenny Booth
Sound Designer – Garry Boyle
Lighting Designer – Emma Jones
Creative Captioning – Daniel Hughes
BSL Associate Director – Benedetta Zanetti
BSL Consultant – Clare Canton
Dramaturg – David Greig
Producer – Joanne Clark
THE SINGER
Traverse Theatre at the Edinburgh Fringe
4 to 30 August 2026
