The Studio, Edinburgh
Three stars
If property is theft, there are few better illustrations of legitimised greed in action than a good game of Monopoly. As otherwise unassuming friends and family cosplay ruthless toy town billionaires on the backs of their nearest and dearest who land on their ever expanding empires, there is a wannabe landlord, it seems, within us all.
Beyond the game itself, there is a tale to tell of the real life rip-off merchant who stole a once egalitarian idea and took it to the highest bidder. This is the story shown off here in Jordan & Skinner’s playful pop culture history lesson, in which we learn how early twentieth century free thinking games designer and political activist Lizzie Magie devised what she called The Landlord’s Game. This was to be an educational tool to explain the progressive economic ideas of economist Henry George and the perils of monopolisation. When fellow games designer Charles Darrow stumbled on Magie’s creation, he flipped its original intention on its head, sold it on and made a million, and not in pretend money either.
These events are rendered as a piece of old school knockabout feminist agit-prop in Caitlin Skinner’s production of her and Melanie Jordan’s creation. This is performed by Jordan, Amy Helena and Diane Thornton on Fraser Lappin’s game show set with prat falls and shape throwing aplenty. With British Sign Language incorporated into the mix throughout, the show’s silent movie strip cartoon style set pieces are driven by a jaunty retro vintage loungecore soundtrack care of sound designer Nik Paget-Tomlinson.
While the show’s narrative routines possess the sort of carefree wit one imagines Magie applied to her own soapbox, like Monopoly itself, it should probably finish sooner than it does. There is fun to be had nevertheless as Magie is at last given her place on the board.
The Herald, October 23rd 2026
Ends
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