Manchester has long earned its reputation as one of the UK’s creative capitals. While its music history often steals the spotlight, the city’s theatre scene is just as deserving of attention. Beyond the major productions at venues like the Palace Theatre and The Lowry lies a thriving network of independent theatres and emerging creatives helping to shape the future of British theatre.
That’s exactly what makes the Greater Manchester Fringe Festival so exciting. This July, the month-long festival showcases new writing, comedy, musicals and experimental theatre from both emerging and established artists. Often compared to a smaller-scale Edinburgh Fringe, it offers audiences the chance to discover productions before they find a wider audience, while giving new writers and performers a platform to take creative risks.
One of this year’s standout discoveries was Marathon! The Musical, which debuted at The Kings Arms in Salford.
Written, co-created and directed by Pippa Hinds, and composed by Elliot Parchment-Morrison, Marathon! The Musical embraces absurdity from the very beginning.
Set in 2035, the world has already endured an ankle-biting lizard epidemic brought on by climate change. While the reptiles have been locked away, the Lizard King (Adam Halcro) is plotting his revenge. Against this wonderfully bizarre backdrop, Katie Edmonds (Emily Yendell) enters a marathon in the hope of finding love, only to discover Harry Styles is among the runners. It’s an outrageous premise that somehow becomes even more delightfully unhinged as the race unfolds.
If that sounds ridiculous, it absolutely is – but that’s entirely the point.
Rather than trying to ground itself in realism, the production throws itself wholeheartedly into camp comedy. The humour feels intentionally unpredictable, with jokes arriving from every direction and a script that never takes itself too seriously. Think somewhere between the offbeat silliness of shows like The Book of Mormon and the wonderfully strange ideas that fringe theatre so often embraces.
New writing that deserves to go further
The real strength of Marathon! The Musical lies in its writing.
Pippa Hinds demonstrates genuine promise as both a theatre-maker and performer. The script is packed with playful ideas, sharp comic timing and enough confidence to fully commit to its bizarre premise without ever apologising for it.
As the production’s newsreaders, Hinds and Elliot Parchment-Morrison make an excellent double act, bouncing off one another with infectious energy. Parchment-Morrison’s score perfectly matches the show’s playful humour, while the Harry Styles and One Direction references repeatedly draw laughter from the audience.
Together, the pair have created something that feels refreshingly original rather than familiar, supported by a cast that fully embraces every wonderfully eccentric idea. Each performer commits wholeheartedly to the musical’s chaotic world, never shying away from its camp humour or surreal twists. Nobody plays it safe, and the production is all the better for it.
Why Manchester continues to surprise
One of my favourite things about covering theatre in Manchester is how often you discover productions like this.
The city’s biggest venues consistently attract touring West End productions, but smaller spaces also leave a huge impression. Fringe festivals create an environment where writers aren’t constrained by commercial expectations. Instead, they’re encouraged to experiment, take risks and tell stories that simply couldn’t exist anywhere else.
Marathon! The Musical is exactly the sort of production that reminds you why those spaces matter, and why Manchester continues to establish itself as one of the UK’s most exciting cities for discovering new theatre.
Final thoughts
One of the greatest pleasures of travelling is discovering experiences you never expected to find, and Manchester’s fringe theatre scene offers exactly that.
Marathon! The Musical may have debuted as part of the Greater Manchester Fringe Festival, but it already feels like a production with the potential to go much further. Beneath all the camp silliness and wonderfully bizarre humour is an original creative voice that deserves to be nurtured.
If this is the standard of emerging musical theatre coming out of Manchester, then the city’s fringe scene is one worth keeping firmly on your travel itinerary.
Kelsey Haslam is the founding editor of Magenta Adventures Travel Publication and a freelance travel writer with a focus on community-based travel, culture-led experiences, and theatre tourism. She is passionate about spotlighting lesser-known destinations and connecting travellers with meaningful, human-centred stories.
Her published work includes destination features and luxury hotel reviews for leading travel outlets such as A Luxury Travel Blog, Beau Monde Traveler, and Luxury Lifestyle Magazine.
Explore more about Kelsey’s background on the About Page.
