After a triumphant, sold-out international debut last year, “Little Squirt” is sailing back into the Edinburgh Festival Fringe this July — and it’s bringing the same fearless heart, smart-yet-raunchy humor, and radically honest storytelling that made it one of 2024’s standout shows.
Written and performed by Australian rising star Darby James, the award-winning one-person musical cabaret will run from 30 July to 24 August at Gilded Balloon at Appleton Tower, Bramley, with performances nightly at 7:30 PM (excluding 6 and 18 August).
At its core, “Little Squirt” is a salty, sincere, and sharply funny exploration of sperm donation, and everything that comes with it. Through 12 original songs, including sea-shanties, ballads, emotional showstoppers and gut-punching existential truths, James dives into deeply personal territory: navigating donor forms, clinical appointments, moral grey zones, and ultimately, the question of what it means to create life in a world that’s already overwhelmed.
Set adrift on a symbolic island of confusion — yes, sailor hat included — Darby James steers through the bizarre bureaucracy of sperm donor questionnaires, from clinical awkwardness and genetic forms to deeper, unspoken moral quandaries. What begins as a casual “yes” to a Facebook ad quickly unravels into a deeply personal journey through identity, queerness, and the complicated pursuit of joy in an increasingly uncertain world. With biting wit and surprising tenderness, James brings humor and heart to a topic most wouldn’t expect to see explored through sea shanties — and yet, it works.
The show premiered at Melbourne Fringe in 2023, where it swept three Green Room Awards, including Best Cabaret and Outstanding Writing, before going on to win the Edinburgh Touring Award, which secured its Fringe debut in 2024. That first Edinburgh run earned widespread acclaim for its bold storytelling and genre-defying approach, with The Scotsman calling James “a winning, engaging performer,” and Musical Theatre Review hailing the work as “raw honesty delivered with passion.”
This year’s return is produced in collaboration with Gilded Balloon and Quiet RIOT, the boutique production house founded by Linda Catalano (Hot Brown Honey, BATSHIT), and once again directed by Casey Gould, with set and costume design by Betty Auhl.
But while “Little Squirt” takes its cues from one man’s donor journey, the emotional undercurrent runs far wider. James asks the kind of questions that linger well after the house lights come up: Is sperm donation selfless or self-serving? Should we be having children at all? And in a world teetering on environmental and moral crisis, what kind of future are we creating for them anyway?
Having caught the 2024 run, I can say this: “Little Squirt” may be profane on the surface, opening with sperm jokes and a wink, but it’s quietly profound at its core. James has the rare gift of luring you in with charm and cheek, only to turn your laughter into reflection before you’ve even noticed. One moment, you’re giggling at a nautical “seamen” pun; the next, you’re quietly wrecked by a letter written to a child who may never be met.
The show has its imperfections. Aa few songs land more powerfully than others, but it’s a minor note in what is ultimately a clever, courageous, and emotionally intelligent hour of theatre. It’s the kind of Fringe gem that sneaks up on you and stays with you long after the lights come up.
If “Little Squirt” sails into your city, drop anchor. You’ll want to be on board.
Show Details:
Written & Performed by Darby James
Gilded Balloon, Anatomy Lecture Theatre
30 July – 24 August (not 6, 18)
19:30 | 60 minutes | Ages 14+
(?? Content warnings: Scenes of a sexual nature, strong language/swearing)
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