Kafka for Beginners
Kafka for Beginners is a show at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2026, performing at Braw Venues @ Hill Street. It has 24 performances listed, running from Fri 7 Aug, 15:30 to Sun 30 Aug, 15:30. The run has finished — every listed performance has taken place.
About this show
In an imaginary, yet all-too-recognisable empire, a poet languishes in solitary confinement for the “heresy” of confiding to his own diary the perilously obvious: 2+2=4. Will he “recant” to save his life? Will he let himself be bribed just to survive? Will he go mad? Will he stay true to his ideals of love, freedom beyond the power of tyrants and their bullying to suppress? How can he stay hopeful when it seems all hope is lost? A dark comedy inspired by true stories of prisoners of conscience around the world.
Details
- Venue: Braw Venues @ Hill Street
- Space: Dunedin Theatre
- Genre: THEATRE, Drama, International
- Country: UNITED KINGDOM - SCOTLAND
- Running time: 60 minutes
- Room size: about 60 seats (Dunedin Theatre) — the Fringe box office sells a share of the room, not all of it
- Performances listed: 24, of which 0 still to come and on sale
Accessibility
- Venue notes: Accessible entry: There are four flights of stairs. Stairs: 20+ Number of stairs is provided as guidance and is not in addition to any wheelchair access type (lift/ramp etc) stated above.
What the reviewers said
We have captured 3 published reviews and 23 audience reviews for this show from the Edinburgh Festival Fringe’s own listing. The excerpts below are the reviewers’ words, not ours — follow each link for the full review.
Kafka for Beginners reminds us of the importance of free, critical thinking, not taking everything we’re told at face value, and the cruciality of literature and art.
— The Student (5 out of 5 stars)
In a dystopian jail cell, in a land where 2+2=5, a chained prisoner refuses to compromise his integrity. He is unwilling to collaborate with a corrupt state and an emperor who reimagines truths in order to manipulate…
— Everything Theatre (3 out of 5 stars)
Julian Henry Lowenfeld’s latest iteration of Kafka for Beginners is gripping. Where political writing so often sacrifices on craft in the name of conviction, Lowenfeld refuses to sacrifice either.
— Corr Blimey (4 out of 5 stars)
Performance dates and ticket availability
- Fri 7 Aug, 15:30 — Already performed — £16.00
- Sat 8 Aug, 15:30 — Already performed — £16.00
- Sun 9 Aug, 15:30 — Already performed — £16.00
- Mon 10 Aug, 15:30 — Already performed — £16.00
- Tue 11 Aug, 15:30 — Already performed — £16.00
- Wed 12 Aug, 15:30 — Already performed — £16.00
- Thu 13 Aug, 15:30 — Already performed — £16.00
- Fri 14 Aug, 15:30 — Already performed — £16.00
- Sat 15 Aug, 15:30 — Already performed — £16.00
- Sun 16 Aug, 15:30 — Already performed — £16.00
- Mon 17 Aug, 15:30 — Already performed — £16.00
- Tue 18 Aug, 15:30 — Already performed — £16.00
- Wed 19 Aug, 15:30 — Already performed — £16.00
- Thu 20 Aug, 15:30 — Cancelled — £16.00
- Fri 21 Aug, 15:30 — Cancelled — £16.00
- Sat 22 Aug, 15:30 — Already performed — £16.00
- Sun 23 Aug, 15:30 — Already performed — £16.00
- Mon 24 Aug, 15:30 — Already performed — £16.00
- Tue 25 Aug, 15:30 — Already performed — £16.00
- Wed 26 Aug, 15:30 — Already performed — £16.00
- Thu 27 Aug, 15:30 — Already performed — £16.00
- Fri 28 Aug, 15:30 — Already performed — £16.00
- Sat 29 Aug, 15:30 — Already performed — £16.00
- Sun 30 Aug, 15:30 — Already performed — £16.00