The Second Best Show About a Reindeer You’ll See This Year

Gallop to see Elaine Malcolmson’s ‘Joik’ at the Edinburgh Fringe.

The Sami people — the Indigenous peoples inhabiting the region of Sápmi, encompassing large portions of northern Norway, Sweden, Finland, and the Kola Peninsula in Russia — have one thousand words for reindeers. Eaidánis, the reindeer who avoids others, goallá, the female reindeer who never gets antlers, and ruoššajievja, the fat reindeer with short legs.

Irish comedian Elaine Malcolmson expertly weaves these reindeer facts into a moving personal story of loss and hope in her new show at the Edinburgh Fringe, Joik. A “gentle show that aims to bring hope and solace to all,” Joik explores the power and complexity of human emotion, memory, and connection — all with the help of Malcolmson’s reindeer, Berlin.

“The show is a story of loss, grief, and comfort told with the help of a hardy Arctic mammal,” Malcolmson tells Mad Dyke Mag. “It’s probably the second best show about a reindeer that you’ll see this year!”

Feeling lost in the wake of her mother’s death during Covid, Malcolmson was gifted Berlin, who ended up being the best gift she’d ever receive. In Joik, the two follow an unlikely path from lost to found, while Malcolmson shares her observations on everything…