Under the Influence: The Gilbert Twins Bring Viral Fame to Edinburgh Fringe in a New Musical Comedy

Identical twins Carine and Frances Gilbert have amassed over three million followers online with their sharp comedic content, but this summer they are stepping away from the screen and onto the stage. Their brand-new musical comedy, Under the Influence, has officially opened at Underbelly Bristo Square's Dairy Room as part of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2025, and first-look production images suggest it is every bit as bold and irreverent as their online persona promises.

Running until 30 August at 9:20pm nightly, the show marks a homecoming of sorts for the Gilbert Twins, who are returning to their musical theatre roots with a production that blends original songs, blistering comedy, and a surprisingly emotional core. For anyone who loves musicals that push boundaries, Under the Influence could be one of the most talked-about Fringe debuts this year.

What Is Under the Influence About?

The premise is deceptively simple and drawn directly from life. Carine and Frances Gilbert, the world's most co-dependent non-couple, find themselves in couples therapy. What begins as a therapeutic conversation quickly spirals into a full-blown musical intervention, complete with original songs, escalating chaos, and a reckoning that threatens to collapse the lifelong duet the sisters have built together.

It is a show about sisterhood at its most intense: the unspoken competition, the blurred identities, the love that holds everything together even as it threatens to pull it apart. But Under the Influence is also very much a story about modern fame. The production explores the pressures of building a life online, the gap between a curated persona and a messy reality, and what happens when you have to find your own voice after years of being half of a double act.

The Gilbert Twins describe the show as "loud, ridiculous, and unexpectedly heartfelt," and if their social media output is any guide, audiences should expect a production that shifts gears between belly laughs and genuine emotional punches with impressive speed.

The Creative Team Behind the Show

Under the Influence is directed by Georgie Rankcom, with the book and lyrics written by Carine and Frances Gilbert themselves. The original score is co-written by Shona Maule, who also provides musical direction and performs alongside the twins on stage. That tight three-person ensemble gives the show an intimate, high-energy feel that suits both the therapy-room setting and the Fringe's love of stripped-back, personality-driven work.

Michelle Payne serves as associate director, helping to shape a production that balances the demands of musical storytelling with the rawness of autobiographical comedy. The creative team has clearly leaned into the twins' strengths: their timing, their chemistry, and their willingness to be vulnerably, sometimes embarrassingly, honest about the realities of their relationship.

From Viral Stardom to the Stage

The journey from social media stardom to live performance is one that an increasing number of creators are attempting, but few manage it with the creative ambition on display here. The Gilbert Twins are not simply translating their online sketches to a stage format. Instead, they have written a fully original musical with a narrative arc, composed songs, and a theatrical structure that demands more from both performers and audience than a typical comedy set.

This reflects a broader trend in contemporary theatre: the porous boundary between digital content creation and traditional performance. The Edinburgh Fringe has long been a laboratory for this kind of crossover, hosting shows from YouTubers, podcasters, and TikTok stars alongside seasoned theatre-makers. What sets Under the Influence apart, based on early reports, is the depth of the theatrical craft involved. The twins are not dabbling in musical theatre; they are building something from the ground up.

For fans of new shows and boundary-pushing work, this is precisely the kind of production worth paying attention to. It sits at the intersection of comedy, musical theatre, and confessional performance, a space that has produced some of the most exciting Fringe hits in recent years.

Edinburgh Fringe: A Launchpad for Future Transfers

The Edinburgh Festival Fringe has a storied history of launching shows that go on to enjoy long runs in the West End and beyond. Productions like Six, The Play That Goes Wrong, and Showstopper! The Improvised Musical all built their reputations on the Fringe before transferring to London stages. While it is far too early to predict whether Under the Influence will follow a similar trajectory, the combination of a built-in audience (three million online followers is no small thing), strong creative credentials, and a timely subject matter gives it a genuine shot at life beyond Edinburgh.

The Underbelly Bristo Square venue is one of the Fringe's most prominent spaces, and the Dairy Room provides an intimate setting that should suit the show's confessional energy perfectly. Audiences at the Fringe are famously adventurous, and a musical about twin sisters having a therapy-fuelled meltdown on stage is exactly the kind of high-concept, high-personality show that tends to generate buzz in Edinburgh's crowded marketplace.

Why Musical Theatre Fans Should Pay Attention

Under the Influence represents something genuinely interesting for the musical theatre landscape. It is a show created by performers who understand both the digital world and the stage, and who are using both skill sets to tell a story that could not exist in either medium alone. The original score, co-written with Shona Maule, promises to be more than a collection of comedy songs. By rooting the music in the emotional reality of the twins' relationship, the creative team has the opportunity to deliver the kind of musical storytelling that stays with audiences long after the final number.

The show also taps into conversations that feel urgently relevant: the mental health toll of online fame, the difficulty of establishing an individual identity when you have always been defined as part of a pair, and the messy, complicated, wonderful chaos of family bonds. These are themes that resonate well beyond the specifics of the Gilbert Twins' story, and a good musical finds the universal in the personal.

Practical Information: How to See Under the Influence

Under the Influence is playing at Underbelly Bristo Square, Dairy Room, as part of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2025. Performances run nightly at 9:20pm until 30 August. Tickets are available through the Edinburgh Fringe box office and standard ticket platforms.

If you are planning a trip to Edinburgh this August and want to catch a fresh, original musical with genuine heart and plenty of laughs, this should be high on your list. And if you cannot make it to Edinburgh, keep an eye on this one. Shows with this much energy and ambition have a habit of finding their way south.

For more on the latest new shows and musicals across the UK, browse the full listings on BritishTheatre.com. And for the latest theatre news and features, visit our news and features page.