Bernie Dieter’s Club Kabarett – Underbelly ★★★★

When the world feels as though it is teetering towards catastrophe, history suggests the outsiders are never far behind. The decadent, the bizarre, the queer, the bohemian and the downright unruly have always flourished in periods of uncertainty. Weimar Berlin understood it. Cabaret understood it. Faced with chaos, people gather in dark rooms, order another drink and decide that if the world is burning, they may as well dance around the flames. The Edinburgh Fringe has long been fertile ground for that instinct. Every year brings an influx of circus, burlesque and cabaret shows that promise liberation through spectacle, celebrating bodies and identities that conventional culture often struggles to accommodate. The challenge is standing out in a festival overflowing with sequins, aerial silks and controlled danger. What elevates Bernie Dieter’s Club Kabarett above much of the competition is Bernie Dieter herself. Dieter is not simply an emcee tasked with linking acts together. She is…