If you’re heading to the Fringe and you’re queer, questioning, or a legendary ally and love a bit of camp brilliance – welcome. We’ve done the digging, the decoding, and the “is this show gay” heavy lifting. Below is our handpicked guide to the queerest plays, drag romps, sapphic heartbreakers, and comedy confessions to check out at Underbelly this Fringe season.
The fringe delivers for the queers once again. Love to see it.
Eggs Aren’t That Easy To Make
Theatre, LGBTQ+, New writing
Underbelly Bristo Square, Jersey
13:00 (60 minutes)
Jul 30 – Aug 25
£8.50 / £12.00 / £13.00
A lesbian couple get their male best friend to be their sperm donor. What could go wrong? A queer rom-com about having a baby in the modern world.
Jessica Durand: Over The Top
Comedy, Neurodiversity-led, LGBTQ+
Underbelly Cowgate, Delhi Belly
18:55 (60 minutes)
Jul 31 – Aug 24
£9.00 / £13.50 / £12.50
Nobody has ever been brave enough to stage their own self-insert Downton Abbey fanfiction for a live audience… until now. A one-woman heartfelt love letter to fandom, queer villainy and trench warfare.
WANTED
Theatre, LGBTQ+, New writing
Underbelly Cowgate, Belly Button
12:40 (60 minutes)
Jul 31 – Aug 24
£8.50 / £11.50 / £12.50
Two girls from opposite worlds are fated to meet on the 00s queer scene. Embarking upon a criminal career that escalates beyond their control, Erica and Jessie are on a mission to avenge a world that’s left them wanting…
James Barr: Sorry I Hurt Your Son (Said My Ex To My Mum)
Comedy, Stand-up, LGBTQ+
★★★★ – The List
Underbelly George Square (Buttercup) | 20:15 (60 minutes)
Jul 30 – Aug 24
£8.50 / £13.00 / £14.00
Domestic abuse isn’t funny, but this show is. ‘Confronting and funny’
KINDER
Theatre, Drag, LGBTQ+
★★★★★ – The List UK
Jul 31 – Aug 24
Underbelly Cowgate, Big Belly
18:40 – 60 minutes
£8.50 / £13.00 / £14.00
A drag artist, a library, and a misinterpretation of a “reading hour”. Join Goody as they spiral into the chaos of childhood, stories, and what it means to be booked (but not blessed).
ALTAR
Theatre, LGBTQ+
Underbelly George Square, The Wee Coo
14:50 (60 minutes)
Jul 30 – Aug 25
£8.50 / £11.50 / £12.50
Today is Sutton’s wedding day. Dana has been invited, but Dan will be in attendance. Dan, who was once Dana. Em Tambree’s striking debut has been described as a queer play “that necessitates the existence of theatre itself” (PraiseDionysus).
JEEZUS!
Theatre, Musical Comedy, LGBTQ+
Underbelly Cowgate, Belly Button)
18:50 (60 minutes)
Jul 31 – Aug 24
£8.50 / £12.00 / £13.00
Falling for Jesus is a mortal sin. But damn, it feels good. Catholic guilt collides with unrepentant queerness in this sinful, heart-pounding mix of music, dark humour, and Latino heat. A musical as irreverent as it is irresistible. Let’s burn in hell!
An Adequate Abridgement of Boarding School Life as a Homo
Theatre, LGBTQ+, Comedy
Underbelly Bristo Square, Friesian
12:50 (60 minutes)
Jul 30 – Aug 25
£8.50 / £11.50 / £12.50
Johnny doesn’t fit in at boarding school. He daydreams of being a gay tragedy, but even that fails. Enter Harry. To save time, Johnny and Harry shag. Constantly.
Bryan Safi: Are You Mad At Me??
Comedy, LGBTQ+, Solo show
Underbelly Bristo Square, Friesian
17:20 (60 minutes)
Jul 30 – Aug 25
£8.50 / £12.00 / £13.00
A solo comedy spiral from Emmy-winner Bryan Safi (star of ABC’s 9-1-1, Attitudes!) about queerness, confidence, and being too much. Big laughs, big feelings, bad flirting, and one horny apartment. Also, Paula Abdul.
Cecilia Gentili’s Red Ink
Theatre, Comedy, LGBTQ+
Underbelly Bristo Square, Jersey
14:30 (60 minutes)
Jul 30 – Aug 25
£10.00 / £14.00 / £15.00
God won’t give up on Cecilia Gentili. Unfortunately, neither will the devil. Follow a young trans girl as she searches for faith while trans in rural Argentina. Red Ink is the late icon’s autobiographical play.
Pigs Fly Easy Ryan
Theatre, Performance art, LGBTQ+
Underbelly Cowgate, Iron Belly
20:10 (60 minutes)
Jul 31 – Aug 24
£8.50 / £12.00 / £13.00
An aviation bimbofication transubstantiation ritual for big-boy audiences 18 and over. Two flamin’ hot crash fetishists illegally impersonate flight attendants to sneaky-weeky onto a plane and live out their ultimate fantasy – total destruction.
So there you have it, ten queer shows at Underbelly this Fringe that’ll make you laugh, cry, shout “same”, or just weirdly aroused. Book early, hydrate often, and support the performers – especially the ones giving you existential gay panic in 60 minutes or less.
Nonchalant x
This article was written by one of our creative team writers here at Nonchalant Magazine.
