Спектакль Patient 13 рассказывает историю женщины, прошедшей клинические испытания психоделиков после диагноза рака

Gail Thomas’ experiences of different doctors are so varied that you’d be forgiven for almost always wanting to seek a second opinion or even a third, on practically anything health related. For her, a psychedelic drug trial was quite irresistible. But she wasn’t sure if she would make the cut as the trial’s organisers were looking, as trial organisers often do, for participants who fit certain criteria – if someone is taking medication that is likely to mix badly with the drug(s) being trialled, for instance, it’s basically a given that person will be screened out. The recollection of events came across as quite scattered, yet nonetheless entertaining. Dare I say it, sitting through this show felt like Thomas had re-entered the psychedelic trial, in what became a thoroughly entertaining example of ‘show, don’t tell’. Then there’s Wes, someone she first met online before meeting for an in-person date. She kept mentioning this Wes guy. Clearly, he stuck around for some time. The prospect of getting magic mushrooms in a controlled environment left Thomas hoping, quite understandably, not to get the placebo. That much of the story is told as though she were having a psychedelic experience is both a blessing and a curse – the former, because, quite honestly, it’s very entertaining to watch, and the latter because one quickly realises that the said psychedelic episodes mean that not everything being recollected was necessarily as it was. Or, indeed, any of it. A charming and engaging experience. Review by Chris Omaweng Patient 13 is a rare and compelling first-hand account. After an unexpected cancer diagnosis, Gail Thomas was forced to rethink everything she knew about herself and the people around her. Surrounded by controlling men and grappling with a shifting identity, she became part of a groundbreaking US clinical study exploring psychedelics as treatment for mental health. Both astonishing and deeply relatable, the show traverses love, medical trauma and isolation, ultimately revealing how Gail finds a surprising sense of clarity through unorthodox means. Written and performed by Gail Thomas Directed by Dan Oliverio PATIENT 13 ZOO Playground at the Edinburgh Fringe 7 to 30 August 2026