Whisky & Witches takes the best aspects of the Fringe – unique music, performance, creativity, storytelling, and local culture – and turns them into something truly fresh, immersive, and spellbinding. If you see one show this year, make it this one.
Golden light glimmered from the five healthy drams of whisky, displayed carefully on the table in front of me. Fairy lights lined the wooden roof, candles flickered as guests took their seats, and two women dressed all in black smiled from the front of the bar. The show hadn’t even started, and already I was impressed.
I had arrived at Whisky & Witches relatively uninformed about the show’s premise. The sense of mystery, to me, adds a certain aura to Fringe shows. Little did I know that these two marvellous women would be providing enough aura for the entire festival. Jane and Christine, both overwhelmingly talented, had come prepared.
Draped in dark gowns framed by impressive eyeshadow, Jane and Christine welcomed the audience with enthusiasm and kindness, setting an undoubtedly warm tone for the evening – despite the chills to be spread later by their stories. A highball on arrival, consisting of Glenmorangie paired with blueberries and rosemary (for protection), set the taste buds similarly well, as the five displayed drams enticed even the most reserved guest.
Jane, alongside winning Scotland’s Whisky Guru award, runs the Mother Superior bar with two others in Edinburgh, and has proudly tried over 20,000 whiskies. It felt natural to put my tasting experience in her more than capable hands, and suddenly I felt incredibly honoured to have a seat in the small basement bar, as though witnessing something that one day, will only be witnessed in crowds of thousands.
Christine is an expert in ancient/viking music and a powerfully talented composer, blessing the evening with otherworldly music that trickles refrains of pure joy down each listener’s spine. The small room was certainly rich in talent, and it was easy – in fact, impossible not to – imagine Christine’s voice filling international stadiums, backed up by symphony orchestras. Needless to say, I was in for an incredible evening.
“For centuries, it was dangerous for women to be involved in the alcohol industry”
Jane and Christine proceeded, in a casual, comfortable tone that remained rich with roots of comedy, to weave the stories of women lost to the horrors of witchhunts to the history and power of the alcohol industry. The needless deaths of history’s women; the ale wife, the healer, the wise woman, the dame – the witch – as a result of patriarchal power and abuse of church power, are remembered with respect through their emotive storytelling.
The pair go on to unfold the audience’s perception of the witch, from the 1563 witchcraft act making the distilling and selling a capital offence (as it made the women rich and influential god forbid), to the roots of divine femininity today.
At intervals in the stories, guests were blessed – yes, blessed is the only word to describe the experience – by music. It’s Christine’s music that makes you truly realise you’ve hit the Edinburgh Fringe jackpot at Whisky and Witches. I’d like to find words to capture the magic weaved in her songs, but I’m afraid you will have to go to the show to experience it yourself, as there are few words powerful enough to correctly portray such a moment. Christine becomes the music in her entirety, lyre in hand, vocals from another world. If magic is real, then she has mastered it through song.
Jane’s guidance through each whisky was equally rich in talent, although it took a much needed break from the horrors of the witch hunt. A perfect balance was met between comedy and history – a challenging feat to achieve when history has wronged women so. The selection of whiskies was sublime, and, although I am no whisky connoisseur myself, I knew I was in safe hands with the selection. Jane uses imagery to help audiences receive the tasting notes, whisky jargon thankfully left to the bartenders upstairs, as she painted pictures of childhood nostalgia and, strangely, ham sandwiches (it made perfect sense) to encourage a full experience no matter the audience’s whisky background. A certain 60 per cent dram did, however, burn the hairs from my nose. It was wonderful.
“It’s like licking a rare and shiny penny,” Jane prompted.
Whisky & Witches is a whirlwind, a rollercoaster of culture, history, storytelling, and of course, whisky, underpinned by comedy and true passion. The show is deeply unique in the tale it weaves, and I can say with confidence that it is worth every penny. You will not find another experience like this one in Edinburgh this Fringe – in fact, I’d go so far to say that this show stands out internationally.
Whisky & Witches: The Where, When, and How
Whisky & Witches is running every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evening (13, 14, 15, 20, 21, 22, 27, 28, 29) at 7 pm, in The Mother Superior bar on Leith Street, and I can happily say that you will not be disappointed by this show. If you love music, witchcraft, whisky, or just need yet another reason to hate on the patriarchy, then this is THE show for you. You can book your tickets here.
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Featured Image Credit: Alice Pollard
Journalism student at the University of Stirling & BRAW Magazine editor 24/25 and 25/26 🙂
You can see my portfolio here: https://www.clippings.me/alicepollard
