Chronic Insanity has a mighty impressive back catalogue of productions, yet they are only presenting a late and restricted run at Summerhall. The company has a reputation for mould-breaking theatre forms, but this show falls firmly into the well-established gig theatre genre.

The production has two intertwining elements or themes. The first is the core story and backbone of the plot.  How two underage schoolfreinds (Dan and Olly, played well by Doug Deans and Joe Matty respectively) attempt to carry off a heist, of sorts, by robbing £10k worth of weed from the hard man, drug dealer boyfriend of Dan’s mum and offload it at the Isle of Wight Festival, where they live in the shitty wee town of Newport.

The other is a much more emotional coming of age conundrum.  Neither are sexually active but both are itching for some action. The trouble is, how the action manifests is not entirely predictable. This is by far the stronger theme of the show, but it’s buried beneath the weight of the storytelling element that, to be honest, has some plotholes and feels familiar. (It’s a wee bit A Grand Don’t Come For Free, but without the hip-hop or rap.)

Had Olly and Dan’s personal relationship been developed further we might have had a more original and compelling production but, although it’s hinted at early in the script, it only really surfaces in the last act, and that’s a shame especially because the tech gets in the way.

That’s the other issue with this show. The tech is really dissapointing. Gig theatre needs to be loud and crystal clear. Horrorshow neither of these things.

The original songs are decent, inspired by 2000’s indie bangers, but the sound design is not to Summerhall’s usual exacting standards, so unfortunately much of the show’s high octane finale is almost indecipherable.  What’s going on with director Joe Strickland’s drums is anyone’s guess. They’re electronic, but half of the pads seem to be switched off – we can see he’s excellent, but we can barely hear it. Deans’ guitar is fine on acoustic but invisible on electric. The keys are almost lost and the dialogue, when the mics are used over music, is swamped.

It’s such a shame because there’s an interesting show in here, but a combination of tech and the storytelling balance lets a lovely, enthusiastic, company down.

Horrowshow is at Anatomy Lecture Theatre at Summerhall until Mon 31 Aug 2026