Date: 31 August 2026
Time: 10.45pm – 11.45pm
Venue: Other Yin at Gilded Balloon Patter Hoose (Venue 24)
Running time: 60 minutes
Rating: ★★★★★ (5/5)
Reviewed by: Bella Pirintji
Fringe Run: 5 – 31 August
Ticket Price: £14.50 (£13 + £1.50 booking fee)
Age Suitability: 18+ (guideline)
Performers: Puck Bunnies (@puckbunniesmusical)
Link: https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/puck-bunnies-a-heated-rivalry-drag-musical-parody
Fans of Heated Rivalry were blessed with not one, not two, but three Fringe parodies this year. This particular version celebrates the cult TV drama (and the books that inspired it) through drag, musical theatre and parody, performed by “a loving team of women, queer, trans, and non-binary performers”.
As a late-night show, this works well. The franchise that inspired it is known for its raunchiness, but also provides heartfelt representations of queer love in the professional sporting world, with relationships that would normally be fearfully and tactically hidden in real life. The parody leaned more into the raunchy side of things, but I think the audience expected this, as they seemed very much on board.
We were guided through the story by a bubbly host who was “half-Zamboni, half-real woman”. Initially, I thought this was a bit odd, but quickly changed my mind. She helped us stay on top of the story, with her commentary adding some new material while giving the other performers a break between scenes.
The musical numbers were parodies of recognisable songs, my favourite being Kiss from a Rose, rewritten as a song about Shane’s “incredibly famous actress” girlfriend, Rose Landry. There was a generous selection of musical numbers packed into the hour, and they were well spaced out, punctuated by dialogue and set changes.
I found the story very easy to follow, even though it’s been several months since I watched the TV version. The writers of Puck Bunnies picked out the show’s most iconic and viral moments, as well as the characters’ most loveable and irritating traits, bringing them to the stage in funny, creative and interesting ways. The costumes were particularly clever in communicating the idea of nudity without exposing the actors more than necessary.
With it being their last show of the Fringe, the performers were notably comfortable on stage. By this point, they were embodying their characters and clearly having fun with it, even adding in small amounts of improv in response to the crowd. Everything seemed well-paced and seamless, and the singing was delightfully in tune.
If you’re mainly into Heated Rivalry for its tender, sweet or romantic moments, this probably isn’t the show for you. There are hyper-sexualised representations of gay men, performed by people who aren’t gay men themselves, as well as caricatured representations of the Russian characters. It’s all in good jest, and I don’t think anyone watching was expecting the comedy to be entirely PC.
Puck Bunnies was a strong end to my 2026 Fringe season. It felt great to be part of a ‘fandom’ in real life and have a personal interest represented on stage in such a fun and silly way. This one’s mostly for the fans. There’s no time to explain the jokes to newcomers, but I can’t say they won’t enjoy the catchy tunes.
