one4review | On 23, Aug 2026

The Hunger Artist, based on Franz Kafka’s last novel, is the story of a performer whose art is fasting for public consumption. Travelling the world, people come to watch him starve, turning his suffering into entertainment. Is he a freak, or a man descending into madness with his art, desperately trying to stay in the zeitgeist and reinventing himself to keep the paying punters coming?
Steven Berkoff protégé Jonathan Anthony Sidgwick’s adaptation is a revelation. Kept inside a cage for the majority of the show, Sidgwick makes the confined space work brilliantly, stepping outside it to portray the other characters – managers, spectators and those who control his fate.
It feels particularly relevant in the cultural Magaluf that is the Edinburgh Fringe, where every artist is trying to stand out, remain relevant and keep people coming through the door. Like the Hunger Artist, they are changing to appease; they are constantly trying to be understood, respected and, ultimately, remembered.
This is top-notch acting, with Sidgwick going above and beyond in a solo performance that explores how art can consume a person’s identity until it finally eats you up and leaves nothing left.
A brilliant, unique piece of theatre that needs to be discovered.

*****
Reviewed by Steve H
Rotunda Theatre
Until 23 Aug 13.45 (50 mins)