GUNS IN DRAGONLAND [Edinburgh Fringe]

The Edinburgh Festival Fringe is an international sort of affair, with acts from all over the world coming to Scotland to delight an equally international audience. As you might expect, a lot of those acts are from the United States of America. This means that sometimes a show will be about something that is very much associated with the USA, to the exclusion of others.

Guns In Dragonland is a show from the Los Angeles Theatre Initiative about school shootings, a subject that can be completely baffling for European audiences.  The premise is that Dragons are real, and that, though no one really talks about it, young children can be adopted by a guardian dragon, a whimsical creature that few can see.  It’s basically an imaginary friend with horns, dedicated to helping children grow up safe and happy.

This contrasts with an entirely preventable tragedy, caused by a lunatic set on murdering as many innocents as possible. The tone shift is deliberately jarring and extremely well done. We open with a child happily playing, being gently encouraged to interact with others by her dragon, before said child then makes a terrible mistake that leads to their death. Our next scene features another child’s first day at school, only for that to take a dark turn as an ‘active shooter’ drill begins.  It is, at times, devastatingly dark.

Each scene tends to introduce new characters and lore, and this layered storytelling forms a complete picture of this world, one in which whimsy and horror walk hand in hand. At points during the narrative, we are reminded of the incredible and transformative power of play; the notion that allowing one’s imagination to run free can be healing and a source of strength.

The performances, costumes and direction are all solid, but it’s the story that is remarkable, and it’s one that’s told from the heart. Thought-provoking, moving,  powerful and filled with important social commentary, this is worth checking out, but be aware it has strong themes from the start.