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Edinburgh Reporter
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Edinburgh Reporter
Fringe 2025 – four shows by an Edinburgh-based producer
Local theatre producer and director, Emma Ruse, is behind four shows on the Fringe this year. Funding is a big part of all theatre productions – but it is particularly brought to the fore when we hear that some of Emma's shows have been rehearsing in Glasgow since it is cheaper to travel there by train than it is to secure rehearsal space in the capital. This is one of the hidden costs to staging a Fringe production, although we have heard of others rehearsing in London for similar reasons. Although Emma wanted to be an actor when she was younger, she feels that becoming a producer has been the most accessible route into theatre. After studying at Edinburgh College from 2015 she has never left Edinburgh and now lives in Musselburgh. After graduation she found that she was more curious about what goes on behind the scenes 'and in making things happen for people with that sort of oversight rather than being the person on stage delivering the performance'. So she left acting behind completely – although joked that she may find herself doing am-dram in 20 years time in a production of Les Mis. But she does not envy actors the haphazard existence involving auditions often organised at the drop of a hat. She is quite modest about her role saying it is 'in many ways a glorified project manager and in many ways so much more than that. It is basically everything that you don't see. So, it's all the scheduling, it's the fundraising, it's the bringing people together, finding the right jigsaw pieces to make the creative magic happen.' Emma Ruse Fundraising In June a fundraiser performance at Leith Arches included 15 -minute excerpts from all four shows. Mary: A Gig Theatre Show had a short run at the Traverse last December with its all female cast which includes the writer, Rona Johnston, who are mainly Queen Margaret University (QMU) graduates. Mary is the only one of the four productions which is self-funded along with a bit of support from QMU's Santander Fund. The others are helped by a mix of crowdfunding and some backing from Creative Scotland's Open Fund. On the thorny issue of the Creative Scotland (CS) Open Fund, Emma is diplomatic, saying: 'I think it's really challenging. It's public money, so there needs to be a due diligence done to make sure public money is being used in the appropriate way. And I think Creative Scotland have a really hard job because there is a lot of great art, and not enough funding for the arts. So I think it's almost impossible for them to be able to win.' But the Leith Arches fundraiser was a good opportunity to see all four productions side by side. Emma said: 'It was really magical actually. When you work on everything so separately, it is brilliant to bring it together and the audience were very warm and very excited about it.' Emma was also pleased that Jumper Bumps received funding from the Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society's Keep it Fringe fund, and that in relation to r/Conspiracy Creative Scotland stepped up 'with a bit of funding'. Homo (Sapien) is written by an Irish writer and the show premiered in Dublin in May with a bit of funding from the CS Open Fund. Emma was notably included on the 2024 30under30 list compiled by The Young Women's Movement. Part of the reason for her recognition is that the East Lothian producer spent eight years as a member of the National Youth Arts Advisory Group for Scotland – advising on cultural strategy and supporting the way that youth arts funding was distributed. The Young Women's Movement seeks to 'celebrate young women, girls and non-binary people in Scotland who are making changes in their lives, communities and wider society'. The day job involves running Emma Ruse Productions and also Framework Theatre Company which she set up with a few friends providing bespoke support to emerging Scottish theatre makers. Emma credits Framework as being the start to her career. Although she prefers working on stories told through a feminist or queer lens and anything which supports those considered underrepresented, her work also involves directing some work and also producing plays written by others. Being a local Emma agrees that being able to produce four shows locally is a great opportunity, but asked whether the Fringe is a truly great launching pad for the work she considers her reply carefully. She said: 'I think you have to be so strategic. I think a lot of what I see is people not thinking strategically about what sort of work they're bringing, and expecting all sorts of work to be able to achieve the same things at the festival. So as much as I do have four shows, and that might feel like a lot, but they're four shows that I feel really strongly have a space and have an audience at the Edinburgh festival. So I think you have to be strategic with what you're bringing and realistic with your expectations. I am not expecting any of these shows to be Fleabag. 'I think they're all brilliant. I think they have the potential to do that sort of thing. But I think a lot of people go into Fringe with these really high expectations based off Fleabag, based off Baby Reindeer. And it's just so unlikely with the wealth of work that is happening that yours will be the one in every five years that gets picked up that way. 'So I think for us what's really useful is it's a chance for our work to be seen. It's a chance to do a long run, which is practically unheard of in Scottish theatre unless you're in one of the big venues, and it's a chance to learn your craft that way as well. You learn so much from doing a show 25 times that you will never learn when you do it for three nights and then that's the end. So I think in these ways it's a really useful platform.' And her advice on how to get through the Fringe? Emma said: 'My top tip is that you cannot do everything. You cannot see everything no matter how much you might want to and you cannot talk to everyone you want to meet. At some point you have to say that is it for today, that's all I can do. It's a marathon not a sprint.' The shows Her thoughts on the four shows are that they are all 'a bit different' but held together by the same values. She said: 'Homo (Sapien) is a very overtly queer piece. It's about growing up gay in Catholic Ireland. So that one definitely fits in. And Jumper Bumps is about a woman's right to choose in coercive relationships, and the challenging political climate we live in at the moment. So that feels really strongly feminist in theme. 'But then you have shows like r/Conspiracy, which on the surface is potentially not fulfilling either of those, but kind of does both of them because it's really rare to see a woman on stage talking about Reddit and existing in those sorts of internet sleuthing spaces. So it does it in a potentially more subverted way. And Mary is definitely a feminist retelling of Mary's story which feels really exciting and important and the music in that show is truly phenomenal. I saw it at the Fringe last year and fell in love with it. They were self-producing last year so I was delighted to come on board and we got a short run at the Traverse before Christmas which sold out. It felt right to bring it back to the festival on a bigger scale and give more audiences an opportunity to engage with the work.' The shows Homo (Sapien) by Conor O'Dwyer – 'Joey is a Bad Gay™. He's never had sex with a man, not even once. But tonight is the night, and he is determined to make sure he will not die a virgin. Filled with Catholic guilt, internalised homophobia and fear of the local GAA lads – Joey embarks on a hapless quest to 'get his hole' before it's too late. Homo(sapien) is a joyful, queer, coming-of-age one-man show about overcoming your fears. The debut play from Conor O'Dwyer – an Irish playwright and performer based in Edinburgh.' Tickets here. r/Conspiracy – 'r/Conspiracy is a play for messy girls, hungry sleuths, and the chronically online. Alex tumbles headfirst into the rabbit hole when she spots a Reddit thread documenting a man with a machete roaming her local park. But the harder she digs, the deeper she falls… A timely reminder of the flaws of the internet, and a virtual mystery romp for 20-somethings with too much time on their hands, and the weight of the world on their shoulders, r/Conspiracy is written and performed by Ella Hällgren, and directed by Emma Ruse.' Tickets here. Jumper Bumps – 'What happens when the thing you wished for your whole life turns out to be your worst nightmare? Eris wants a baby. Atlanta doesn't. They're best friends with very different views of motherhood. Eris sees it as a chance to create a better version of herself. Atlanta sees it as the opposite, an end to her freedom. As similar as they are different, their friendship is stretched when Eris finds herself pregnant. The debut play by Amelia Rodger about a woman's right to choose, coercive relationships and female friendship.' Tickets here. Mary: A Gig Theatre Show – 'Through powerful original music and spoken word, a folk-rock band retells Mary Queen of Scots' story. The bold gig theatre show searingly questions what Mary faced at the hands of men, offering a mesmerising and riotous response. The hit show is back for 2025, following acclaimed sold-out runs at the 2024 Fringe and the Traverse Theatre in December.' Tickets here. Like this: Like Related
Mint
25-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Mint
Hugh Jackman's net worth: A look at The Wolverine star's earnings, properties and more
Australian actor Hugh Jackman is all over the news as he finalised his divorce with Deborra-Lee Furness. It took one month after she filed for divorce to formally end their decades-long marriage. Prior to her filing, it is said that the two spent almost two years finalising the negotiations, thanks to their estimated $250 million fortune, as reported by Daily Mail. So, how rich is Hugh Jackman exactly? Going by Celebrity Net Worth, Hugh's net worth is said to be $120 million. The Daily Mail claims the actor's estimated net worth is around $200 million, ever since his Wolverine stint in Marvel's comic book franchise. A report of Forbes mentioned Hugh among the highest-paid actors of 2024, with an estimated net worth of $50 million ($66 million gross), largely driven by his X-Men roles and Les Mis. It says, 'After the emotional send-off of his Wolverine character in 2017's Logan, nothing short of a massive payday and the opportunity to work with his good friend Ryan Reynolds would have convinced the 56-year-old Jackman to don the adamantium claws once again. But Deadpool & Wolverine will likely end up being the most lucrative movie of his career.' Cosmopolitan reported that Hugh's main source of earnings comes from his impressive paychecks throughout his career. He earned $5 million for X-Men: The Last Stand (2006), $20 million each for X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009) and The Wolverine (2013), and $7 million for X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014), reportedly. Outside the superhero franchise, he reportedly earned $5 million for Les Misérables, $9 million for Real Steel, and $10 million for Australia. Apart from acting, Jackman is also a businessman. He owns a coffee company, Laughing Man Coffee. He also owned a production house, Seed Productions which was founded by the actor and his now ex-wife. Hugh Jackman also has an impressive real estate portfolio. One of his most notable properties is a two-story apartment in New York City's Chelsea neighborhood, which he purchased for $21 million in 2022 and previously shared with Deborra-Lee Furness. In Australia, he has bought, sold, and rented several properties across Sydney. Among his most talked-about acquisitions is a sleek, ultra-modern condo overlooking Bondi Beach, reportedly bought for $6 million in 2016, according to Architectural Digest. He also owns a 2.5-acre waterfront plot purchased for $3.5 million in 2015, along with a luxurious waterfront home in the Hamptons. There are reports about his other purchased properties in London and New York. Besides these, Jackman has reportedly also invested in companies including R.M. Williams, an Australian apparel brand, where he previously held a 5% stake.
Irish Examiner
24-06-2025
- General
- Irish Examiner
Julie Jay: We cheered as our smallies emerged as preschool graduates
It's been a week of endings and beginnings, as we finished up in naíonara and had our first big school trial run. Finishing up in naíonara was surreal, to say the least. Having procured flowers for the teachers, I, along with the rest of the parents' WhatsApp group, stood awkwardly trying to decide who would press the buzzer as if we were playing a game of runaway knock. As one daddy commented, it felt a little like a funeral: the flowers, the Kleenex, the emotions running high. Walking up as a group in silence only compounded the feeling that we were at a wake. Still, we cheered as our smallies emerged as preschool graduates. They seemed relatively relaxed about it all, despite the stifled parental sniffles. And so one chapter ended, and another, at big school, began. The open night in Number One's new school earlier in the year was so pleasant that it practically had me wishing to go back and re-do junior infants all over again. Any chance of us enrolling in a different school went out the window when the principal and vice principal produced a plate of Viscount biscuits. The rules are fairly straightforward: no drinks or cigarettes because it is no longer the '80s, and your junior infant will be in hot water if they bring drugs to school. We discussed the hazards posed by dangling earrings, with a lot of wincing, and I ruminated on whether my mother had been right not to allow me to pierce mine. Eventually, at the ripe old age of 18, I rebelled and got some first communion-style studs in my lobes, nearly fainting with the agony of it all. Despite my lack of piercings and the fact that I travelled to school in a horse and carriage, my Amish childhood was no different from that of my peers. It also explains my love of a bonnet. Because the teachers at big school couldn't be nicer, and he is heading off with a couple of friends in tow, I find myself surprisingly OK with it all. On our first day, he runs in with gusto, high-fiving the numerous kids he knows from his childminder like a Premier League footballer descending from the team bus. So fuelled by sceitimíní is he that I have to chase him around the yard just to introduce him to his teacher. He appears slightly baffled at being led into the naíonáin beaga room, and he looks at me as if to say 'I actually identify more as a senior infant'. Still, any worry I had that he might be in any way nervous is quelled when he makes a dive for the pirate ship and is quickly joined by two of his buddies, because nothing brings people together like looting at sea. We parents stand around not really knowing what to do, until the lovely teacher tells us we can head away, and we sidle off with no child protesting, a little disappointed that none of them cared whether we stayed or not when we had all braced ourselves for a scene from Les Mis. After dropping him off at school, I make a trip to the graveyard. It is my dad's birthday today, the first one since he passed away last Christmas. I ask him to mind Number One as he starts in this chapter. And it is then the tears come, because although finishing naíonara is sad, death is so much sadder. I meet a fellow parent at the petrol station, who, seeing my slightly reddened eyes, presumes it is about the kids starting school. I don't correct her as she hugs me because a hug is a hug, and I simply don't get embraced in petrol station forecourts enough anymore. Less pumping, more hugging, I say. The husband picks Number One up, and I await their return with bated breath, hoping that he had a nice time, and that nothing went too awry within the three-hour period. When they both return, my boy is donning a plaster on his knee, having learned the hard way why no running is allowed in the yard. Life really is the school of hard knocks. 'How was it?' I ask , and he produces a card and a picture of a bird, which speaks to a morning well spent. After the chats, he asks to go through his book from a náionara — a scrapbook that contains photos and pictures from throughout the year. We leaf through Halloween and Christmas until we get to World Book Day, where Number One points to the photograph and says 'and that was the day mammy forgot my costume', with all the breeziness of a smiling assassin. It would appear that I will never live this one down. Later on that day, I recount this conversation to my husband, who tells me that Number One had also pointed the page out to him as the day mammy forgot his costume, and added a 'can you believe it?' to jam that dagger straight into the aorta. I couldn't be happier with Number One's new school, but there is a downside to having a class size of seven, which is that getting away with forgetting your homework might be tricky. Though so far Number One has proven himself to be the most organised out of the lot of us, so perhaps the cycle of generational forgetfulness might finally be broken.
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Richard Grenell has talked with Trump as he weighs running for California governor
Richard Grenell, the longtime Trump ally and special presidential envoy, spoke with President Donald Trump this week about potentially running for governor of California. Grenell, who also serves as the interim executive director of the Kennedy Center, said in an interview on 'The Conversation' with Dasha Burns that he would 'have to take a look' at vying for the top job in California if former Vice President Kamala Harris launches a bid of her own. 'I want to see if Kamala runs. If Kamala runs, I think there's a whole bunch of Republicans who are going to have to take a look at it, not just me,' Grenell said in the interview, which was taped Thursday and scheduled to air in full on Sunday. 'If she runs, it is going to make me have to take a look at it. Right now, I'm not running for governor.' Grenell also said he had spoke this week with Trump about a run, but declined to share details about the conversation. Harris is expected to decide on whether to announce a run by the end of the summer. Grenell, who has a home in the Los Angeles area, traveled with Trump earlier this year to survey wildfire damage. Trump has been sharply critical of Gov. Gavin Newsom's response to the January wildfires and his handling of anti-immigration protests over the past week. Trump has sent in hundreds of additional military personnel to Los Angeles, heightening tension between protesters and law enforcement. The president also called in the National Guard to Los Angeles against Newsom's wishes, sparking a high-stakes legal battle. Grenell told POLITICO he believes the Trump administration has more credibility than Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass — even with Democrats. 'I would say that there is zero confidence in Karen Bass and Gavin Newsom right now from Democrats,' he said. 'When Donald Trump decided to send in law enforcement and send in the National Guard and send in the military, there are a lot of Democrats in California who said, 'Thank God,' because Karen Bass isn't cut out to be a leader.' Grenell previously considered a run for governor in California ahead of the 2021 vote to recall Newsom, which ultimately did not pass. Grenell also weighed in on Trump's visit to the Kennedy Center this week to take in a performance of 'Les Misérables,' arguing that despite the mixed reaction Trump received, the Kennedy Center is now 'much more tolerant.' 'I think we want people here who sit next to each other, who voted for somebody completely different for president,' Grenell said in the interview, which was taped at the Kennedy Center. 'You could have somebody sitting next to a Trump supporter who also voted, somebody who voted, for, you know, Bernie Sanders. No one gets vocal and no one gets into an argument because we're watching Les Mis. You know, that's the whole idea of tolerance.'
Politico
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Politico
Richard Grenell has talked with Trump as he weighs running for California governor
Richard Grenell, the longtime Trump ally and special presidential envoy, spoke with President Donald Trump this week about potentially running for governor of California. Grenell, who also serves as the interim executive director of the Kennedy Center, said in an interview on 'The Conversation' with Dasha Burns that he would 'have to take a look' at vying for the top job in California if former Vice President Kamala Harris launches a bid of her own. 'I want to see if Kamala runs. If Kamala runs, I think there's a whole bunch of Republicans who are going to have to take a look at it, not just me,' Grenell said in the interview, which was taped Thursday and scheduled to air in full on Sunday. 'If she runs, it is going to make me have to take a look at it. Right now, I'm not running for governor.' Grenell also said he had spoke this week with Trump about a run, but declined to share details about the conversation. Harris is expected to decide on whether to announce a run by the end of the summer. Grenell, who has a home in the Los Angeles area, traveled with Trump earlier this year to survey wildfire damage. Trump has been sharply critical of Gov. Gavin Newsom's response to the January wildfires and his handling of anti-immigration protests over the past week. Trump has sent in hundreds of additional military personnel to Los Angeles, heightening tension between protesters and law enforcement. The president also called in the National Guard to Los Angeles against Newsom's wishes, sparking a high-stakes legal battle. Grenell told POLITICO he believes the Trump administration has more credibility than Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass — even with Democrats. 'I would say that there is zero confidence in Karen Bass and Gavin Newsom right now from Democrats,' he said. 'When Donald Trump decided to send in law enforcement and send in the National Guard and send in the military, there are a lot of Democrats in California who said, 'Thank God,' because Karen Bass isn't cut out to be a leader.' Grenell previously considered a run for governor in California ahead of the 2021 vote to recall Newsom, which ultimately did not pass. Grenell also weighed in on Trump's visit to the Kennedy Center this week to take in a performance of 'Les Misérables,' arguing that despite the mixed reaction Trump received, the Kennedy Center is now 'much more tolerant.' 'I think we want people here who sit next to each other, who voted for somebody completely different for president,' Grenell said in the interview, which was taped at the Kennedy Center. 'You could have somebody sitting next to a Trump supporter who also voted, somebody who voted, for, you know, Bernie Sanders. No one gets vocal and no one gets into an argument because we're watching Les Mis. You know, that's the whole idea of tolerance.'
