Review: Ellie MacPherson: Babe Lincoln, Fringe 2024

I have read Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter but learnt more about the 6’4″ president of the United States from Ellie MacPherson.

MacPherson did the show dressed as the 16th president, the man who led the US through its civil war before being assassinated. So, I will now state that my final (scheduled) show of Fringe 2024 was that of a singing drag king comedian on stilts teaching me history.

The Ed Fringe page really tags the show ‘history’, and Ellie is referred to as a ‘comedic historian’ in the details, so don’t low-ball the history lesson here.

However, this is a comedy-music gig. Babe Lincoln isn’t a musical but more of an experiential lesson from someone who loves her country.

Tone

The first half of the 19th century wasn’t an easy time in America. Women, especially, had it rough. Deaths in childbirth were common, and a quarter of all children would lose one or both of their parents before they reached their own adulthood. Politicians managed to bankrupt whole States.

Hopefully, the audience can’t fail to spot one or two parrels with the stories Ellie tells about Abraham’s early years with life today.

There’s satire here, always welcome in Scotland, and it’s sharp and clever. It cuts away at the halo I had around the political figure I always knew as ‘Honest Abe’.

It’s a fun satire, though, not dark and, even more importantly, it does not accidentally normalise the issues at hand. Ellie makes it pretty darn clear where the compass should be pointing.

What to expect

There’s lots of singing in this show. To Ellie’s apparent amusement, I attended a session with an audience in a robust voice who was eager to sing along.

There is some minor audience participation of a musical nature, so if you sit in the first row, you might have to finish a call-and-response part of a popular song.

The songs in Babe Lincoln are fairly diverse, too, crossing a few genres and a few decades without ever being too obscure. I tried to work out whether Ellie picked the song for the historical insight or the insight for the song, and I couldn’t tell which was good.

Tomorrow is the last performance of Babe Lincoln at the Pleasance in Edinburgh. I expect it’ll sell out.

Overall

Singing comedy should be used to teach history more often. Mind you, Babe Lincoln is 14+ as babe teachers might leave the wrong impression on young minds.

Ellie MacPherson held my attention for the entire hour, and that’s almost impossible to do. I’d recommend Babe Lincoln to anyone who is generally interested in Fringe shows. I’m sure it might trigger some American political tribes but I’m not actually sure which!

Watch out for John, and get a seat in that attic theatre at the Pleasance if you can.