Anna Burnside reviews a ‘moving, surprising and often funny’ production.
The Lyceum is the capital’s most douce venue. Hi-energy disco music is not its normal soundtrack. Little do we know that we ain’t seen nothing yet.
Dan Daw welcomes us, talks us through what to expect - ‘a 41-year-old crip in his power’ - tells us his safe word (spoons) and explains that he has invited his able-bodied collaborator ChrisX to be part of the show so that we can see ourselves represented on the stage.
And so, to a soundtrack that would not be out of place in a Berlin sex club, he explores desire as it pertains to his own disabled body.
He and ChrisX move through tenderness, tension and rolling about on the stage. It’s moving, surprising and often funny.
‘I want to be in control and surprised at the same time,’ Daw observes at one point. ‘I’m such a messy bitch.’
Despite the depth of the basslines and the fact there is, at one point, a man being sucked into a latex box on stage, it’s a surprisingly mellow show. The pacing is gentle, with ChrisX moving props, bringing Daw his water and generally tidying up as he goes along.
The closing track is ‘Joy As Resistance’. Amen to that.
The Dan Daw Show is part of this year’s Edinburgh International Festival and performs at the Royal Lyceum Theatre until August 4, 2025.
Photo by Jess Shurte.
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