Write an alternative version of the story in which Sam has adopted a slightly NERVOUS elephant or a slightly ARTISTIC elephant.

There’s a buzz in the theatre and the children in the audience, including Ceci (aged three), hold their breath. When will the Slightly Annoying Elephant – pulled straight from David Walliams’s bestselling picture book – arrive in young Sam’s living room? The anticipation builds and – finally! – the elephant arrives. But let’s just name the elephant in the room, shall we? This one is a bit of a disappointment. From Chicago, 'a revolving line-up of internationally renowned circus artists combine to showcase their most personal and prized acts, complimented by stunning live music' in Aloft Presents Sanctuary at Underbelly's Circus Hub on the Meadows. The Octavoce ensemble present 'a whirlwind a cappella trip through our favourite Disney tunes' in 100 Years of Disney at Leith Arches. Searchlight Theatre Company presents two shows at Palmerston Place Church: A Spoonful of Songs features 'some of the most iconic songs from films like Mary Poppins, Aladdin, Toy Story and The Prince of Egypt', while Her Majesty's Musicals celebrate 'the rule and reign of the late Queen Elizabeth II, featuring songs from musicals that have played Her Majesty's Theatre in London's West End –including Fiddler on the Roof, Phantom and West Side Story'. AXIOM–'11 incredible singers ready to take your breath away'–present Fundamentals of A Cappella at Paradise Green.This year's Fringe takes place from 04 –28 August 2023 and will feature an exciting range of shows, with theatre, comedy, music, dance, circus, musicals, variety, cabaret, children's shows, events and more all represented in the programme. Not ALL elephants are Slightly Annoying! Read these 10 fun facts to find out why elephants are AMAZING!

Edinburgh Music Theatre bring two shows to St Andrew's and St George's West, George St this Fringe. EMT Does Pop promises 'anthemic songs that you love, performed with EMT's signature quality and style', while Anthems – New Generation Musical Hits has 'a stunning collection of anthemic songs from newer musicals from recent decades, performed with a live band'. What’s big, blue, bossy and turns up uninvited? The Slightly Annoying Elephant, of course! Based on David Walliams' hit novel, this funny children’s story is brought to life by London’s award-winning home of puppetry, Little Angel Theatre and sure to enchant kids and adults alike. Laugh along as Sam’s life is turned upside down after adopting an elephant at the zoo as the hungry, antique-loving, cycling enthusiast creature comes to live with him. Suitable for families and children aged 3+, join this heartwarming tale as The Slightly Annoying Elephant stomps their way to the Edinburgh Fringe.Elephants migrate to find water- they travel long distances one behind the other over paths that are ingrained in their memories, regardless of whether things like roads have been built there Available to watch online, A Snake in the House Means the Family Will Never Want is 'an immersive performance of live electronica, dance and sculptural costuming, on intergenerational healing and transformational futures'. Also online, Eat Me is 'a story of two women who use the dark web to find one another and together commit an act of "consensual" cannibalism'. Children's shows In Rules Schmules – How To Be Jew-ish at Hill Street Theatre, Suzie Depreli delivers 'one woman's passive aggressive mission to educate the world about what it means to have an orthodox family that ate sausages, an Asian Catholic husband that uses more Yiddish words than her Nana, and celebrate Passover without believing in God'. Meanwhile, Endless Sunset Oblivion at Just the Tonic'tells the story of Reuben –a young songwriter attempting to combat the accelerated problems the world is facing'.

She's been famous, she's been homeless, she's been sectioned with two guys who both claimed to be Jesus.' Now Gail Porter prepares to be Hung, Drawn and Portered at Assembly. Troy Kinne'shares too much information about all of the things wrong with him' in Made Wrong at 4042. And at Paradise Green, Bipolar Badass'is a one-woman show by Mari (like calamari) Crawford about the humour behind struggling with the illness'. John Hegley's The Early Word at Summerhall'includes the anxiety of a slug and the four simple rules of Mister Galimore for marking your neighbour's French vocabulary test'. Jeremy Segway: A Life Out of Balance is a show 'dedicated to Mr Segway, the man who invented the Segway, all performed entirely on Segways'–it's at Bedlam Theatre. Children at Broadford Primary have recorded their own retelling of the story. Could you make your own? As we watched the elephant take poor Sam for a ride, and destroy his shiny red bicycle, I hoped there might be a message hidden in here. Don’t let the bullies win, perhaps? Yet the show ends on a throwaway note – something about reading the small print (you had to be there, I guess). Fun, I suppose. But I can’t help wishing for more.With my own child in attendance that enjoys Walliams' books, we wanted and tried to find the best in the piece, but the story feels as though it’s dated and needs a new interpretation, as the messaging throughout for children is unrelenting, negative and overall left us deflated. Summerhall Arts Will Create New Opportunities and Development For The Arts and Culture Sector in Scotland and Beyond Delving into Edinburgh's gruesome history, Plague, Poo n' Punishment at The Lost Close features 'live music and horrible stories from centuries gone by'. In Taiwan Season: World in a Word at Summerhall, 'language is the springboard for fun and games in an interactive, family-friendly production'. Bumble's Big Adventure at C venues is 'a one-act educational play following Bumble, a honeybee, on an adventure to find a bee balm flower'. Smithy's Scavenger Hunt at Panmure House promises you'll 'have a blast while learning about the Scottish Enlightenment and its leading figures'. And 24 Solar Terms at theSpaceUK is 'an immersive theatre production' from QFunTheater Children's Experimental Troupe, 'condensing the time of each season into a performance.' At Assembly, Rutene Spooner's Thoroughly Modern Maui is a 'cabaret extravaganza… fusing myth and legend with rhinestones and glitter'. In Child of Sunday at Laughing Horse, ' Elisa Riddington recounts fables of her childhood as a preacher's kid, through stories and songs'. And Anna Vanosi's 'soulful voice transports you from Billie Holiday to Björk' in Late Bloomers' Tales at The Jazz Bar. Having read the story, it would hugely benefit from an element of accountability and redemption, which unfortunately do not get explored here. Despite the contractual theme present in the piece, it does not feel like enough to have the two main characters, one of whom is the guileless, overwhelmed Sam, who is rushing around trying to appease and shoo away an unwanted elephant and the other who is unpleasant, manipulative and crosses many boundaries that could have brought an important lesson, but never does. It's helpful to care about a character, but as this doesn’t materialise the audience struggles to connect.

There is no denying how skilled this theatre company are at puppetry… When the enormous blue elephant first appears on stage, the collective gasp of the audience’s children proves that it works a treat… They are transfixed every minute that the elephant is on stage… An entertaining treat for a young audience.”– The Play’s The Thing And linguistically it doesn’t read very well. “I’m hungry,” demanded the elephant. How is that a demand? We at Scottish Field endeavour to ensure that all our reports are fair and accurate and comply with the Editors’ Code of Practice set by theRead the story and find all of the words that the author has used to describe the elephant (e.g. gigantic, annoying). The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland present two shows at Assembly: Big Fish is 'based on Daniel Wallace's novel and Tim Burton's movie', while Edges is 'a contemporary song-cycle which explores universal issues in a charming, honest way, asking –who am I and what will I become?' Over at George Watson's College there are two musical adaptations: 1920s gangster comedy Bugsy Malone and classic horror spoof Young Frankenstein. It isn’t just the elephant’s shape and size, though. His character is fairly hard to stomach too. Puppeteer Elaine Hartley plays the elephant with grumpy gusto but he’s a horrible bully with a horrible catchphrase, boomed out in a horrible voice (“Silly boooooy!”). That leaves the kids with very little to latch on to. Heidi Goldsmith is perfectly likable as Sam, particularly when she sings Tom Gray’s catchy new songs, but her performance feels a little forced. In fact, there’s something about Samantha Lane’s production that feels a little overblown. It’s too loud, too bright and too brash – especially for a theatre where subtle detail and gentle charm tend to work so well.