Be Prepared

Edinburgh Fringe

4 Stars

In Be Prepared, which recently opened at the Edinburgh Fringe, Lesley Stone shines as the delightful, somewhat hapless but always funny, badge-obsessed founder of ‘Guides Reunited’, a fictional new branch in the Girl Guiding movement.

 

Stone is consistently entertaining throughout the show: With Guiding anecdotes, clever adages and witty songs.  Highlights of the show were the audience singalong about a frustrated donkey, as well as the ‘litterbug’ rap, complete with baseball cap decorated with badges and ‘singing’ reach extender.

 

After the show, I found myself still chuckling over Stone’s humour, and enthusiastically making the three-fingered Girl Guide salute.  Stone is a natural comedienne, and she uses both her considerable charm, as well as the nostalgia factor of the Guiding movement to win the hearts of her delighted audience.

 

If there were a badge for ‘Fringe Performing’, Stone would certainly deserve it!

 

R. Young