Review: A Transcriber’s Tale, Fringe 2024

“A Transcriber’s Tale” is surprisingly bittersweet. I don’t know why I was surprised, but it’s an autobiography of performer Joanna Parson’s life.

Who among us doesn’t have bittersweet moments in their life? Joanna, perhaps, is braver for sharing them.

Joanna is a singer, comedian, and transcriber; this unique job lured me to the show.

Voice-to-Text is a technology that’s been ‘good enough’ for years now; we don’t even need AI for it, and I was surprised to discover that there’s still a demand for human transcribing. Joanna’s story starts at the turn of the century, but we catch up to the present. In the performance, Joanna explains that she encourages professional transcribers to tap into culture and to know the context because it is that greater understanding that allows human transcribers to beat the robots.

It’s that empathic wisdom, that understanding that context and the human emotions driving it, which keeps the tale interesting.

I presume The Transcriber’s Tale is a real one. It’s low-key. I’ve encountered dinosaurs and been serenaded in this Fringe, and this slice of life is a different kind of interesting. 

Tone

We start with Joanna being drawn to New York. She’s looking for something, and this is just one of many emotionally open and honest moments in the tale.

Soon enough, our narrating orator has a flexible job as a professional transcriber. She’s writing up the news and current affairs.

These days, we talk about filter bubbles, doom scrolling, and social media addiction. What you hear and mentally process does impact you. 

Yesterday, I would have said that a story about someone who devotes a lot of their life to transcribing would not likely be a story I’d understand emotionally. Today, I know I was wrong.

I think I get why Joanna spent so much time with the headphones on.

Then; 9/11.

Should there be a trigger warning? Probably not, but it felt like a vulnerable and personal moment. It felt deep and dangerous, like the shadow of a shark in the pool of emotions.

Imagine being at the centre, all-be-it behind the scenes, of that news storm of human tragedy.

The Transcriber’s Tale is bittersweet because it contains some very lovely and very human successes and insights, but they come with a heavy dose of sadness.

What to expect

Climb the stairs in the Patter House, take a comfortable seat and you’ll be up close with Joanna.

There’s some audience chat, but not much. You get to shout out some suggestions if you want. For us, and perhaps for every show, there’s a chance to sing. Fantastic if you’re confident or enjoy it. Alas, not me, but no one dragged me in.

Oh yes, expect singing. The Transcriber’s Tale is told with the aid of a guitar. In the days of yore, bards with instruments might travel the world to spread the news. Today, Joanna has crossed the world to sing her personal story about surviving the news.

Does that feel complete? It did to me. I felt we reached a natural end with Joanna here in Edinburgh. We know what’s happened to the transcriber, and we can see how life and stories about life have played their part.

Overall

A Transcriber’s Tale is classic Fringe in that I can imagine no other scenario in which I’ll settle down and listen to a sung autobiography purely because I thought the job involved was quirky.

I’m glad I did. The Transcriber’s Tale was the first on my Saturday schedule, suitable for my budget, and a safe, powerful way to start the day.

Joanna is charismatic and talented. Her personal story is certainly more real than most in Fringe, but it has wide appeal.