A cabaret coup in Edinburgh

In 2011, for the first time ever, the Edinburgh Fringe programme includes a dedicated cabaret section. We asked some of the scene's finest performers - from Fringe virgins to veterans - what they're looking forward to about heading north this year. We took catching up with friends, the chance to wow potential backers, and flirting with bankruptcy and liver failure as givens…

Le Gateau Chocolat Aug 5-28
'I'll be offering laughter, tears, Lycra, assholism, joy, life-affirmation. Failing all of that? Entertainment and good music. I relish the delicate relationship one has with an alien audience who don't know you. They want to - hence their attendance - but you're still treading carefully so as not to lose them. Doing this 20 times and fine-tuning one's craft is exciting and scary. Not to mention damn Lycra zippers breaking or getting stuck…'

Scottee in 'Eat Your Heart Out' Aug 16-28
'Edinburgh is an extensive, expensive hangover that shows the world your ideas. We've got a mix of old and new - all the work is new, but we're running the show off a slide-projector and good old-fashioned magic. We're gritting our teeth about kabaret-shows-with-a-k that push white-faced Liza covers as political and think men in fishnets is gender roleplay.'

Camille O'Sullivan in 'Feel' Aug 3-29
'The Fringe is a reason to push yourself and create a new show (which can entail slowly losing your mind), get to grips with new songs and of course see other people's inspiring work. And the late nights out dancing that turn into early mornings… Edinburgh acts like a shop window to display your show - fingers crossed they like it and you can tour here or abroad.'

Dusty Limits in 'Darkling' Aug 22-27
'The Fringe has finally recognised that cabaret is a genre. It's marvellous because by alphabetical happenstance we come before comedy in the listings. This is as it should be. When I was listed in 'Comedy', I got sick of explaining to audiences that I'm not a stand-up and not all of the material in my show was going to be funny, in case they demanded their money back.'

EastEnd Cabaret in 'The Revolution Will Be Sexual' Aug 4-28
'We are very proud to be performing at our first Fringe in the same year that cabaret has gained its own section. We like to think of it as a sign that the world is ready for us. We have a novel strategy for flyering too: Victy will use her musical saw to take out the competition and Bernadette will throw handfuls of flyers into the air. Effective, don't you think?'

Piff the Magic Dragon in 'Last of the Magic Dragons' Aug 4-28
'The Fringe is where Piff really took off and it's where I found [my dog] Mr Piffles, so it's kind of become our spiritual home. Last year I did about 60 gigs in three and a half weeks. What's not to love about that? Well, there is cave lung: every time I go, I spend the next month coughing up unspeakable things. Dragons aren't used to it any more. We've evolved to appreciate things like heating and carpets.'

Sarah-Louise Young in 'Cabaret Whore: More! More! More!' Aug 4-28 and 'Fascinating Aida' Aug 3-29
'I first came to the Fringe as a student 16 years ago with a terrible show but fell utterly in love with the festival. The past two years have been entirely new shows, but we wanted to get the material seen by more folk as well as creating a new character, Baby Doll. I never take for granted the success of the show, and I find Edinburgh audiences discerning and demanding.'

Frisky & Mannish in 'Pop Centre Plus' Aug 3-28
'Edinburgh crowds will give everything a chance once, and then scream wildly and drag friends to the things that grab their imagination. Every year we get gorgeous new costumes made, and every year we dread the inevitable leaky dressing rooms once the August downpours begin. And let's not even get started on maintaining a hairdo in those conditions. We are looking forward to the fry-ups at City Restaurant. Oh, sweet Lord, the fry-ups at City Restaurant…'

Des O'Connor in 'The Bitch Doctors', 'Voodoo Revue' both Aug 3-28 and 'Vive Le Cabaret' Aug 3-29
'It used to be that if you wanted to appear in a late-night variety show and you weren't a stand-up comedian, you could forget it; I was bottled off stage in my first ever appearance at Late and Live! These days, cabaret is king - and the more exciting, original and challenging you can be, the more likely you are to be loved by the ever-more-discerning Edinburgh crowd.'

Tricity Vogue in 'The Blue Lady Sings Back' Aug 5-27 and 'Ukulele Cabaret' Aug 4-28
'Doing the Fringe is like taking a really good drug: a month goes by in no time at all, you have a vague sensation of having had the best time of your life, but you can't quite remember why, and at the end of it you're mysteriously thousands of pounds poorer. I've also learned that you have to work extra hard to win over an audience at the start of a show when you're not actually a natural human colour.'

For full listings of the Edinburgh Fringe 2011 see www.edfringe.com.

Ben Walters will be covering the Fringe from Fri Aug 12 to Thur Aug 18. Check the Cabaret homepage and follow him on Twitter @not_television.