Tell Me
★★★★★ Exceptional
Summerhall (Venue26): Thur 6 – Mon 31 Aug 2026
Review by Erin Frances Speirs
Tell Me from the Sadiq Ali Company, is an exceptional piece of narrative aerial artistry which explores HIV diagnoses in different eras. First staged at Manipulate this year it returns to Summerhall for the duration of the Fringe.
Two timelines collide after Grace is diagnosed with HIV and is transported back to the 1980s where Michael is facing a different kind of ignorance, alongside his boyfriend David. Spectacular, distinct and engrossing imagery is used to tell the two stories, under the dynamic direction of of creator Sadiq Ali – with specific and compelling choreography from Jonathan Lunn and Junior Cunningham.
Tell Me by Sadiq Ali Company. Pic: Jamie Dennis.
Phoebe Knight is powerful as Grace, portraying both strength and vulnerability throughout. She has moments of both quiet isolation and formidable resilience, and her gymnastic talents are formidable. Ali’s Chinese pole work is beautiful and awe-worthy as Michael, enigmatic in both his devastation and in his courageous avoidance. Jonah Russell is commanding as David and a variety of other roles, showing strength in both performance and physical abilities.
The three have brilliant chemistry and comfort with one another as they use each others’ bodies to create thought-provoking visuals and perform grandiose athletic feats. Using a hollow red cube, custom made by Alex Harvey that rises above the stage, the performers climb, twist, and soar with fast-paced ease through this consistent metaphor of the diagnosis.
Feeling as though they have no control over their lives, performers are hoisted by this frame, before finally taking power for themselves, showing their autonomy over their own bodies through this motif. This beautiful visual metaphor is furthered as Tell Me unfolds, with plastic hung around the cube. While hand-size red boxes previously symbolised the virus, now similar blue boxes are passed by hand to symbolise medication, treatment, and a hope for the future.
remarkable atmosphere
Costuming from Aslı Özüak elevates the piece, with tracksuits, PVC looks, and glitter and glam showing the transportation from 2026 to the 1980s. Lighting from Jamie Heseltine and sound design from Guy Veale further the remarkable atmosphere set by all creatives involved.
Tell Me is clearly a labour of love from all involved, creating an abstract yet definitive world on stage. Filled with impressive, beautiful physical performances, devastating voice overs, and sensual and delicately portrayed sex scenes, Tell Me is a phenomenal feat of artistic and physical talent.
As magnificent as Tell Me is to witness, it is often hard to watch, as the ruinous reality of an ignored community is portrayed on stage. However, those little blue boxes show a hopeful future. Tell Me is surely one of the most visually stunning, and deeply important, productions to be seen at this Edinburgh Fringe.
Running time: One hour and 5 minutes (no interval).
Summerhall (Dissection Room), 1 Summerhall Place, Edinburgh, EH9 1PL (Venue 26).
Thursday 6 – Monday 31 August 2026.
Daily (Not Mon/Tue, exc 31): 7pm.
Tickets and details: Book here at EdFringe.com.
Tickets direct from venue: Book here.
Sadiq Ali website: www.sadiqalicompany.co.uk
Instagram: @sadiqalicompany
A scene from Tell Me. Pic Alberto Santos Bellido.
ENDS
