Words: Alex Grunberg
Image: Trudy Stade

4 Stars

Eleanor Morton’s show begins by fulfilling the expectations I had going into a stand-up routine described as comedy and horror, with a disembodied Disney-esque “Ghost Host” welcoming in the audience.

Morton enters in a Victorian-nightgown style costume and candelabra. She punctuates her stories with pre-recorded ghost tales and interactions with a gothic dollhouse. It is an original twist on the incorporation of media elements being employed by many Fringe comedians. She asks the audience if they believe in ghosts, then offers a blithe comment about how, once again, it is men who are one hundred percent sure that ghosts do not exist and women who are ready to believe.

As Morton continues her routine that makes looping transitions between her love of Edinburgh, stories of poltergeists, and jokes about familial quirks, the themes weave together to reveal a surprising darkness simmering under the surface. 

Morton’s exploration of hauntings takes a serious turn in an important conversation about the Fringe that gets swept under the spectacle. There are spectres in Edinburgh, not in the Vaults or Kirkyard, but returning to haunt the women who perform, work, and live here. And these stories of hauntings should not be dismissed.

Like Eleanor Morton, I may not be sure if I believe in ghosts or not. But I do believe women when they tell me their horror stories. 

Eleanor Morton: Haunted House
Monkey Barrel Comedy, Monkey Barrel 2
12:05
Aug 16-18, 21-25