one4review | On 27, Aug 2015

If you’ve been around the Fringe at all this year, there’s a good chance you’ve seen this show dancing its way past you, or serenading various passers-by, or singing Queen out-of-tune. Almost everyone laughs when they see it, and it is a joyful sight: forty-odd grown-ups singing and dancing in the middle of the street like no-one’s watching.

Here’s the thing: they’re all wearing headphones which play disco and funk and the odd bit of Queen (which observers can’t hear) and through which the instructions of the man in the disco-outfit can be heard. That man is David Naylor, the eponymous Guru Dudu. Because of the mic/headphone set-up, he doesn’t need to shout, so he becomes a quiet little disco-devil in your ear, directing the dance moves and encouraging everyone to sing. Those dance moves aren’t hard, and you can’t hear yourself (or anyone else) singing, so it’s easy to get into it (and hard to remember to stop dancing for your walk home).

There were a few technical issues, but the group I was in kept singing even though the music had stopped and didn’t seem to be bothered at all. The route isn’t far in terms of distance danced, so if you can dance you can probably go.

A lovely Fringe-y show which will probably (hopefully) become part of the fabric of the festivals.

Reviewed by Laura

Grassmarket East, 14:00, 15:00, 19:00, 20:15