Theatre

How to find work at the Edinburgh Festival 2011

How to find a job at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2011

3 Jun 2011

Thousands of people descend upon Edinburgh at this time of year for the start of festival season and now is the time to begin your search for a job within the buzzing excitement. In a study carried out last year it found that 71% of volunteers had an…

Bard in the Botanics - 10 years of Glasgow’s outdoor Shakespeare festival

Artistic director Gordon Barr on 2011 anniversary programme

27 May 2011

Artistic director Gordon Barr reminisces about ten years of Glasgow’s outdoor Shakespeare festival and looks ahead to the anniversary programme with Steve Cramer It seems a little odd that we should think of Shakespeare played outdoors as a peculiar…

Pilrig Park School: Time

Dance piece from Edinburgh school for 11-18-year-olds with learning needs

27 May 2011

It’s a fact of life that audiences at the average school show will be comprised solely of the performers’ nearest and dearest. Unless, that is, your reputation precedes you – which is exactly what has happened to Pilrig Park, a secondary school for…

Generation

Glasgow theatre company Glas(s) Performance looks at the political views of today's teenagers

27 May 2011

Following swiftly on from a winter of discontent that was nowhere more pronounced than among our nation’s young people, comes a new show from Glasgow company Glas(s) Performance looking at the perspectives of today’s 17- and 18-year-olds on life, the…

Knives in Hens

Belgian theatremaker Lies Pauwels adapts David Harrower's pre-industrial drama

27 May 2011

Until a few months ago, Lies Pauwels had never read Knives in Hens, David Harrower’s pre-industrial tale of a woman’s progress from ignorance to literacy. Now, the Belgian theatremaker is directing a new National Theatre of Scotland production of the…

Spring Awakening

Frank Wedekind's controversial play given the music treatment by theatre company Sell a Door

27 May 2011

Frank Wedekind’s original German language play caused a stir throughout the early 1900s due to its hard-hitting themes and liberal attitudes towards the problems teenagers face growing up. The 2006 rock musical adaptation doesn’t stray far from this…

Dunsinane

Roxana Silbert's production of David Greig's play stars Jonny Phillips and Siobhan Redmond

27 May 2011

Much has been made of the parallels between David Greig’s depiction of 11th century Scotland and modern day Afghanistan in his audacious sequel to Shakespeare’s Macbeth. The tortuous relationship between conqueror and vanquished is certainly…

Entre Nous

A showcase of physical theatre by Adam Smith College diploma graduates

27 May 2011

Fife’s Adam Smith College has recently been criticised for the planned closure of its theatre arts courses but its Diploma in Physical Theatre, based in Glasgow, is in rude health as its graduation show Entre Nous will prove later this month. Now in its…

Barbara Rafferty discusses Lark, Clark and the Puppet Handy

The show also stars Sean Scanlan and Frank Gallagher

27 May 2011

What made you want to be an actor? My mother was a cinema usherette so I went to the movies and was hooked. It was another world I wanted to be a part of. First and foremost I am an actor but when I was asked to direct a show, My Name is Margaret…

Dead Man's Cell Phone

Director Stasi Schaeffer brings Sarah Ruhl's play to Scotland

27 May 2011

A women picks up a cell phone left in a diner, and, after realising that the man it belonged to has died, finds herself pulled into the world he left behind, reconciling fractured relationships and making her own connections along the way. Written by…

Edinburgh International Festival 2011 IN festival membership scheme

EIF and The List deal for half-price tickets, events and freebies

24 May 2011

Edinburgh International Festival - in association with The List magazine - are offering members of an innovative and exclusive membership scheme a whole host of half-price tickets, event passes and freebies for the 2011 Festival season. Membership to…

Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2011 - sneak preview

Liberace, Finnish a capella groups and iPad fairy tales just some of the coming attractions

23 May 2011

Whether it’s origami genitalia, homosexual deities or political commentary on the Lockerbie bombing, Edinburgh’s Fringe seldom arrives with a whimper but rather a ruddy great roar. June sees the official launch of 2011’s line-up, but we thought we…

Critics' Awards for Theatre in Scotland announce 2011 shortlist

Kate Dickie, David Birrell and David Greig feature on CATS 2011 shortlist

12 May 2011

Following an all-day meeting at the Royal Lyceum Theatre in Edinburgh, the CATS judges have revealed the hotly-anticipated shortlist for the ten categories of Scotland's leading theatre awards for 2010-11. A highlight of the Scottish theatre…

Festival of Museums set for nationwide celebration of Scotland’s culture in May 2011

Music, storytelling and period fashion among highlights of new festival

1 May 2011

From the Groam House Museum in Ross-shire and Portsoy Bothy in Banffshire, to the Annan Museum in Dumfries and Galloway, the Festival of Museums features an eclectic and colourful range of concerts, talks, workshops, performances and exhibitions taking…

Tony Cownie's production of Liz Lochhead's Educating Agnes bubbles with wit and charm

Peter Forbes, Mark Prendergast and Nicola Roy star

28 Apr 2011

There’s lots to enjoy in this revival of Liz Lochhead’s translation of Moliere’s L’ecole des femmes, but perhaps the greatest pleasure comes from the wit and dynamism offered by the text itself. A palpable sense of anticipation grips the audience as we…

Stage Whispers: playwright Nicola McCartney discusses her new play Miracle, staging as part of A Play, A Pie and A Pint

25 Apr 2011

What was the inspiration for your new play, Miracle? I have been thinking and writing a lot over recent years about real life icons, and who they were before they become who they became. I received an SAC Writer’s Bursary in 2005 to write the original…

Preview: Dennis Kelly's After the End to be staged by both the Citz and Dundee Rep

25 Apr 2011

When actors Jonathan Dunn and Nicola Daley take their final curtain call in June, they will say goodbye to After the End. But fear not. After the end of that After the End, it will be time for another After the End. That’s because, in a rare moment…

Rona Munro's rom-com-thriller Pandas features candid humour and fine performances but lacks focus

25 Apr 2011

Pandas set-up as a series of two-handers between seemingly disparate characters, all with a connection to tax-dodging businessman Andy (Keith Fleming), who imports rugs from China. When he’s shot in the backside and suffers a heart attack the main…

Easter Revelry event at Edinburgh Castle

Edinburgh Castle hosts a weekend of family events this Easter

21 Apr 2011

The Easter Revelry event at Edinburgh Castle takes place on Sat 23 - Mon 25 April, and includes historically-themed activities that'll appeal to all the family. Kramis the wizard will perform magic tricks to amuse and amaze you, while Sir Hugo Sofboiled…

Mayfesto to focus on Celtic nations for 2011

Playwrights David Harrower and David Ireland and director Leann O'Kasi share their views

20 Apr 2011

Last year’s inaugural Mayfesto – a theatre festival that aims to showcase politically-themed work at Glasgow’s Tron – took the problems of the Middle East as its overarching theme. This year, Artistic Director Andy Arnold has opted for a more local…

Jemima Levick and Jo Clifford adapt Tolstoy's Anna Karenina for the Dundee Rep

20 Apr 2011

Jemima Levick is what you might call a safe pair of hands – a fact borne witness to by a string of well-received shows at Dundee Rep and an armful of awards from her freelance days. Couple that reputation with a classic novel and a script by Jo Clifford…

Mark O'Rowe's lyrical and violent play Terminus to be revived at the Citz

The drama pairs Tarantino-esque clashes with rhyming monolgues

20 Apr 2011

Wondering what would happen if someone fell from one of the many construction cranes looming over Dublin at the time, writer/director Mark O’Rowe set himself a challenge by starting his play Terminus at the height of the action and let his imagination…

Tramway Family Day: Alice in Wonderland

The Glasgow arts venue celebrates Lewis Carrol's most famous creation

14 Apr 2011

When young Alice sips from a bottle marked ‘drink me’ in Lewis Carroll’s well-loved tale, Alice in Wonderland, a remarkable change occurs. Which is one of the reasons the team at Tramway was inspired to base its latest Family Day around this most…

Election night entertainment - Unholyrood, Welcome to the Hotel Caledonia and Mayfesto: It's a Dead Liberty!

13 Apr 2011

Perhaps injustices tend to hit harder when they’re closer to home; perhaps there’s just more meat; but periods of Tory government do tend to galvanize our satirists and create new relevance for political theatre. You may have noticed stirrings…

Bank of Scotland Imaginate Festival promises a quality homegrown line-up alongside the usual groundbreaking international work

13 Apr 2011

The Bank of Scotland Imaginate Festival has always featured quality children’s theatre from both home and abroad. But while international talent has never been in short supply, Scottish-based companies worthy of inclusion were initially thin on the…

Des Dillon-penned black comedy Six Black Candles is given a long overdue homeland revival

13 Apr 2011

First performed at Edinburgh’s Lyceum in 2004, Des Dillon’s Six Black Candles has not been back on home turf since, despite popularity further afield – and more’s the pity. Dillon, a sort of Bruce Springsteen figure of Scottish theatre, has a knack for…

Gillian Anderson terrified of theatre

Celebrity Gossip

2 Apr 2011

Gillian Anderson suffers panic attacks when on the stage. The 'X Files' actress - who has previously appeared in 'The Vagina Monologues' and 'A Doll's House' in London's West End - is keen to return to the theatre but finds the experience…

The reviewers reviewed: Theatre show Girl X

Who said what about NTS discourse on disability and sexuality

28 Mar 2011

National Theatre of Scotland's latest work is a discourse on disability and sexuality has its roots in reality (see our full review for more info). Here's what we and some of the other critics had to say about it. What we said: ‘Although the subject…

Top 5: Artists lending their talents to children's TV voice-overs

Featuring Derek Jacobi, Stephen Fry, Arthur Lowe and more

28 Mar 2011

Ah, the life of the serious actor. All that serious acting they have to do; all the line learning, the getting into character, the understanding and channelling of the character's emotional vulnerabilities and personality traits. Its enough to drive a…

Liz Lochead translation Educating Agnes explores universal themes

Scotland's Makar translates Moliere's The School for Wives into Scots

24 Mar 2011

Following on from the success of Tartuffe in 1985 and Miseryguts (nee The Misanthrope) in 2002, Scotland’s new makar Liz Lochhead will return once more here to translating the work of the 17th century French satirist Moliere into Scots, with the…

Philip Pullman's Clockwork adapted by Visible Fictions and Scottish Opera

Fairytale novel set for stage adaptation and Scottish tour

24 Mar 2011

When Visible Fictions’ and Scottish Opera’s re-working of Clockwork opens this month, it will be the fifth stage adaptation of the book in seven years. Philip Pullman’s fairytale novel, known for its complex story within a story, clearly lights a flame…

Edinburgh International Festival 2011 programme keeps an eye on the East

National Ballet of China, Ravi Shankar, Philip Glass among highlights

23 Mar 2011

The Scottish Chamber Orchestra raise the curtain of the 2011 Edinburgh International Festival in style this year with a performance Robert Schumann’s exotic musical Das Paradies und die Peri, one highlight from an EIF programme that boasts acts from…

New Scottish Ballet production Alice promises quirky vision

Sophie Martin leads Ashley Page-choreographed show

21 Mar 2011

Her career at Scottish Ballet reads like a little girl’s daydream. Marie in the Nutcracker, Aurora in Sleeping Beauty, and the ultimate rags to riches heroine in Cinderella – Sophie Martin has played them all. And that’s before we even get to her…

Entertaining production of Gagarin Way despite smothering political debate

Gregory Burke's blackly comic kidnap-gone-wrong thriller

21 Mar 2011

Playwright Gregory Burke may be best known for the endlessly garlanded Black Watch. But judging by the packed and noisily receptive crowd at the Brunton Theatre in mid-March, theatregoers also have fond memories of his debut, the blackly comic…

Profile: Choreographer Claire Cunningham

ME(Mobile/Evolution) is a double bill of two separate pieces

21 Mar 2011

What made you want to be a choreographer? I didn’t. It’s happened by accident! As I began to work in movement, images began to occur to me that I wanted to create, or ideas about trying new ways of using the crutches, or an unusual balance kept…

Shaun the Sheep goes solo in Shaun's Big Show

Author David Wood helps transition from screen to stage

21 Mar 2011

There’s no higher accolade for a character, then to get your own spin-off. Cheers led to Frasier, Friends to Joey, and Family Guy gave birth to The Cleveland Show. But who would have thought, when A Close Shave premiered in 1995, that a skinny legged…

Flawless: Chase the Dream expands dance routine to hour long show

Britain’s Got Talent finalist on UK tour

21 Mar 2011

In 2010, streetdance troupe Flawless went from 100m athletics to marathon men. Prior to their Edinburgh Festival Fringe show, Chase the Dream, they had only ever performed short sharp routines, in competitions, on the dance circuit and, of course, on…

Chouf Ouchouf, Zimmermann & de Perrot

Fusion of traditional and contemporary technique and design for over 7s

21 Mar 2011

The Groupe Acrobatique de Tanger are bringing a slice of Morocco to Stirling this month – perfect for those who need to be reminded of life beyond wellies and overcoats. While there is no story to follow in the traditional sense in Chouf Ouchouf, each…

Girl X highlights complex nature of disability sexuality debate

National Theatre of Scotland play succeeds despite dramatic limitations

18 Mar 2011

Girl X was inspired by the real-life case of a pre-pubescent girl with learning difficulties whose mother successfully sought legal approval to have her womb removed to spare her the discomfort of menstruation. The show’s creators Robert Softley and Pol…

Theatre writer and performer Clare Duffy's new show about money

Platform 18: Money - The Game Show

18 Mar 2011

What drew you to the subject of money for your new show? I was amazed by the enormity of the financial crisis in 2008. I hadn’t really realised before that money might actually stop working on a global scale. Of course I was glad that it didn’t! But it…

Mother Courage and Her Children

Birds of Paradise production of resonant Brecht classic

18 Mar 2011

The depressing thing about Brecht is that his plays never go out of date. At a time when Western governments stand accused of propping up corrupt dictatorships with a lucrative arms trade, his black comedic musical on the commodification of war and the…

Rona Munro’s play Pandas set for Traverse Spring Summer season

Romantic comedy explores links with China through three couples

18 Mar 2011

Just a few weeks after Rona Munro’s Pandas was revealed as part of the Traverse’s Spring Summer season, Edinburgh Zoo announced that it would soon be home to the first pair of giant pandas to live in the UK for 17 years. The timing may have been…

Ivan and the Dogs explores notion of feral children

Theatre piece based on true story of Ivan Mishukov

18 Mar 2011

You wait 18 months for a play about feral children, then two come along at once. Not since NIE’s My Life with the Dogs in the 2009 Edinburgh Fringe have we heard the true story of Ivan Mishukov, a four-year old boy from Moscow who lived with a pack of…

Six Black Candles revives adaptation of Des Dillon novel

Revenge story from writer of Singin’ I’m No’ a Billy, He’s a Tim

18 Mar 2011

'I see myself as the Bruce Springsteen of Scottish writers,’ says Des Dillon with a smile. ‘I write about a certain class of people – white trash, basically – and I write about them in simple language, using hardly any words to create powerful images.

Dancing at Lughnasa story of five sisters rural in 1936 Donegal

Citizens run marks 21st anniversary of Brian Friel's hit play

18 Mar 2011

When The Original Theatre Company’s version of Brian Friel’s Dancing at Lughnasa arrives at the Citizens Theatre in April, it will mark the 21st anniversary of its very first performance. ‘We hope that’s it’s going to really speak to people in Glasgow,…

Blood Brothers – review

X Factor alumnus Niki Evans a revelation in Willy Russell favourite

17 Mar 2011

Willy Russell’s long-running and popular musical about class, superstition and the nature/nurture debate has featured a host of sparkling chanteuses in the central role of Mrs Johnstone, notably Barbara Dixon, Carole King and four of the Nolan sisters.

Choreographer Janis Claxton on Humanimalia

An interview with the Australian choreographer

9 Mar 2011

What made you want to be a choreographer? I grew up running wild in the Australian bush and I was always dancing barefoot outdoors. I guess it was that connection with the wilderness and the land along with a need for emotional and creative release…

The Rise and Fall of Little Voice - review

Dundee Rep take on Jim Cartwright's play steps out of original's shadow

8 Mar 2011

Jim Cartwright’s 1992 play about a painfully shy girl who seeks refuge in – and displays an uncanny talent for mimicking – the voices of the great musical divas loved by her father, was created as a vehicle for the unique talents of actress Jane…

The rising stars of Scottish theatre

Interviews with Helen Darbyshire, Gary McNair, Gemma McElhinney, Katy Wilson and Scott Fletcher

7 Mar 2011

Helen Darbyshire Age: 22 Where will I know her from? She’s on Dundee Rep’s graduate scheme, which gives a year-long contract to promising actors straight out of college. Brought up in nearby Cupar, she introduced herself to Dundee audiences in a minor…

Classic World War I drama Journey’s End set for King’s Theatre

Director David Grindley on massive success of recent revival of play

7 Mar 2011

There’s a tunnel on the Canadian National Memorial site at Vimy Ridge in northern France that tries to give you an insight into the conditions soldiers would have gone through during World War I. Our tour group, a mixed bag of journalists and PRs, is…