Review: Hot Mess - a new musical, at Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2025
- Lisa in the theatre
- 7 hours ago
- 3 min read
Original rom-com musical Hot Mess has its world premiere at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2025 following previews at the Birmingham Hippodrome.
Hot Mess ★★★★☆
review: 05 August 2025 | Pleasance Courtyard, Edinburgh Festival Fringe
With an award-winning creative team at the helm and west-end stars performing in the show, Hot Mess is one of the hot tickets at the 2025 Edinburgh Fringe. The duo behind hit musical 42 Balloons - writer / director Ellie Coote and music / lyricist Jack Godfrey - have teamed up with the UK's only in-house new musical theatre department at Birmingham Hippodrome to bring the new musical romcom to the stage.
Hot Mess reimagines the climate crisis as a love story told via a pop comedy musical. Two popular London West-End performers play the Earth (Danielle Steers) and Humanity (Tobias Turley) respectively. The 65 minute fringe theatre production sees Earth get together with Humanity, fall in love and then, like many relationships after a period of time, collapse into a hot mess.
The concept is certainly original! Witnessing the tempestuous relationship between the Earth and Humanity be played out like a series of good and bad dates feels surreal at times. But the metaphors and scenarios used are intelligent, witty and sometimes disquieting.
Backed by a funky pop soundtrack that sounds like it could come straight out of Six the musical in parts, we race through the eras of the Earth's history from Paleozoic to modern day. As Humanity discovers agriculture and technology, his relationship with Earth becomes more and more tumultuous. It's very clever and on-the-mark regards the climate crisis, but it's all played out through an amusing, compact book with bright, high-energy musical theatre storytelling.
Danielle Steers and Tobias Turley are both outstanding. They raise this new work to another stratosphere, their vocals powerful and their performances perfectly judged and captivating. It's a thrill to see triple-threat actors of this calibre perform in such an intimate theatre space - a treat for audiences at the Edinburgh Fringe.
As a production, Hot Mess has a little room to expand, but I doubt this is the last we'll see of this lively new endeavour. Staged here simply but with enticing lighting accents that raise this production above what is usually seen technically from temporary shows at Edinburgh Fringe, Hot Mess is a fun-filled, timely new musical with a thoughtful message, infectious score and two sparkling performances that take us with them on the most important date in the world. ★★★★☆
Hot Mess plays at Edinburgh Fringe until 25th August and then transfers to Southwark Playhouse in London. Find full listings, cast and creative details below.
Hot Mess Cast and Company Information
Performers:
Earth - Danielle Steers
Humanity - Tobias Turley
Book Writer and Director: Ellie Coote
Music, Lyrics and Co-Orchestrator: Jack Godfrey
Musical Supervisor and Co-Orchestrator: Joe Beighton
Set and Costume Designer: Shankho Chaudhuri
Lighting Designer: Ryan Joseph Stafford
Sound Designer: Paul Gatehouse
Musical Director: Issie Osborne
For the full Hot Mess cast and company information see the announcement here: https://www.lisainthetheatre.com/post/hot-mess-cast
Hot Mess listings
Hot Mess at Edinburgh Fringe
Pleasance Two, Pleasance Courtyard, 60 Pleasance, Edinburgh, EH8 9TJ
Wednesday 30 July - Monday 25 August 2025 (not 6, 11 or 18) 3.10pm (4.15pm)
Box office: 0131 556 6550 | www.pleasance.co.uk
Hot Mess in London
Southwark Playhouse Elephant, 1 Dante Place, London, SE11 4RX
The nearest stations are Borough and Elephant & Castle
Thursday 16 October – Saturday 8 November 2025
2.30pm/7.00pm (65 minutes running time)
Box office: 020 7407 0234 | www.southwarkplayhouse.co.uk
Age guidance: 14+
