Love Song To Lavender Menace

See it if You have an interest in LGBTQ issues, especially if you were around in the 80’s, or if you like small plays that say a lot with a little.

Don't see it if You have no interest in LGBTQ themed works or small shows working on a budget.

See it if you'd like to see a poignant, playful homage to the 1st Scottish LGBT bookshop as told by 2 charming lads in a refreshing, original play.

Don't see it if you don't like 80s dance music; you have no interest in LGBTQ themes/history; you are completely unfamiliar with James Baldwin.

Also This was such a lovely surprise. It's a smart, literate & entertaining play about two young Scottish men paying tribute to Edinburgh’s first gay bookshop & first gay nightclub in the mid-80s, which is fascinating in-and-of itself; but the subplots about a burgeoning relationship between two friends and a married man working up the courage to visit the shop add affecting, emotional elements to the story. I hope this play has a longer life beyond the Fringe circuit!... Read more Read less

See it if you'd like to have a laugh at the ways of gay boys in 1980s Edinburgh & at the same time learn something about an emerging culture.

Don't see it if you have American ears & are unwilling to make an effort to understand English with a Scottish accent, or are averse to homo history.

Also I loved this show & the 2 young men who performed it. It was very funny, it was light even when exploring psychological depths & it told me lots of fascinating stuff I would never have otherwise known about an emerging gay culture in Edinburgh from the 1980s. This is also a message play. It shows how important a bookstore & a dance club were to a range of gay male psyches, from scared & closeted to out & proud. A recurring episode—a monolog of how a tortured male homosexual trapped in a straight marriage finds his way to a shoestring gay bookstore & discovers there the validation he needs to make the first tentative steps toward self-acceptance—is particularly powerful. That economic forces work to wipe out both the bookstore & the club also make this modest but eloquent little piece a cautionary tale & an important bit of history.... Read more Read less

See it if You have an interest in LGBTQ+ history. You want to see 2 great performances. You want an inspirational story.

Don't see it if You don't like stylized and/or meta storytelling: while I liked the message & performances, this style was confusing & hard to really get.

See it if you want a window into 1980's gay history with a fun take that you may not be aware of or that may rekindle your feelings for that time.

Don't see it if you expect perfection as this is a fringe show, done fairly well with light props in a basic set. Scottish accents may interfere with grasp.

See it if Two Scots bond over gay lit and the demise of their book shoppe. Necessary long monologues to develop closeted counter character. Smart.

Don't see it if Two actors playing five characters aren't distinct enough and that leads to time shift confusion. Stereotypes. Simple set. Gen Adm.

See it if You enjoy LGBT history as seen through the eyes of Scotish Gays in the late 20th century.

Don't see it if You strongly dislike LGBT themes or Scotish accents.

See it if You like intimate stories about someone's love of a moment in time. You enjoy silly banter, fun dialogue, and heartfelt moments

Don't see it if Occasionally it was a little confusing as to where they were in time and space. They would shift in the narrative, not always clearly.

See it if You want to see two actors telling a love story that goes back and forth in time

Don't see it if You are looking for something other than a very low production blackbox show that as part of a festival

Also I am at a loss for words hear. I didn’t think either of the actors were bad but I was not able to relate to anything that they were talking about. It just wasn’t my kind of show... Read more Read less

See it if Gay bookshop in the basement of Fire Island, a gay nightclub in 80s Edinburgh. Two fine actors in fun, frenetic colloquy of gay life and lit

Don't see it if you're not high on gay theater or Scottish accents. Two very smart gay boys try to make a go of a radical gay bookshop in Thatcher-era UK.

Also Two fine Scottish actors -- tall, thin Pierce Reid as Lewis and shorter, squat Matthew McVarish as Glen are eloquent and lots of fun... Read more Read less

See it if you're drawn to stories of LGBT history esp from other parts of the world. An engaging, if not predictable two-hander by a charming cast.

Don't see it if you're easily confused. The multiple characters portrayed are not clearly defined/performed and the nonlinear plot gets even muddier.

See it if This has two charming and semi-talented individuals in interesting, yet unfocused tale of Scottish gay history.

Don't see it if Even though the play is short, with the various concepts of early gay life in Scotland, the time seems to be running slow.

See it if you're gay or familiar with gay lit or like gay romance or hidden history. Cast of 2 is likeable.

Don't see it if you're not familiar with gay book titles as you may not know what they're talking about; you don't like 2 character plays, no set, gay theme

Also This is one of those plays where it helps to sit up front so you can more fully appreciate the actors' Scottish accents, facial expressions & dialog & be in the room with them. If I'd been sitting in the back of this small theater, I wouldn't have cared as much.... Read more Read less

See it if You enjoy two-handers, light-hearted humor and historical fact and fiction.

Don't see it if The idea of romance between two men is anathema to you. Mildly bawdy humor is also on display.

See it if you want a fun, intelligent take on what queer spaces mean to their inhabitants.

Don't see it if you're uncomfortable with plays about gay men, or hate Scottish accents.

See it if You enjoy small scale, intimate productions. You are interested in the history of gay rights.

Don't see it if A play needs to be fully successful for you to enjoy it. Some elements work, some don’t. Also, heavy accents & almost nonexistent set.

Also I was very impressed with some of the soliloquies and dialogue. The playwright is clearly talented. The elements of the story dealing with gay rights were powerful. I liked the emphasis on the importance of literature in helping change society and emboldening gays. The central romance, however, felt forced and unnecessary. Reid is an energetic, engaging performer. McVarish, in comparison, seemed outacted. They had little romantic chemistry. This show felt like a work in progress. It was fine, but has the potential to be much better.... Read more Read less

See it if you like lgbtq themes and over the top gay (but not drag) characters, with a hint of homage to the 80's & the british is fun for most part.

Don't see it if you don't like any of the above and could get lost/confised in some dated references & british humor. But seeing the 2 actors alone was fun.

See it if If have interest in LGBTQ history. Writing is good and actors are delightful.

Don't see it if If you are homofobic and like musicals.

See it if If you are interested in LGBTQ history, related through a gay love story set in an Edinburgh bookstore

Don't see it if You want a fully polished production. I found it to be on the amateurish side.

Also The play was decently written. Pierce Reid gave a good performance. Matthew McVarish had a less compelling stage presence. The story of the bookstore is far more interesting than the predictable, generic love story. This play has potential, but needs work.... Read more Read less

See it if you enjoy a quick and absorbing LGBT story

Don't see it if you need production values, big sets etc - or a fully realized production.

See it if you enjoy meta narratives brilliantly employed to illustrate identity issues; entertaining and touching personalized history-telling

Don't see it if you have trouble following non-linear storytelling and actors playing different characters (though all are well telegraphed visually)

Also a beautifully written play about the living history of the LGBTQ community and its spaces within a cityscape, set in the 1980s but clearly speaking to today's issues. it is funny, dynamic, relevant, multi-layered, full of music and an occasional confession; celebratory without (much) sentimentality, and the performances are TERRIFIC - engaging, charming, and never reductive even when the roles briefly assumed on stage may look like cliches. LOVE SONG is a shining example of the transportive and transformative magic of theater in a modest production. you'll be sorry if you miss this one; i didn't want it to end!... Read more Read less

See it if you have a connection with Edinborough and/or the Scottish gay scene of the 1980s... or you're interested in getting a glimpse of it.

Don't see it if Non-linear narrative confuses you, you have trouble understanding Scottish accents, gay history doesn't interest you

Also I did enjoy the play, though I must say that there were major portions of the show that left me somewhat lost. Having said that, it was definitely fun to watch the two energetic actors romp through remembrances of a brief 5-year period in Scotland (with Maggie Thatcher sternly in charge of the UK) when gay men were struggling to find themselves and each other at a club called Fire Island and a bookstore called The Lavender Menace.

As you may imagine, the two actors played multiple roles, and the switching of characters, scenes, time periods, and subjects was dizzying at times. I did detect a subtext of a romantic crush by one character for another, and I was not wrong (as it turned out).

The show is almost a time capsule of the early '80s and everything that belonged to that era: Tory politics, the beginning of AIDS, gays struggling to liberate themselves. While I couldn't follow absolutely all of it, it was educational and nostalgic, a good history lesson.... Read more Read less

See it if interested in queer and literary history, Britain, or memory plays. sweet love story wedged in between the shelves of memories.

Don't see it if The play has a tendency to show its cards too early and circle on itself with repeating themes. Also, queers be here. Homophobes beware

Also The play is told through the perspective of two of the eponymous book store's attendants, but not its founders... which seems like an odd choice. The love story between the two main characters is sweet but a bit tangential.... Read more Read less

See it if you love LGBTQ history, funny and profound dialogue, great acting.

Don't see it if you are not too fond of minimal set and non linear storytelling confuses you.

Also I love books and I can still remember that feeling of wonderment and joy as I entered my first LGBTQ bookstore in West Hollywood while I was still living in Los Angeles. This play, though set in Scotland, brought back so many fond memories of my own experience but without the fear of persecution that has profoundly been conveyed in this beautiful important play. Gay history is so important and I wish more young LGBTQ people watch this gift of a play.... Read more Read less

See it if you want to learn more about queer history while enjoying a sweet little love story.

Don't see it if you want a big extravaganza, or an escape from some of the trials of queer existence.

Also It is not the fault of the production, but be aware that the theatre itself is not ideal. The chairs are old and cramped with some rows not having much of a rake. In my case, I specifically chose a seat further back where there were some steps so I was better able to see over the people in front of me.... Read more Read less