Isabelle Barbier brings Rip Her To Shreds to Edinburgh Fringe 2026, a darkly comic and surreal exploration of teenage rivalry and rage. As both writer and performer, they offer a bold new voice in contemporary theatre.
Blending horror, satire and physical comedy, Rip Her To Shreds dives into the complexities of early 2000s girlhood, examining internalised misogyny and the pressures of social hierarchy. The result is a striking and provocative theatrical experience.
Rip Her To Shreds runs at Underbelly Cowgate (Iron Belly) from 5 – 30 August 2026 (not 18). Tickets are available here.
You’re the writer and performer of Rip Her To Shreds at Underbelly Cowgate. What can you tell us about the show?
Rip Her To Shreds is a horror comedy set in a 2000s college dorm room, following three young women, Beth, Mercy and Bo, after a breakup sets off a chain reaction of obsession, rivalry and shifting alliances.
The play explores themes of internalised misogyny, rage and early 2000s girlhood. What inspired you to tackle these ideas on stage?
Rip Her To Shreds is my reflection on girlhood in the early aughts: the era of internet porn, celebrity tabloids, diet culture and the rise of the “mean girl” archetype.
I didn’t want to simply condemn these influences, but to break them open: to inspect them ruthlessly, poke fun at them, and also find space to empathise with my younger self inside of them.
Rip Her To Shreds blends dark comedy, horror and surrealism. How did you approach balancing these tones in both the writing and performance?
For me, the tones don’t really exist separately. They’re all emerging from the same emotional place.
The writing starts from something very grounded and recognisable, and then slowly stretches that reality until it becomes heightened, strange and sometimes unsettling.
I think of the comedy and horror as sitting very close to each other; both come from exaggeration, from taking something emotionally true and pushing it until it tips.
The characters develop supernatural powers as their rivalries intensify. What does this heightened element allow you to express that realism alone might not?
The supernatural element allows emotions that are often internal or socially suppressed to become visible and physical.
In everyday life, feelings like jealousy, rage, desire or shame are usually contained, redirected or made to feel private.
By giving the characters powers that emerge as their rivalries intensify, those inner states can finally take form in the world of the play.
This is your debut at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. What does bringing the show to this global platform mean to you at this stage in your career?
Bringing Rip Her To Shreds to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe feels like a major step in the life of this piece and in my practice more broadly.
It’s a show I’ve been developing for years, so to finally bring it to a global platform where it can meet such a wide and diverse audience feels both exciting and a little surreal.
What would you say to anyone thinking of booking to see Rip Her To Shreds?
Buckle your seatbelts for a wild ride!
