SLUGS
Edinburgh Festival Fringe
★★★★
“a challenging watch … but visceral and thought-provoking nonetheless”
Tobias Graham’s Slugs is an unsettling exploration of shame, sex and the way we remember and tell our own stories. Graham plays a version of himself – Tobi – who one day finds himself invaded by slugs; at first a nauseous feeling inside his body before they begin to take over the outside too.
Graham is an immediately engaging storyteller, who starts the show with a playful, conversational energy. We learn about his teenage years: the Zak Efron poster on his bedroom wall, his love of Ewan McGregor in Moulin Rouge!, all part of his gay sexual awakening which happened in his childhood bedroom, a place, as he puts it, for ‘wailing and wanking’. These details, as well as being I imagine relatable experiences for some of the audience, help to make his story feel specific and lived-in, and also give us a good laugh which eases us in.
As the story progresses, the tone becomes considerably darker. Graham tells us about going into video chat rooms as a minor, getting naked and performing sexual acts for older men. The play doesn’t shy away from deeply uncomfortable territory, particularly when stories about his adult dating life lead to reveal a case of sexual assault. The second half explores this incident and attempts to get into the nuances of assault and consent; although I think the writing could tease out some of this complexity a bit further.
The slugs are a particularly effective poetic device. There is something deeply visceral about watching Graham’s body become invaded by these creatures, conveying shame as something crawling over and under the skin that he cannot simply brush away. His physicality is compelling; his body subtly wrings and contorts under the strain, making the emotional experience feel like something we can actually see happening to him.
Without giving too much away, the most notable moment occurs with a wild break in the form; a change in the audience contract which turns the story into a very different style of play. It’s an ambitious theatrical choice that leaves us feeling genuinely confronted and unsettled, no longer being able to safely watch as mere observers; we become bystanders.
The writing in the second half with the change in form doesn’t feel quite as accomplished as what we’ve heard up to this point, and I think a bit more interrogation around the characters, voices and character functions here could help keep us invested. The breakaway from the poetic language into something more metatheatrical I’m sure will split people, but it’s certainly a brave choice even if I’m not sure it fully works at the moment.
The production has some interesting design ideas as well: a cubed box which reveals Tobi’s childhood bedroom that has a cool payoff, although might have benefitted from a bit more interaction with throughout the show. Also, a lightbox which does a nifty job at changing colour and intensity to shift us through the beats of the story.
It doesn’t exactly wrap everything up in a neat little bow, but then it also tells us quite explicitly that it doesn’t want to. It’s a challenging watch, possibly with a few too many ideas packed in, but visceral and thought-provoking nonetheless.
SLUGS
Bunker One at Pleasance Courtyard Edinburgh Festival Fringe
Reviewed on 27th August 2026
by Joseph Dunitz
Photography by MOJA
