Edinburgh Fringe Review: Athens Of The North

Hibernian Supporters Club, Sunnyside ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Many have been tempted to write their love letter to Edinburgh, a city steeped history, drama and more than a little scandal.

This August, it’s the turn of Edinburgh actor and playwright Mark Hannah, who brings his latest work, Athens of the North, to the Hibernian Supporters Club’s Pat Stanton Suite, a space as far removed from the over-hyped, over-extended venues of the city centre as is possible.

For an hour, Hannah holds court, or rather his characters do in three flowing monologues, each a conversation in its own right with the audience.

From a single parent on a mission, to a love-struck Londoner and finally, poor old Maureen, it’s a heart-felt cry to the powers that be that people make a city and you overlook them at your peril.

Robust direction by Harry Gould ensures each tale hits its mark, whether Hannah is channeling Alan Rutland, driving flat out to be in time for daughter Erin’s big day in St Giles Cathedral?

Or Liam, visiting Auld Reekie on a whim to attempt to rekindle a long gone holiday romance, and then there’s Maureen, as a ghost from her past returns to take her on a journey.

Each story is bittersweet and authentic, each voice, one that goes unheard by the many.

As the hour passes, Hannah proves a beguiling storyteller and Athens of the North, an intriguing snapshot of everyday life in the Capital, a snapshot that the visitors never see, nor do they want to.

Until August 19, 8pm, tickets https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/athens-of-the-north-mark-hannah-tickets-636795441307

Credit: Líam Rudden Media