EDINBURGH FRINGE: Hot Mess at the Pleasance Courtyard (Pleasance Two)*****

I wasn’t at all surprised to hear that Hot Mess is transferring to London after the Fringe.

Its music and its performers are worthy of any West End stage. Again, it was no surprise that both performers, Danielle Steers and Tobias Turley, have both had runs in London’s West End. Steers’ (Six the Musical) voice is rich and powerful, with an impressive range, and Turley’s is tuneful with just the right kind of depth for the nerd that he plays.

But what makes this special is the imagination and vision of 42 Balloons duo Ellie Coote and Jack Godfrey, who have created a love story between Earth and Hu-manity.

Earth, desperate for love after millions of years of being single, meets Hu and gives him everything he wants. But the more he has the more he wants until their passionate love affair descends into a hot mess, ending when Hu has an affair with the moon.

It’s scintillating and heart-warming but in our current climate crisis its message is loud and clear, and yet it never comes across as being preachy. It’s pure, original and compelling entertainment.

Image: Mark Senior

Hot Mess is on at 3.10pm until Aug 25 at Pleasance Courtyard (Pleasance Two) (1 hr 5 mins) www.pleasance.co.uk