National Theatre of Scotland - Spring/ Summer 2012

APRIL TO AUGUST 2012

STAGING THE NATION AN APPOINTMENT WITH

THE WICKER MAN ONE DAY IN SPRING MACBETH 27 THE STRANGE UNDOING

OF PRUDENCIA HART THE LAST POLAR BEARS ENQUIRER THE MAKING OF US FIVE MINUTE THEATRE tfd REAL MEN DREAM IN BLACK AND WHITE EXCHANGE 2012 REVEAL

WELCOME TO THE @NTSONLINE WORLD OF YOUR NATIONAL THEATRE

WISH YOU COULD SEE HOW MUCH #ENQUIRER RESEARCH ASSISTANT DIRECTOR @DEBBIEHANNAN IS CURRENTLY PREPARING FOR VICKY & JOHN. #BESTHOMEWORKEVER @NTS_GILLY #MACBETH SOUNDS ACE. JUST WATCHED TOP QUALITY FOOTAGE FROM JOHN

WORKING ON THE EXCHANGE PROJECT WITH @NTSONLINE - LET @NTSONLINE'S THE CREATIVE JUICES FLOW! AWESOME! @EDIN_SUPERHERO #STAGINGTHENATION VARIETY/PANTO EVENT WITH @ALANCUMMING & CO WAS WARM, LIFEENHANCING, INSPIRING. #PROUDTOBEASCOT @ JANICEFORSYTH KNOX ACADEMY DRAMA STUDENTS ARE SUPER EXCITED TO BE

@NTSONLINE I'M ALL ABOUT #FIVEMINUTETHEATRE, #NTSCHAMPIONS, YOUNG ADVISORY GROUPS, DIGI POLAR BEARS, LIVE STREAMING AND GAMING #NTS2012 @NTS_MARIANNE

@NTS_ANNA AND I ARE IN TIMETABLE TURMOIL #NTSJUMP COMING SOON TO FIFE AND GLASGOW @NTS_KAREN

2

@NTSONLINE'S #BLACKWATCH @ BARBICANCENTRE MADE ME REALISE THAT THIS IS WHAT IS HAPPENING RIGHT NOW ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WORLD. INCREDIBLE @ALEXLEWER

I'M GETTING GADGET ENVY OVER THE NIFTY GEAR BROUGHT IN TO DOCUMENT THE #LASTPOLARBEARS BIKE TOUR! @NTS_EVE

GOODNIGHT #WICKERMAN YOU WERE GREAT FUN. THANKS TO ALL @HMT GREAT PLACE TO OPEN. @NTS_CHRIS

@NTSONLINE @EDFRINGE SO SO SO LOVED THE STRANGE UNDOING OF PRUDENCIA HART. SUBLIME! #BEGBORROWSTEALATICKET @SCAMPTHEATRE

#FIVEMINUTETHEATRE LIVING UP TO YOUR TAGLINE NTS, THIS IS THEATRE WITHOUT WALLS AND ROOFS THE SKY'S THE LIMIT. AMAZING X @GALLUSGIRL

#DUNSINANE A HARD STORY, TOLD SOFTLY. JUST BEAUTIFUL. @STEWARTATATTUNE

HAVE JUST EMERGED SLIGHTLY DISCOMBOBULATED BUT THOROUGHLY ENTERTAINED BY @NTSONLINE'S #PRUDENCIAHART AT #LATITUDE! @EXEUNTMAG

TIFFANY AND ANDY GOLDBERG'S TRAVELS TO THE BLACK ISLE THIS WEEK. @ NTS_MARIANNE

#EXCHANGE2012. THE ONE WEEK OF THE YEAR I LOOK FORWARD TO MORE THAN CHRISTMAS. 8 NEW SHOWS, WORKSHOPS GALORE, WHAT’S NOT TO LOOK FORWARD TO! @NTS_GILLIAN

AN EXCELLENT DESIGN MEETING TODAY FOR MACBETH. MANAGED TO SQUEEZE IN A BIT OF WORK ON A FEW OTHER PROJECTS AS WELL. 2012 IS GOING TO BE BUSY @NTS_NIALL

HAS THE @NTSONLINE SET UP A HELP LINE FOR RECOVERING #FIVEMINTUTETHEATRE ADDICTS? IF NOT, WHY NOT? @MARKFFISHER

LIFEGUARD IN THE GOVANHILL BATHS IS GOING TO BE SOMETHING SPECIAL – GREAT TO SEE THE POOLS FINALLY BACK IN ACTION! #NTS2012 @NTS_MICHAEL

IS THERE A CLASSIER BIGGERHEARTED DIRECTOR THAN VICKY F? JUST OUT OF THE WHEEL. PROUD TO BE STAGE-SHARING WITH @ NTSONLINE @TRAVERSETHEATRE @JOHN_NTW

LOVED ROBERT SOFTLY IN GIRL X FROM @NTSONLINE AND HOW THE ONSTAGE HIM WENT DEEPER AND DEEPER INTO WHAT WE GOES BACK IN ITS BOX MIGHT THINKING ABOUT HIM. #BEAUTIFULBURNOUT TIL NEXT TIME. IT'S BEEN A TREAT TO TOUR. THANKS SYDNEY, PERTH & WELLINGTON! @ GREAT. @YAMLEY NTS_JESS 3

BLIPFOTO

The National Theatre of Scotland is proud to be collaborating once again with Blipfoto, whose members have provided the fantastic images for the cover-wrap and all illustrations for this brochure.

Blipfoto is a daily photo blogging community and digital success story. Starting in Edinburgh, Blipfoto is now a truly global community with pictures being posted from over 170 countries worldwide.

Members post one photo a day to the site and invite responses from their fellow community of “blippers”. Blipfoto won the 2009 BAFTA Scotland Award for Best Website, and topped The List’s celebration of the best Scottish websites of 2011.

You can see all these images and sign up to the Blipfoto community at www.blipfoto.com

PRESENTED BY THE NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND stagingthenation.com PRESS REVIEWS "Staging The Nation is about trying to achieve a more coherent picture of the developments that have really mattered in the story of Scottish theatre. . . If future events can come anywhere near replicating the thrill of this one, then by the end of the year Scotland's sense of its own theatrical tradition will have been enriched beyond measure."

THE SCOTSMAN * * * * * on The Traverse, New Writing and How it Changed the World “Superbly curated by director Graham McLaren and 7:84 and Wildcat veteran David MacLennan, now the producer of the Play, Pie and Pint seasons at Òran Mór, who put together the series of three-minute live interventions from a huge range of current Scottish theatre artists that gave the whole evening such a sharp creative edge.”

THE SCOTSMAN * * * * on Thorn In Their Side: Nursing the Thistle of Scottish Political Theatre TWITTER @NTSonline's #stagingthenation variety/panto event with @Alancumming & co was warm, lifeenhancing, inspiring. #ProudToBeAScot from @janiceforsyth #stagingthenation last night was inspirational.

It really reminded me of the importance of combining theatre and activism #theatre #politics from @camillaborn Superb #StagingTheNation last night. Scottish political theatre in theory & practice. The thistle has landed! @NTSonline from @thomdibdin #stagingthenation @nts_gilly

4

STAGING THE NATION A CONVERSATION ABOUT THEATRE IN SCOTLAND

STAGING THE NATION IS THE NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND’S ONGOING CONVERSATION ABOUT SCOTTISH THEATRE. Through staged readings, live discussions, online debates, even a play-reading group, the programme celebrates the vitality and variety of the country’s theatre tradition while looking towards the next generation of artists to take it forward. Staging the Nation takes the conversation about theatre beyond the industry.

The programme began in March 2011 with the reunion of the cast and production crew of John Byrne’s Slab Boys Trilogy, thirty three years after the Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh introduced a vigorous new approach to drama. Since then, Staging the Nation has sketched out a history of Scottish theatre in a year packed with highlights. Paul Henderson Scott and David Greig teased out a definition of Scottish theatre in a live discussion on the stage of the Lyceum, Edinburgh. David MacLennan hosted a night of politics, conversation and performances at Holyrood from a cross-generational group of theatre makers. Alan Cumming presented a quick-fire history of the variety tradition at the King’s, Glasgow. Nicola McCartney’s Tramway 1990 event reflected on how one venue introduced the great names of European theatre to Glasgow.

Staging the Nation is part audience engagement, part building of communities, part questioning of the role theatre plays in building a national identity. As well as the live events, there is a monthly play-reading group, readings of favourite Scottish plays by contemporary playwrights and regular live online debates – all part of a process that engages the audience in discussions around what constitutes Scottish theatre: the more people are involved, the more supportive and responsive the project can be.

“A bigger audience tends to become self-regulating,” says Gilly Roche, Producing Associate within the Artistic Development department. “The website, particularly the live online discussions, allows people to have wider conversations with each other, rather than just leaving comments. It’s a safer, more generous place for sharing ideas about theatre. It makes the dialogue more robust, more intelligent and hopefully more enduring.”

The dedicated website – stagingthenation.com – is a way to further this engagement. “National Theatre of Scotland Artistic Director Vicky Featherstone and Associate Director Graham McLaren said they wanted the website to be like a living book,” says Roche. “It’s a place where things can be recorded – sometimes for the first time.”

Linking the readings of classic plays to modern technology has helped rescue works almost lost. “When we staged a reading of Gay Landscape by George Munro at the Citizens Theatre last year,” explains Roche, “all we had was a single tea-stained, typed copy, which we had to transcribe. Now it exists digitally.”

The range of events and contributors to Staging the Nation emphasises that Scotland’s dramatic legacy is in good hands, and that the makers of the future are still inspired by the voices of the past. Whether recalling the impact of The Slab Boys or encouraging new artists to challenge the way that plays can be made, Staging the Nation is at once a salute to tradition and encouragement for its continued evolution.

5

APPOINTMENT WITH THE WICKER MAN

A NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND PRODUCTION BASED ON THE MOTION PICTURE THE WICKER MAN, THE MOTION PICTURE SCREENPLAY BY ANTHONY SHAFFER AND THE NOVEL RITUAL BY DAVID PINNER AND BY SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT WITH STUDIOCANAL

A

TITLE

‘THE WICKER MAN’ COMPOSED BY PAUL GIOVANNI © STUDIOCANAL (P) CANAL+IMAGE UK LTD ASSEMBLY ROOMS EDINBURGH FESTIVAL FRINGE 6th to 28th AUGUST 2012

WRITTEN BY GREG HEMPHILL AND DONALD MCLEARY DIRECTED BY VICKY FEATHERSTONE

PRESS REVIEWS “With a fine band of actors – Jimmy Chisholm is nimble and droll, and Johnny McKnight gloriously camp – every line-up and chorus is exquisitely drilled, and every innuendo wrung dry. A frightening joy is in the air.”

THE OBSERVER

“SCOTLAND’S AUDIENCES DEMAND TO BE ENTERTAINED,” SAYS NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND ARTISTIC DIRECTOR, VICKY FEATHERSTONE."

“A hilarious romp that pays homage to the cult film The Wicker Man. . . A strong ensemble cast led by Greg Hemphill keep this high energy production moving and the jokes flowing.”

THE STAGE

Appointment with The Wicker Man draws on Scotland’s most creative performers and the country’s proud tradition of work that is popular and serious – and in this case, funny and frightening. A popular hit with audiences around the country at the beginning of the year, the show returns in the summer with a month long run at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

Respected as a cult classic, The Wicker Man is widely regarded as one of British cinema’s greatest horror stories. Imagining a Scottish island community in thrall to a charismatic leader and embracing the rites and rituals of paganism, it combined pastoral charm with a brutal, terrifying finale. It has since inspired an annual music festival, a book and a documentary about the bizarre off-stage dramas that surrounded the film’s production and distribution – even an unconvincing Hollywood remake. Now, in the hands of Director Vicky Featherstone and writers Greg Hemphill and Donald McLeary, The Wicker Man’s legend has provided the foundation for a theatrical horror comedy.

“It’s really hard to put an understanding of a film on stage if you are just going to adapt the whole thing,” says Featherstone. “And everyone knows he gets burned at the end! A couple of us came up with the idea that the way to put The Wicker Man on stage would to get a group of amateur players to be trying to stage it. This has allowed us to deconstruct the film and reconstruct it as theatre.”

Greg Hemphill and his writing partner Donald McLeary were the natural next ingredients. “I’ve wanted to work with Greg for ages,” says Featherstone. “I approached him and asked if he would write it and be in it. And he told me The Wicker Man was his favourite film!”

As the National Theatre of Scotland’s Artistic Director, Featherstone has directed a number of major productions for the Company, including, most recently, The Wheel and 27 (see page 11). “I often end up directing dark pieces”, she says, “but my personality is much more giddy – this is a real joyous luxury. There’s nothing better than that feeling of being in a big audience and being swept along by the wave of comedy, horror and thrilling stories.”

While Hemphill is best known as a comic writer and performer, in his TV comedies Still Game and Chewin' the Fat for example, he now finds himself following Christopher Lee’s iconic portrayal of Lord Summerisle. Other cast members, including Jimmy Chisholm, Johnny McKnight, Sally Reid, Raul Riley and Sean Biggerstaff, have been selected with equal attention to their comic acting abilities.

With one eye on the audience and the other on finding original approaches, If The Wicker Man has become one of the great films set in Scotland, the stage show captures an energy unique to Scottish theatre. Featherstone concludes that “The cast all come from that extraordinary thing in Scotland: there’s a genuine generosity and a fearsome talent.

When you combine those two things, it’s a brilliant experience for an audience!”

TWITTER Was out seeing The Wicker Man play with my friend Paul Marsh. It was brilliant, really just laugh laugh laugh all the way through. from @frankieboyle Been watching @greghemphill69 in Appointment with The Wicker Man. Brilliant stuff! Greg, that moustache on you is a thing of manly beauty! from @des_clarke 5 star review for The Wicker Man play in Glasgow. Well done @greghemphill69 and @vicfeatherstone. Truly awesome. from @mrmarkmillar LOVED Appointment with The Wicker Man. Like an adult panto. Silly, funny, weird and cannot stop humming the songs... from @kirstycooke1 At An Appointment with The Wicker Man. Original film director robin hardy is on the end of our row.

Seems to be enjoying it...as are we! from @Polliemac #wickerman @lochparryplayer @vicfeatherstone

Supported by Bank of Scotland Pioneering Partnership

Image courtesy Teleri Williams, D'aici enfora/ Blipfoto

6

APPOINTMENT WITH

THE WICKER MAN 7

ONE DAY IN SPRING

THE NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND IN ASSOCIATION WITH ÒRAN MÓR ÒRAN MÓR, GLASGOW 16th APRIL to 26th MAY 2012 TRAVERSE THEATRE, EDINBURGH 24th APRIL to 2nd JUNE 2012 COULD YOU PLEASE LOOK INTO THE CAMERA WRITTEN BY MOHAMMAD AL-ATTAR DIRECTED BY CATRIN EVANS

A SEASON OF NEW WORK FROM THE ARAB WORLD

DEAR GLASGOW LETTERS FROM SEVEN WRITERS FROM THE ARAB WORLD DIRECTED BY DAVID MACLENNAN HADDA AND HASSAN LEKLICHES! WRITTEN BY JAOUAD ESSOUNANI DIRECTED BY BEN HARRISON

RECENTLY CELEBRATING ITS 250TH PRODUCTION, A PLAY, A PIE AND A PINT AT GLASGOW'S ÒRAN MÓR HAS BECOME ONE OF SCOTLAND’S MOST POPULAR THEATRE DESTINATIONS. David Greig is one of Scotland’s most prolific playwrights, fearlessly crossing boundaries of genre and creating works already acknowledged as modern classics. The Arab Spring of 2011 was a beacon of revolutionary hope in a bleak political climate. For One Day in Spring, they come together for a season that combines the political with the personal, giving newly commissioned and existing plays weekly runs at both Òran Mór and the Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh.

"In spring last year, we presented a short season of six contemporary plays from Latin America in partnership with the National Theatre of Scotland,” says David MacLennan, the producer of A Play, A Pie and A Pint. “At the very moment we opened the first play, the events in Tahrir Square in Cairo began and Vicky Featherstone and I decided that our next season together should be plays from the Arab world.”

Enlisting David Greig as curator, who has spent over a decade working with fellow playwrights in the Middle East, and building the programme around a central event, an hour long collection of twenty four scenes from twenty four young Middle Eastern writers, ensures that the range of drama being created in the Arab world is well represented.

One Day in Spring aims to capture the intelligence and energy of the generation behind the uprisings in the Middle East, and includes authors from Damascus, Beirut and Rabat. For Greig, the season is more than just a compilation of political plays.

His own close association with artists in Syria and Egypt has made him aware that while writers are often activists, they are far more than mere commentators on the regimes and revolutions around them. “The plays are not all directly about politics, but they all reflect on it,” he insists. “The play from Lebanon is a dark comedy, the play from Morocco is very funny.”

This diversity of genre is important to Greig’s curation. “Otherwise we fall into another cliché of saying everything is all about a particular horror.” And while the Arab Spring grabbed headlines around the world, Greig continues, “What is amazing about the plays is that they have humour, wit and lightness.”

Mohammed al-Attar, author of Could You Please Look Into the Camera, sees the political and the theatrical as intertwined. “I believe theatre is political by default. Even if you are not trying, it will be there,” he says. His own plays may use current events, but are not simplistic reportage. His approach perfectly encapsulates the attitude of the season’s ambitions. “Even if it’s about daily life, every drama text is talking about the social and economic context in some way or another. I’m not saying that it should carry a political meaning, but propaganda isn’t what I want to write at all: I just want to write a piece of good drama.”

DAMASCUS ALEPPO WRITTEN BY ABDULLAH ALKAFRI DIRECTED BY PHILIP HOWARD SLEEPING BEAUTY INSOMNIA WRITTEN BY ABDEL RAHIM AL-AWJI DIRECTED BY GRAHAM EATOUGH ONE DAY IN SPRING CURATED AND DIRECTED BY DAVID GREIG ÒRAN MÓR BRASSERIE: ARABIAN NIGHTS EVERY TUESDAY, 17 APRIL – 22 MAY, from 6.30pm AN EVENING OF FOOD, POETRY, MUSIC AND CONVERSATION FROM THE ARAB WORLD. MAYFESTO TRON THEATRE, GLASGOW 4th & 5th MAY 2012 NO TIME FOR ART

BY LAILA SOLIMAN & MUSTAFA SAID A SERIES OF DOCUMENTARY PERFORMANCES ADDRESSING POLICE AND MILITARY VIOLENCE IN EGYPT TODAY. TWITTER #onedayinspring

Image courtesy Helen Bailey, Egypt Unveiled/ Blipfoto

8

MACBETH

A NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND PRODUCTION TRAMWAY, GLASGOW 15th to 30th JUNE 2012 LINCOLN CENTER FESTIVAL, NEW YORK CITY 5th to 14th JULY 2012

A CO-PRODUCTION BETWEEN THE NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND AND THE ROYAL LYCEUM THEATRE, EDINBURGH

27

CITIZENS THEATRE, GLASGOW 17th to 26th MAY 2012 CAMBRIDGE ARTS THEATRE 6th to 10th JUNE 2012 FURTHER DATES TO BE ANNOUNCED

BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE FEATURING ALAN CUMMING DIRECTED BY JOHN TIFFANY AND ANDREW GOLDBERG

WRITTEN BY ABI MORGAN. DIRECTED BY VICKY FEATHERSTONE.

THIS IS A CHANCE FOR SCOTTISH AUDIENCES TO SEE AN INTERNATIONAL STAR UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL.

WHEN 27 OPENED AT THE ROYAL LYCEUM THEATRE, EDINBURGH, IN 2011, IT WAS PRAISED FOR ITS SENSITIVE PORTRAYAL OF FAITH AND AGEING.

The re-uniting of Alan Cumming with Director John Tiffany is a thrilling prospect.

After their bold re-imagining of Euripides’ The Bacchae for the Edinburgh International Festival in 2007 (winning a Herald Angel for Cumming), their production of a oneman Macbeth is determined to be both a vehicle for Cumming’s talent and a bold interpretation of ‘the Scottish Play’.

Alongside co-director Andrew Goldberg, an acknowledged Shakespeare expert, they have evolved a radical reading of Macbeth: Cumming plays multiple roles through the persona of a man trapped in a secure psychiatric unit, experiencing the horrors of a fugue psychological state.

This one-man Macbeth unearths a theatrical immediacy and vibrancy while holding onto the powerfully emotive language of Shakespeare. It merges two extremes of contemporary theatre: the glamorous and the intimate. Already, it has captured the popular imagination.

“As the public comes to know more and more about me personally, I find it really interesting and try to exploit that in the theatre,” says Cumming. “It has blurred the line between reality and the character on stage, and makes the audience more emotionally connected. People knowing about me has created a level of excitement about the project: I’ve had tabloid television shows asking about it!” he says. “It excites me that the play has become an event.”

The eclecticism of Cumming’s career – he frequently recharges his batteries by finding different roles, turning to writing and other work – means that his return to his homeland, “playing the King of Scotland and every single character, makes it become this whole other thing,” he laughs.

Cumming’s restless creativity is matched by Tiffany’s passion for new approaches to theatre: his direction of the multi-award winning Black Watch proved that serious theatre could be accessible and successful.

Tiffany and Cumming are both fulfilling personal enthusiasms. “Even though it's a twisted version, I want the audience to feel as if they’ve never seen the play before,” Cumming says. John Tiffany acknowledges that “it scratches another itch I have: to create a piece of theatre people are almost too scared to go to.”

Through state-of-the-art projections, Tiffany taps into his love of the horror film: “psychological horror especially, and from The Blair Witch Project onwards, this use of video footage: it’s Macbeth meets Paranormal Activity. CCTV surveillance can show things that aren’t necessarily seen by the naked eye.”

By taking on the diverse roles within Macbeth, Cumming is using inspiration he found in performing cabaret and stand-up comedy. Discovering a freedom and the courage to break down the fourth wall between audience and actor, he has developed a passion for theatrical immediacy. “Increasingly, my journey as an actor has been more and more about stripping it down and making a connection with the audience,” he says.

As Cumming promises, “It is going to be big and personal.”

27 is a new play by BAFTA-award winning writer Abi Morgan, her first work for the National Theatre of Scotland. Morgan is perhaps best known for her screenplays for The Iron Lady (for which Meryl Streep recently won an Academy Award for her portrayal of Margaret Thatcher) and Shame (directed by Steve McQueen and starring Michael Fassbender). Her recent television series The Hour was a huge hit on BBC2 in 2011 and has been commissioned for a second series. Her plays include Skinned, Sleeping Around, Tiny Dynamite and Lovesong.

Inspired by David Snowdon’s book Aging with Grace, which looked at how scientists studied elderly nuns to try to isolate the cause of Alzheimer's Disease, Morgan conjured a dignified story of humility, duty, and passion. Vicky Featherstone’s direction emphasised the universality of the challenges faced by these remarkable women.

"There are times in everyone’s life,” says Morgan, “whether you’re a scientist, or an artist, or someone who has dedicated their life to God – when you’re not sure that you are ever going to find results, when you doubt that what you believe in is ever going to be proven. There’s a philosophical relation there that transcends whether you are a nun, or a scientist. We all have to have faith.”

Morgan’s depiction of a nun experiencing a crisis of faith and an American epidemiologist questioning science’s relationship to business avoids lazy stereotypes: the predictable battle between religion and reason is replaced by a subtle romanticism and a bold acceptance of the nun’s vocation. The growing attraction between Sister Ursula and Dr Garfield draws out a different tension, between the nun’s desire to emulate her teacher and the epidemiologist’s quest for truth.

Sister Ursula, brought to vibrant life by Maureen Beattie, carries much of 27’s emotional punch. Aware that she represents a dream case study for the scientists, the character finds herself emotionally compromised. While other sisters are either resistant to the scientists’ rejection of miracles – even when they see evidence – or simply excited by the presence of outsiders, Ursula struggles to contain her love for Dr Garfield against her duty to the convent.

Morgan’s sensitivity to the dignity of her characters, and ability to express nuanced love, generates a series of complex moral dilemmas that are never melodramatic or comfortably concluded. Religion and science are both exposed as flawed, but valuable: art provides some redemption while the battle between opposing world views is not so much Christian against atheist but integrity against compromise.

27 does not so much challenge ideas about ageing as examine the impact of old age on a community. It renegotiates the relationship between science and religion, by presenting both as attempts to make sense of the world’s apparent emptiness and horror: yet above all, it shows compassion for the characters who struggle to find meaning as they serve others.

TWITTER #NTSMacbeth @alancumming @glasgowtramway

"Deep emotional resonance . . . invites reflection, and certainly deserves rewatching."

EVENING NEWS * * * * "Spellbindingly good."

THE HERALD * * * * "A lively staging."

THE GUARDIAN * * * * TWITTER @lyceumtheatre Saw 27 over the weekend awesome show. Thought provoking and a beautiful set. Loved it. from @scotsmo @lyceumtheatre @NTSonline Very thoughtprovoking show. Molly Innes always joy to watch from @cazdarkly #27play @lyceumtheatre

Image courtesy Chris O'Sullivan, Acronymphobia/ Blipfoto

10

PRESS REVIEWS "A masterful piece of new theatre, dense with ideas, jumping with funny lines."

THE INDEPENDENT * * * *

Image courtesy Sarah Lister, The Wheel World/ Blipfoto

11

THE STRANGE UNDOING OF PRUDENCIA HART

A NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND PRODUCTION

A NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND EXPERIMENT IN CARBON-LITE THEATRE

TOURING THROUGHOUT 2012 PLEASE CHECK WEBSITE FOR DETAILS

TOURING SCHOOLS FROM 8th MAY 2012

THE LAST POLAR BEARS

nationaltheatrescotland.com

CREATED BY DAVID GREIG AND WILS WILSON WRITTEN BY DAVID GREIG

FROM THE NOVEL BY HARRY HORSE ADAPTED AND DIRECTED BY JOE DOUGLAS

THE STRANGE UNDOING OF PRUDENCIA HART GOES BACK OUT ONTO THE ROAD FOR A MAJOR UK AND INTERNATIONAL TOUR IN 2012.

THE LAST POLAR BEARS IS BOTH AN ADAPTATION OF THE CHILDREN’S ADVENTURE TALE BY HARRY HORSE AND AN EXAMPLE OF HOW THEATRE CAN BACK UP POLITICAL RHETORIC THROUGH THE PROCESS OF CREATION.

By taking theatre into the pubs, bars and festivals of the nation and beyond, 2012’s tour is the inevitable response to the show’s incredible popularity and overwhelming public demand.

Taking inspiration from the stories of the Border Ballads, the verbal jousting of academics, the redemptive power of partying, and the combined forces of Scottish folk music and Kylie Minogue dance-floor fillers, The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Hart enjoyed five star reviews, a triumphant tour and a sell-out fringe run in 2011.

The story begins with a couple of academics who get involved in a serious drinking and karaoke session after they become snowed in after a conference. Since much of the play’s action is set in a bar the audience is part of the spectacle, often singing along and even providing props for the players. This informal but energised atmosphere suits David Greig and Wils Wilson’s witty production, which manages to satirise pretentious academia, update a classic folk narrative, give sympathy for the devil and reveal the heroic qualities hidden beneath brash machismo.

Alasdair Macrae – composer, performer and musician – is no stranger to bars.

“Most of my gigs are in folk clubs, bars, after-hours gin joints and the like,” he says. For him, the 2011 tour was a unique experience. “To get that mixture of gig raucousness and theatre attentiveness is a treat.” Since the structure of Prudencia is influenced by the informality of the folk session, with a little break for a dram of Benromach whisky Macrae’s energetic compositions matched David Greig’s robust rhymes to conquer even the toughest crowd.

“The intimacy of the venues generally worked in the show’s favour,” says Macrae.

“Even during the Fringe run, the in-the-round staging and use of people's tables, drinks, and bodies as props made it feel like a tiny wee bar in the Borders.”

Macrae’s compositions and musical arrangements – performed live by the versatile cast – make easy companions of folk and pop music; Greig’s clever script brings the Border Ballads to vibrant, contemporary life. Together, these elements make Prudencia Hart unique in style, subject and sensitivity. “The form of the show brought a lot of goodwill from the audience,” concludes Macrae.

From its preview at Brechin’s Bar in Govan – which Macrae remembers as an “adrenaline-fuelled onslaught” – to the appearance at Latitude music festival in the south of England, Prudencia Hart has taken the National Theatre of Scotland to places where theatre doesn’t usually go.

This year sees the show, with its original cast, tour to venues every bit as eclectic, from village halls to concert halls, and takes the show out of Scotland once again, for a week at the Brighton Festival in May, with international dates being pencilled for later in the year.

PRESS REVIEWS “You shouldn’t miss this show for the world… rambunctiously life-affirming and touchingly beautiful” THE HERALD * * * * * “Terrific performances by the five-strong cast of actor musicians.”

THE TIMES * * * * * “More vibrantly alive than any piece of theatre I’ve seen in Scotland for years.”

THE SCOTSMAN * * * * TWITTER @NTSonline @edfringe so so so LOVED The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Hart. Sublime! #begborrowstealaticket from @scamptheatre The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Hart is a thing of wondrous beauty and the best theatre production I have ever seen in my life. #edfringe from @reinikainen TWITTER #PrudenciaHart Sponsored by Benromach

Image courtesy Lee Carson, Ferinus vis quod ignarus/ Blipfoto

12

TWITTER #LastPolarBears

“I wanted to explore ideas around climate change,” says director Joe Douglas. “I was interested in doing a tour in which the actors travelled between venues by bicycle.

If the science is even half right, it is the defining issue our generation faces.”

Harry Horse was a multi-faceted artist – a writer, illustrator and musician – whose work combined a sense of political and moral outrage with a keen sense of humour and a unique personal touch. He wrote a number of celebrated books for children, including The Last Polar Bears, first published in 1993. While the show is adapted from the book, the tour was inspired by Douglas’s belief that theatre can grapple seriously with environmental issues

“That came first,” says Douglas, “the idea of touring a show across Scotland which, in its very form, engages with climate change.” That the story concerns a grandfather’s journey to the North Pole adds a poetic resonance to the cast’s own journey across Scotland. Once Douglas had decided to adapt the novel, the parallels between his ideas for a meaningful engagement with climate change and the grandfather’s desire to see polar bears in their real habitat became clearer.

The novel quickly became the source for much of the show’s style. “The illustrations in the book inspired the aesthetic of the production – the sense of a storybook quality, the feeling of a children’s book opening up.” says Douglas. Even the travel equipment has taken cues from Horse’s book. “The idea is that everything we need for the show will be contained in one of the trailers. The illustrations in the book show the dog, Roo, pulling this kind of buggy up a hill. I am hoping to create a trailer shaped like a golf buggy that you can attach to the back of the bike.”

The team will be performing in daylight, touring to schools in Ayrshire, Dumfries and Galloway, the Borders and East Lothian, carrying the set, costumes, props, plus all personal clothing and accessories with them. Setting out from Glasgow, the team will travel over 300 miles by bicycle. The show’s 'carbon-lite' touring credentials are bolstered by sourcing reconditioned bikes from cycling charity, The Bike Station. A set of bespoke pannier bags, made from recycled National Theatre of Scotland advertising banners, has been created by Glasgow bag makers, Trakke.

The drama of The Last Polar Bears is as much about the way it is being created as the performances themselves. Douglas is hoping to use his travels “to take the temperature, as it were, of how people are feeling about climate change.” Throughout the tour, he will be conducting interviews and research as well as passing on a serious message to children through workshops. In a production that includes aspects of storytelling, comedy – especially from the grandfather’s canine companion – and puppetry, the seriousness of Douglas’ intention is balanced by a sense of wonder, fantasy and fun.

Image courtesy Gittan Sundin, Miss R Able/ Blipfoto

13

ENQUIRER

THE NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE LONDON REVIEW OF BOOKS THE HUB AT PACIFIC QUAY PACIFIC DRIVE GLASGOW, G51 1EA 26th APRIL to 13th MAY 2012 8pm LONDON (venue to be confirmed) IN ASSOCIATION WITH THE BARBICAN 3rd to 20th October 2012

COMMISSIONED BY GLASGOW INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL OF VISUAL ART. CO-PRESENTED BY THE NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND SUPPORTED BY A CREATIVE SCOTLAND VITAL SPARK AWARD.

THE MAKING OF US

TRAMWAY, GLASGOW EXHIBITION: 20th APRIL to 6th MAY 2012 Closed Mondays

EDITED AND DIRECTED BY VICKY FEATHERSTONE AND JOHN TIFFANY CO-EDITED BY ANDREW O’HAGAN BASED ON INTERVIEWS BY PAUL FLYNN, DEBORAH ORR AND RUTH WISHART

CO-CREATED BY GRAHAM EATOUGH (THEATRE DIRECTOR) AND GRAHAM FAGEN (VISUAL ARTIST) WITH MICHAEL MCDONOUGH (DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY)

ONCE UPON A TIME, THE PRESS WAS A RESPECTED INSTITUTION. THE “FOURTH ESTATE” EXISTED TO UPHOLD FREEDOM OF SPEECH, TO REPORT INDEPENDENTLY BUT CRITICALLY ON MATTERS OF STATE, TO BE A VOICE FOR DEMOCRACY, TO BRING WORLD ISSUES INTO CLEARER FOCUS, BE A FORCE FOR POSITIVE CHANGE.

THE MAKING OF US BLURS THE LINES BETWEEN PERFORMANCE AND VISUAL ART IN A CONTINUING EXPLORATION OF HOW THEATRE CAN BE ENHANCED BY LOOKING TO OTHER ART FORMS.

Yet over the last decade, increasing competition from the internet and rolling TV news has pushed the medium into a struggle for its continued survival. As costs soar and circulations fall, the press has struggled to retain its democratic function inits fight for readers. It isn’t so much that Enquirer is dealing with a crisis in print media: it has a variety of crises to select.

For the National Theatre of Scotland’s John Tiffany and Vicky Featherstone, the crisis had a personal, as well as public context. “We have great friends who are journalists,” says Tiffany. “And when we are at the point in our careers where we are now getting to do what we wanted to do, some of these brilliant people who went into journalism are asking ‘where am I going to go now: there is no future in this!’”

“What excites us about Enquirer,” says Tiffany, “is actually speaking to some of the journalists that we’d had these conversations with, as well as others for whom we have huge admiration. The whole point of the National Theatre of Scotland doing this is that we’ll be finding the musical, physical and theatrical ways to communicate what we discover.”

The phone hacking scandal did more than undermine public trust in journalism. As Tiffany realises, it brought questions into focus that “have always been around about tabloid journalism and the lengths to which some hacks will go to get a story and what some proprietors will do to sell newspapers.” But Tiffany also noticed that, within journalism, “it seemed to crumble the people around me: there’s a deep sense of shame at their profession, asking how did it get so far down this road?”

The National Theatre of Scotland has responded by curating a series of conversations and interviews by journalists into an ambitious piece of verbatim theatre set in a disused office. Featherstone and Tiffany aim to go beyond the headlines and express something of the anxiety that bedevils the press.

Enquirer draws on the vitality of two distinct dramatic traditions: site specific theatre, whereby an empty office will become the venue, a news room and a cafe as needed, and verbatim theatre, taking transcripts of real conversations and editing them into a script. At the same time, it serves one of theatre’s great purposes: to take an important contemporary concern and translate it into an art form that can identify both the specific and more abstract implications.

With three journalists interviewing around forty people involved in the newspaper industry – from editors to designers to readers – Enquirer promises to use the best of investigative journalism, as well as the best of theatre, to reflect on the media’s inner turmoil.

14

TWITTER #Enquirer

TWITTER #TheMakingOfUs #Gi2012

Image courtesy Kirsi Sutherland, Greenzowie/ Blipfoto

Image courtesy Joseph Siroker/ Blipfoto

In 2010, the National Theatre of Scotland and Glasgow International Festival of Visual Art teamed up with Graham Eatough to present This Time With Feeling, a project which explored the relationships between visual art and theatre.

Now, audiences are invited to share – and even participate – in this exploration co-created by Eatough and visual artist Graham Fagen, with the added talents of, director of photography Michael McDonough and film producer Angela Murray. The project is also supported by the Vital Sparks fund, which encourages cross-artform adventures.

The Making Of Us explores ways in which people build their identities, and stages and exhibits the film making process, inviting the audience to take part as extras. “It’s really about the making of a person and the different places he goes to which shape who he is,” Fagen explains. “It’s showing how we act in certain situations and how that in turn might influence the situation and how all of it influences us as individuals, as a culture and as a society.”

Presented as an ongoing installation at Tramway throughout the GI festival in April 2012, the project features a series of live and filmed performances. There are five individual scenes which follow the development of an individual’s personality. The live filming element invites the audience to witness and be part of the finished film. “The public are important extras: if somebody sneezes or decides to sing then that is what we get and have to live with,” says Fagen.

Eatough recognises this as a way to challenge how the performance is received.

“I want to see it function as an installation, as a performance and as a film,” he says.

“We’ve described it as promenade performance but actually I would like to think of it as more like a gallery experience. You can come in and decide to engage with a scene – but at the same time, just as in a gallery, you can choose to look at something in the other corner.”

Fagen echoes Eatough’s enthusiasm: “I’m attracted to the freedom that you have as a visitor to a gallery. That’s such an interesting dynamic to introduce into a performance. Hopefully, some cross-over is going to happen in the audience where you get theatre-goers, visual art-goers and some film buffs: a real eclectic audience mix.”

While Eatough and Fagen previously explored similar territory in Killing Time at Dundee Contemporary Arts, The Making Of Us allows the National Theatre of Scotland to engage with a growing interest in performance from visual artists, and to further explore how theatre can be made, and what it can be.

Eatough’s experiences as a director with Suspect Culture – the company he set up with David Greig in 1993 – and Fagen’s successful installations in Scotland and internationally ensure that The Making Of Us is an ambitious articulation of Eatough and Fagen’s – and the National Theatre of Scotland’s – belief in collaboration and communication with the audience.

15

A NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND PRODUCTION STREAMING ONLINE 1ST MAY 2012 FROM 6PM

FIVE MINUTE THEATRE

FIVE MINUTE THEATRE

WITH FOUR MORE EVENTS PLANNED FOR 2012 fiveminutetheatre.com PRESS REVIEWS “A 21st century event that expressed and celebrated the wild and beautiful diversity of Scotland today in a thousand different voices.”

THE SCOTSMAN

THEATRE FOR ANYONE WITH AN AUDIENCE OF EVERYONE

“This isn’t just about professionals. This is about joining in and showing off talent in a way that captures the crossing of boundaries between audience and performer and where participation is a communal need.”

THE HERALD “By handing the reins over to the people of Scotland . . . NTS has proved itself a true champion of homegrown national theatre.”

THE GUARDIAN THEATRE BLOG TWITTER #fiveminutetheatre Living up to your tagline NTS, this is theatre without walls and roofs the sky's the limit. Amazing x from @gallusgirl A brilliant, brilliant day @NTSOnline #fiveminutetheatre Everything that's best about Theatre, Ingenuity, Passion, A hint of madness. +Rain. from @jamesgardner_uk Just watched @NTSonline brill #fiveminutetheatre at Sammy Dows. Wish it was a regular thing, great fun. from @southsidehap #fiveminutetheatre @NTS_Marianne

WHEN FIVE MINUTE THEATRE WAS INTRODUCED, AS PART OF THE NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND’S FIFTH BIRTHDAY CELEBRATIONS IN 2011, IT INVITED INDIVIDUALS FROM AROUND THE WORLD TO CONTRIBUTE TO A FULL DAY’S PROGRAMME OF ONLINE PERFORMANCE. It was a feat of logistical ingenuity that involved streaming 207 pieces of theatre live online over a 24 hour period, including live feeds from eight performance hubs across the country, and six roving broadcast crews.

Recognising that the internet had revolutionised the way that audiences responded to theatre, Five Minute Theatre opened up the business of creation internationally – and the Company was overwhelmed by the enthusiasm of the response from contributors around the world.

“Something just caught the imagination,” remembers Marianne Maxwell, the National Theatre of Scotland’s Audience Development Manager responsible for the project. “It was such a success: I don’t think you can under-estimate the impact that the event had on the Company.” And having invested in the technology and the skills needed to make it happen once, the National Theatre of Scotland is bringing it back for 2012.

While the principle behind the event hasn’t changed – an open appeal is sent out for anyone who wants to film a five minute performance in front of an audience – the format has been adjusted. “Rather than another 24 hour extravaganza, we’ve gone for short bursts,” says Maxwell. There will be five events, each lasting for five hours and themed. “The first one, on 1st May, has the theme of protest.” And while this fits in with the Company’s One Day in Spring in partnership with A Play, A Pie and A Pint (see page 8), Maxwell does not see this as exclusively political. “The word ‘protest’ might have global connotations, but it can be read in so many different ways, including the personal.”

Five Minute Theatre captured the potential of the internet to bring theatre out of the venues and into the home – similar experiments (most notably by London’s National Theatre, and the New York Metropolitan Opera) have tended to film and broadcast big productions. The National Theatre of Scotland was determined to try a different tack.

Through Five Minute Theatre, the definition of theatre-maker was expanded, with firsttime performers, amateur groups, schools, critics and radio stations taking their place alongside many established actors, writers and directors.

The idea’s dynamism, Maxwell believes, comes from its fluidity. “I think it can evolve every single year. This might turn into something we don’t know yet. It’s beautiful – and it’s terrifying. You can’t set targets for something no-one has ever done before!” In addition to growing audiences, it grows artists and performers, and involves diverse communities within the National Theatre of Scotland’s own community.

When the National Theatre of Scotland was launched in 2006, it embraced the philosophy of being a “theatre without walls”. Five Minute Theatre is a virtual stage, matching the accessibility of the internet with the immediacy of live performance, finding new ways for the Company to reach out to an ever-broader audience.

Image courtesy William Bryan, Through My Lens, Willis/ Blipfoto

16

17

tfd

A NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND PRODUCTION TOURING SCOTLAND FROM APRIL 2012

THE NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND IN ASSOCIATION WITH EAST RENFREWSHIRE COUNCIL AND EASTWOOD PARK THEATRE TOURING TO SCHOOLS ACROSS GLASGOW & FIFE IN 2012

REAL MEN DREAM IN BLACK AND WHITE

MR WRITE ROB DRUMMOND LOVE LETTERS TO THE PUBLIC TRANSPORT SYSTEM MOLLY TAYLOR COUNT ME IN GARY MCNAIR

WRITTEN AND DEVISED BY THE CAST DIRECTED BY LISSA LORENZO

WHAT DOES TFD STAND FOR?

REAL MEN DREAM IN BLACK AND WHITE IS AN EXAMPLE OF HOW THE NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND ENCOURAGES THE TALENT OF THE FUTURE.

HOW DID IT BEGIN?

The four actors – assisted by director Lissa Lorenzo – made the jump from youth company to professional after their success in 2010 at Exchange, the National Theatre of Scotland’s bi-annual festival of youth theatre (see page 20). Compassionate, yet unsentimental, Real Men Dream in Black and White went on to receive a string of ecstatic reviews at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2011 with its mixture of spectacular physical theatre, emotional honesty and forceful representation of masculine anxiety.

“Real Men... punched through the perception that theatre by young people is merely youth theatre. It really stood out during Exchange,” says the National Theatre of Scotland’s Associate Director for Learn, Simon Sharkey.

“Combining the show’s dynamic passion with Learn’s focus on reaching out to communities seemed a natural next step,” says Sharkey. Their piece was performed in Glasgow at the 2011 plenary meeting of the IETM, the international network for contemporary performing arts. “It was a real moment for Exchange,” he says. “Performing in front of international promoters had a big impact. We had arrived at where we want to be. Now we’re taking the show out to an audience of young men in Fife and Glasgow.”

Although this tour is unapologetically addressed at a male audience, Real Men Dream in Black and White is not just for tough guys. Dealing with the anguish and ambitions of adolescence, the production is frequently praised for its rejection of male stereotypes – one reviewer even suggested that it would make a good corrective to the usual rituals of the stag-night – and the cast’s willingness to use their own experience as the foundation of the drama.

Set in a school locker room, and switching from brutal memories of violence to comic strong man posturing, Real Men Dream in Black and White is an impressionistic meditation on how contemporary men shape their identity, as likely to recall those positive role-models as reject more unpleasant archetypes. That they are also adept physical performers adds a further level: without compromising their skill, they present one way in which young men can excel.

The Real Men Company is now ready to continue its mission, to expand the discussion around the show’s central issues, blazing a trail for future generations of young performers as the launch pad for Jump, National Theatre of Scotland Learn’s latest initiative, delivered in conjunction with Glasgow Parkour and Strathclyde Police.

Using the physical aesthetics of parkour as well as an arsenal of creative exercises Jump aims is to build a company of young men who will tell their stories in a compelling and highly stylised way. Jump has already engaged over 500 young men from a wide range of backgrounds across Fife and Glasgow. The National Theatre of Scotland will continue to meet with more young men throughout 2012, listening to their stories, encouraging them to rise to the challenges they are set, giving them the skills to articulate their concerns, hopes, ambitions and aspirations and ultimately supporting them to share their journey from boy to man in a series of performances in Fife and Glasgow at the end of the year.

It means whatever you want it to mean!

It came from listening to the audience. Every year, we do a massive amount of audience research and it revealed that our average audience age was in the mid-forties.

We decided we needed to do something to attract younger people too.

WHAT DID YOU DO?

That was not about commissioning new work, it was about looking at what was on the table, and then giving the Audience Development Team the task of getting young audiences into that!

HOW DID THE FIRST TIME GO?

There were three shows touring together in 2010. The idea that we came up with was to take over the Tron Theatre, Glasgow, for the opening week of the tour – under 21's only. There was a whole series of events: back stage tours, meet the writers, the designers, the cast. It was a big risk and we learned an awful lot. And we got about a thousand young people in.

HOW HAS TFD CHANGED?

Now, nearly two years later, tfd as a programme – i.e. the workshops, the tours, the Q&A sessions etc. – will run alongside five shows this year, all over the country. The idea is that the tfd programme can sit alongside any show. We’re taking tfd where it is wanted; the offer went out to every local authority in Scotland and the tour is based around responses we received.

Returning to the tfd stable is Mr Write, which won Best Production for Young People at the Critics Award for Theatre in Scotland in 2010. The show is unique in that writer and performer Rob Drummond selects a member of the audience and improvises a script around their life: the finale is the creation of a bespoke play. Its return in the second tfd season proves that adventurous theatre can be popular.

“When I first came up with Mr Write, it was just a concept with no ideal audience,” Drummond remembers. “I feel strongly that the idea should come first and then you find a good home for it. In this case, the existing idea just seemed to be perfect for tfd.”

Despite initial trepidation, Drummond enjoyed his tfd experience. “Being part of a season of plays for young people was scary because I had never made work for that audience,” he admits. “I think that helped because I just ended up treating them like any other audience.” It even encouraged him to further his experiments with interactivity.

“This time I will be designing a new workshop: I will be asking the groups to come up with the material and concepts for my next show - with no rules as to what kind of audience it will be designed for. It will be written and devised by the children of Scotland and maybe some of them will be in it, who knows?”

Image courtesy Michael Crane, Always Wondering Who I Am/ Blipfoto

18

Image courtesy Audrey Hutchison, Bitblonde/ Blipfoto

19

EXCHANGE 2012

THE NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND IN PARTNERSHIP WITH MACROBERT EXCHANGE 2012 PERFORMANCE PROGRAMME TUESDAY 3rd JULY 7.30pm CITIZENS THEATRE YOUNG CO. GLASGOW 9pm MACROBERT YOUNG COMPANY STIRLING

EXCHANGE RECOGNISES THAT THE FUTURE OF SCOTTISH THEATRE RELIES ON THE HARD WORK, DEDICATION AND TALENT OF ITS YOUNG PEOPLE. 2012’s programme once again unites young theatre makers with professional practitioners to present new work at a week-long festival of workshops, sharings and performance.

Each of the eight companies attending Exchange presents a piece of new work, created in tandem with a professional theatre maker. Not only does the festival provide a showcase for the individual companies, it allows them to experience working on a larger scale. Islay Macrae of Seanachas is excited by the chance to reach new audiences.

“Our company is bilingual,” she explains. “We are researching how two languages can sit together on stage and have equal status. Being involved in Exchange gives the young people a chance to present their work to a large, varied audience.”

Arguably, the biggest Exchange success has been Eastwood Park Theatre 16–25 group who took their 2010 Exchange production Real Men Dream in Black and White (see page 19) to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe last year. The show is touring schools around Scotland as part of the National Theatre of Scotland’s Learning and Outreach programme (see page 25). Another theatre company building on past success is Rusty Boat, launched in 2008 in the wake of the large scale community project Transform Inverclyde: Bolt, with an emphasis on devised theatre rooted in the experiences of young people in Port Glasgow.

Knox Academy, although participating in Exchange for the first time, are no strangers to the National Theatre of Scotland – they created five pieces of live performance for last year’s Five Minute Theatre. For John Naples Campbell, head of drama at Knox Academy, Exchange is a chance “to meet new people, develop and hone our skills, create dynamic work and really showcase the talent we have.”

Gareth Nicholls, who graduated from the National Theatre of Scotland Associates programme in 2009, now leads Macrobert’s young theatre company. He stresses that Exchange is an opportunity for youth theatre to stake a claim for its own seriousness.

“Our group actively places itself alongside any other piece of professional theatre.

Thankfully, the brilliant work that’s made in Scotland by young performers is starting to be recognised as quality art in its own right. We hope to contribute to this change in perception by making work with young performers with as much integrity, rigour and value as any other performance.”

If the companies have different inspirations, Exchange provides a shared opportunity. Neil Packham, director of the Citizens Young Theatre Co. explains: “I’m sure by the time we get to the end of Exchange in July we will have been on an extraordinary, inspiring journey, made many friends, and shared loads of skills and new experiences.”

Also attending are Kinetic, part of a Fife initiative which helps young people get involved in media, sport and the arts, and two international visitors – The Saber Players from New York’s Uncommon Charter High School and Ireland’s Kildare Youth Theatre – ensuring that Exchange 2012 will be a jamboree of sharing, energy and imagination.

WEDNESDAY 4th JULY 7.30pm RUSTY BOAT

PORT GLASGOW 9pm KNOX ACADEMY HADDINGTON

FRIDAY 6th JULY 7.30pm THE SABER PLAYERS

BROOKLYN, USA 9pm SEANACHAS SKYE SATURDAY 7th JULY 7.30pm KINETIC BUCKHAVEN

EXCHANGE EXCHANGE 2012

9pm KILDARE YOUTH THEATRE IRELAND

Image courtesy Brian Smith, Delph Wynd Daily/ Blipfoto

20

21

REVEAL 2012

NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND IN ASSOCIATION WITH THE CITIZENS THEATRE, GLASGOW CITIZENS THEATRE, GLASGOW 1st to 12th MAY 2012

This year, Bank of Scotland Pioneering Partnership will support: •

Appointment with The Wicker Man

By Greg Hemphill and Donald McLeary, directed by Vicky Featherstone Touring February and March, then Edinburgh Festival Fringe August 2012

•

The Guid Sisters

By Michal Tremblay in Scots translation

by Bill Findlay In a co-production with the Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh October 2012

•

Tour of Monster in the Hall and Yellow Moon by David Greig, directed by Guy Hollands. Touring October and November 2012

•

Emerge Event series to showcase the work in progress of the National Theatre of Scotland's New Directors and Emerging Artists

REVEAL PERFORMANCE PROGRAMME ROMAN BRIDGE WRITTEN BY MARTIN TRAVERS DIRECTED BY AMANDA GAUGHAN 2nd to 12th MAY 2012

NEW WORK BY SCOTLAND’S EMERGING THEATRE ARTISTS

REHEARSED READINGS THE RED HOURGLASS

BY ALAN BISSETT 2nd & 3rd MAY 2012

CULTIVATING SCOTLAND’S THEATRE ISN’T JUST ABOUT STAGING MAJOR PRODUCTIONS: SUPPORTING A NEW GENERATION OF ARTISTS IS ESSENTIAL. The National Theatre of Scotland is always scouting for new talent – from writers, directors and producers, to performer-auteurs and puppeteers – and Reveal was established to bring together the many strands of the Company’s artistic development programme, to provide a testing ground for new work.

Artistic Development Producer Caroline Newall observes that rising stars need to develop their fledging works in a nurturing and supportive environment – but also given a serious public platform. “Reveal allows us to showcase the more finished work of newer artists”, she says. “And although we expect the works to be quite complete, we keep production values deliberately modest which allows us to invest more in the artist themselves.”

The Reveal format is deliberately structured to give the artists maximum exposure without burdening them with unnecessary expectation. “We don’t want the great work they are generating just to be hidden, but neither do we want to subject it to the kind of exposure that our main season work receives”, says Newall.

“Writers need to be able to see and hear people react – or not – to their plays in order to move their craft forward,” says writer Martin Travers, whose debut play Roman Bridge received a rehearsed reading at last year’s Reveal, and is this year given a full production in the Citizens Studio Theatre in Glasgow, directed by former Bank of Scotland New Director Amanda Gaughan. “There's nothing worse than seeing a funny joke in rehearsal curl up and die on stage,” he says. “That's why a process like Reveal is so important. It starts a dialogue with the audience and allows the writer to respond to people's reactions. It all helps to make the play better.”

2011’s Reveal showcased the diversity of work in development – including full productions, works in progress and rehearsed readings – much of which has gone on to have a successful life. Molly Taylor’s Love Letters to the Public Transport System, which was presented as a work in progress last year, is booked in for a run at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, and Gary McNair has since had writing and directing success with Crunch and Born to Run at Òran Mór.

The partnership with Òran Mór has proved to be a particularly successful one.

Last year’s season of new plays by Latin American writers adapted by emerging Scottish writers, has evolved this year into its own fully-fledged project with a season of new writing from the Middle East (see page 8), and a future season planned in 2013 in collaboration with the National Theatre of China.

Ultimately, Reveal is about building relationships with the next generation of theatre makers. This year, writers Stef Smith and Alan Bissett, who have already excited audiences with Roadkill and Turbofolk respectively, are presenting new material, while Amanda Monfrooe and Ross MacKay are taking puppetry in surprisingly adventurous directions and the Company’s first Gaelic Associate Artist, Catriona Lexy Campbell has a rehearsed reading of her play, Gaelic For Beginners (see also page 28).

“As a touring company without a building, it’s important for the National Theatre of Scotland to build partnerships with venues like the Traverse in Edinburgh, and Òran Mór and the Citizens in Glasgow,” says Newall. “Without them, this festival wouldn’t be possible.”

22

GAELIC FOR BEGINNERS

BY CATRIONA LEXY CAMPBELL 4th & 5th MAY 2012 KASIMIR AND KAROLINE BY ÖDÖN VON HORVÀTH TRANSLATED AND DIRECTED BY ALAN MCKENDRICK 5th MAY 2012 COLOUR ME READ

BY STEF SMITH 11th & 12th MAY 2012 WORK IN PROGRESS FERAL

BY ROSS MACKAY with TORTOISE IN A NUTSHELL 1st to 3rd MAY 2012 THE GREAT DISAPPOINTMENT OF SANTA MUERTA

BY AMANDA MONFROOE with PONYPIE 10th to 12th MAY 2012

•

Bank of Scotland Development Fund Investment to support the continuing development of the Emerging Artists and New Directors 'class of 2011'

•

New Directors Application-based programme for three young directors to work with established theatre directors on the creation of a new production

•

Emerging Artists Invitation-based programme for four talented artists to create or develop new theatre

BANK OF SCOTLAND

AND THE NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND – A PIONEERING PARTNERSHIP

PIONEERING PARTNERSHIP CONNECTS BANK OF SCOTLAND AND THE NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND IN A RELATIONSHIP ACROSS A WIDE RANGE OF THE COMPANY’S ARTISTIC PROGRAMME DURING 2011 AND 2012. THE PARTNERSHIP WILL REACH INTO COMMUNITIES ACROSS SCOTLAND THROUGH PRODUCTIONS, WORKSHOPS AND EVENTS PARTICULARLY IN THE AREA OF SUPPORTING CREATIVITY AND EMERGING TALENT. With common goals, Bank of Scotland and the National Theatre of Scotland aim to encourage and support new theatrical talent through programmes like Emerging Artists and New Directors.

Molly Taylor, one of 2011's Emerging Artists, had this to say about her experience: “I have a long-standing relationship with the National Theatre of Scotland.

I’ve worked within their Learn Department, on one-off projects, I’ve designed and delivered workshop programmes, but more importantly, it was under their supervision and guidance that I first began writing.

“The piece I am currently working on is called How Do You Begin to Begin? Broadly speaking, it’s about family, an exploration into the moments and choices that change the course of a life, and the decisions people make, or not, when they bring someone new into the world. I am in the process of interviewing friends, strangers, and colleagues about their family set ups, whether conventional, adoptive or secretive. I’ve been working closely with the Literary Manager, using my research as the starting point for a series of monologues, and he has been reading draft after draft and giving me positive and focused feedback.

“The opportunity to develop a new piece of work, in a structured and supported environment is a rare luxury. I am relatively new to writing, so a programme like this, made possible by the dedication and generosity of the Bank of Scotland, is a wonderful and enriching challenge. I’m thoroughly grateful to the Bank of Scotland and the National Theatre of Scotland for providing fledgling writers like me the chance to develop new ways of working, allowing us to flex muscles we didn’t know we had.”

Supported by Bank of Scotland Pioneering Partnership

Image courtesy Jillian Christophel, Jillybeans/ Blipfoto

23

NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND LEARN THE NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND’S LEARN DEPARTMENT PROVIDES AN EXCITING RANGE OF WAYS FOR PARTICIPANTS OF ALL AGES TO INTERACT, TAKE PART, TALK AND CONNECT WITH THE COMPANY. From post-show talks and backstage tours to workshops in schools and large scale events involving thousands of people, the National Theatre of Scotland provides the opportunity to engage with the creative minds involved in bringing work to the stage and encourages, supports and inspires homegrown creativity in communities across Scotland.

EXPLORING PRODUCTIONS

An extensive range of creative learning opportunities exists to support the productions, including master classes with leading international artists, multi-discipline workshops for all ages, as well as readings and talks. For audiences everywhere there is a comprehensive online catalogue of digital resources including trailers, cast and creative team interviews and behind the scenes features from productions past and present.

INSPIRING TEACHERS AND LEARNERS

There are many ways for teachers and learners to gain a deeper understanding of theatre with the National Theatre of Scotland. Teachers can now access CPD sessions delivered by the company and a selection of free resource packs for teachers and students is available to download. Our new Transform Toolkit is now live and can be found on the Education Scotland website: http://www.ltscotland.org.uk/resources/t/transformtoolkit/introduction.asp Class sets of scripts can be ordered easily and there are regular workshop opportunities throughout the year. As a special offer in 2012 we are touring careers workshops for classes who want to find out more about the many different kinds of jobs that exist in theatre.

CONNECTING COMMUNITIES

The National Theatre of Scotland takes root in communities in Scotland to create unique individual projects mixing theatre, music, visual art, dance and literature.

TRAINING THE ARTIST

As a student, young professional or experienced theatre practitioner, there are a number of ways to connect with the National Theatre of Scotland. We create various bespoke training packages from trainee associates to placements and inclusion in oneoff or week-long master classes with some of the best theatre practitioners in the world.

INSPIRING YOUNG PEOPLE

It is easy for young people who are passionate about performing to feel part of the National Theatre of Scotland. Information about the right shows, in the right place and at the right price can be always be found online and fans can tell us what they think on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube. Look out for our tfd programme touring Scotland this year.

24

GLASGOW GIRLS We are about to launch a national challenge for young people to take action.

Inspired by our forthcoming production of Glasgow Girls we will commission up to ten groups of young people to tell the world about a cause they are passionate about by taking action. We’ll give them money and the support of a theatre artist to help them shape their campaign. We are full of excitement about the possibilities of empowering young people to change things.

The call goes out in May 2012 and we are aiming to have the results exhibited alongside our production in November.

If you are interested in participating, contact: Philippa Tomlin Creative Learning Co-ordinator T: 0141 221 0970 E: philippa.tomlin@nationaltheatrescotland.com TW: @nts_philippa LIFEGUARD We are reaching out to communities in Glasgow’s Southside with an exploration in to memory and water.

Inspired by our forthcoming production of Lifeguard at Govanhill baths, Glasgow, we are looking for people of all ages to share their memories and impressions of how communities used to connect around communal facilities such as the swimming pool and the steamie and what happens when those facilities evolve and transform in to a community arts centre.

The results of our engagement throughout the year will form an exhibition around the production of Lifeguard in October.

CAREERS IN THEATRE We are launching a national tour of workshops that will inspire young people to explore the alternative careers you could have in theatre.

Most people think of theatre careers as being the ones on stage, but there is a multitude of creative opportunities in marketing, finance, technical, producing, costume, administration, social media, IT, fundraising and freelance work.

If you would be interested in receiving these workshops contact Gillian Gourlay at the address below.

If you would like to know more about any of these opportunities, and to discuss ways to connect with the National Theatre of Scotland, contact: Gillian Gourlay Learning and Outreach Manager T: 0141 227 9011 E: gillian.gourlay@nationaltheatrescotland.com TW: nts_gillian

NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND FRIENDS

MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR NATIONAL THEATRE By becoming a Friend you will help us to create some of the most exciting new productions happening in theatre today. More importantly, you will be helping us to invest in the future, ensuring there is a next generation of talent ready to make incredible theatre for the people of Scotland and beyond.

By becoming a Friend you could provide part of a young writer’s all-important first commission, or help to fund the development of one of our major new productions. You’ll receive updates about the new work you’re supporting, as well as news about what’s happening across our programme.

“EVERYTHING WE RECEIVE THROUGH OUR FRIENDS SCHEME GOES DIRECTLY INTO FUNDING NEW WORK.” SAYS ELLY ROTHNIE, THE NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND’S DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR.

FROM JUST £4 PER MONTH FRIENDS OF THE NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND ENJOY: •

Special offers for selected National Theatre of Scotland productions throughout the year

"Friends of the National Theatre of Scotland will not only receive the usual advantages of the scheme – the special offers, the post-show talks, the chance to get closer to the heart of what we do,” she says, “There is also the knowledge that they have become an investor in Scotland's culture. Their contribution might help fund the next Black Watch or The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Hart".

Launched after a year of research into what audiences appreciate about the National Theatre of Scotland, the Friends scheme has the specific aim of supporting new work and young artists. "Friends has been shaped by the people who come to see our shows," Rothnie explains. "I spent six months talking to as many people as I could to figure out how they felt about the National Theatre of Scotland. We found that, in five short years people already felt a great sense of pride about us, they loved that we come to their towns and villages as well as the major cities. But what was most encouraging to us was that most people wanted to hear about the young artists that we support."

The scheme starts from £4 per month and members enjoy a range of benefits. On the advice of the audience the scheme’s beneficiaries will be new productions and artists who are making their first steps into professional performance.

"I can't tell you how much this was music to our ears," says Rothnie. "There is a great awareness that new work is the riskiest and therefore the most vulnerable part of any theatre's repertoire. Our audience seemed to understand that from the start we have been committed to commissioning new work and encouraging young talent and they wanted to be part of protecting that."

Fitting in with three of the Company's central visions – to create opportunities for artist-led projects, to encourage the next generation of artists and, in Rothnie's words, "to make theatre by and for the people of Scotland" – the Friends scheme is unique in its focus. "We like to think of it as venture philanthropy," says Rothnie."Our Friends are actually investing in the future of Scottish theatre." More than this, the scheme extends the National Theatre of Scotland's connection to the wider community. Since its launch six years ago, the Company has consciously toured beyond the expected circuit, getting out of the central belt and larger cities. Now it is opening up a new way of being involved, promising a closer connection to the activities of Scotland's national theatre.

The emphasis on emerging artists has another advantage. "Relatively modest sums can have a large impact," says Rothnie. "A small grant might be just enough to allow an aspiring writer to take some time off their day job to finish a script, which might in turn give them that all-important first opportunity in theatre-making. It means that by giving even a small amount you can make a real difference to that individual artist – as well as the cultural state of the nation in years to come."

•

An annual Friends’ Reception with members of the National Theatre of Scotland creative team

•

Invitations to talks and special events around National Theatre of Scotland productions

•

Regular updates on new and upcoming work

•

Programme information sent out in advance

•

The opportunity to play your part in creating unforgettable Scottish theatre

Individual membership £45 per year/ £4 per month Joint/Family membership £60 per year/ £5 per month Best Friend £90 per year/ £7. 50 per month Young Friend aged 18 – 25 £30 per year/ £2.50 per month Under 18 £10 per year To find out more or to request a Friends application form, email: michael.oneill@ nationaltheatrescotland.com, call 0141 221 0970 or visit www.nationaltheatrescotand.com/friends

The National Theatre of Scotland wishes to thank the following individuals and organisations for their support: Arnold Clark Car and Van Hire B Scenic Construction LTD Bank of Scotland Crerar Hotels David Morris Associates DCI Print Management Limited Eda, Lady Jardine Charitable Trust Esmée Fairbairn Foundation F. G. Burnett Fred & Irene Shedden Hiper Ltd Ian Gilmour Transport Inchrye Trust ISIS Itison John Mather Charitable Trust Kynesis Leeds Building Society Charitable Foundation MAC Cosmetics Maclay Murray & Spens LLP Material_GROUP MB Martin Brown Hair Mr Boyd Tunnock Mrs Katharine Liston Miss E.C. Hendry's Charitable Trust Miss Jean Ryeburn Stirrat's Charitable Trust Nancie Massey Charitable Trust North British Hotels Trust Pinsent Masons LLP Prairie Trust Santander Foundation Schuh Scottish Power Sir Adrian Shinwell Sir Iain Stewart Foundation Sir Ronald and Lady Miller Talteg Limited Tayfield Foundation The Alma and Leslie Wolfson Charitable Trust The Binks Trust The Craignish Trust The Cresswell Family Foundation The David & June Gordon Memorial Trust The Endrick Trust The Hugh Fraser Foundation The James and Elizabeth Murray Charitable Trust The JTH Charitable Trust The Margaret Murdoch Charitable Trust The Merchants House of Glasgow The McGlashan Charitable Trust The Pleasance Trust The RJ Larg Family Trust The Roger & Sarah Bancroft Clark Charitable Trust The RS Macdonald Charitable Trust The Robertson Trust The Russell Trust The Wolfson Foundation Two Fat Ladies Restaurants Turner & Co. Union Advertising Agency Warehouse Sound W&P Longreach STV National Theatre of Scotland Visionaries and Patrons Peter and Diane Cabrelli Jo and Alison Elliot Vicky Featherstone Richard Findlay Tari Lang Peter Lawson Rita Rae Ian Rankin Elly Rothnie Jeremy Smeeth John Tiffany

SUPPORT THE NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND CORPORATE MEMBERSHIP Supporting us is good for business.

A partnership between your company and the National Theatre of Scotland will create amazing opportunities for your clients, reward and entertain your colleagues, elevate your brand and make a real difference to your local community.

Our year-round programme means that you can entertain and build relationships with clients and key stakeholders whenever and wherever you want. You and your guests will get exclusive access to incredible money-can't-buy experiences, including opportunities to meet the cast as well as privileged access to pre- and post-show hospitality and the best seats in the house.

Talk to us about how supporting the National Theatre of Scotland can help your company achieve its business objectives call Elly Rothnie on 0141 221 0970 or email elly.rothnie@nationaltheatrescotland.com, or visit www.nationaltheatrescotland/ corporate PATRONS AND VISIONARIES Our Patrons and Visionaries are an inspirational group of supporters who help make the National Theatre of Scotland what it is.

They enjoy a close relationship with the National Theatre of Scotland and in return play a vital role in creating pioneering Scottish theatre at home and on the world stage.

To find out more about this unique opportunity to join us at the very the heart of what we do please contact Stella Litchfield on 0141 227 9236 or email stella.litchfield@ nationaltheatrescotland.com or visit www.nationaltheatrescotland/patrons AMERICAN SUPPORT We are very proud to have our own 501c3 set up for our US based supporters.

If you are based in the United States and interested in supporting the work we share with American audiences then the National Theatre of Scotland America Inc would be delighted to hear from you. Please visit our US website for more information at www.nationalthearescotland.com/america For more information about supporting any aspect of our work please contact: Elly Rothnie Development Director T: 0141 221 0970 E: elly.rothnie@nationaltheatrescotland.com TW: @nts_elly

The National Theatre of Scotland America Inc would like to thank their founding supporters: Mr and Mrs James Block Professor Elizabeth Bradley Ms Gretchen Dykstra Jeanne Giordano and Robert J Frasca Joseph and Claire LoCicero Alan Main Mr Kenneth Mumma Sandy Needham Nicholas G Russell Martin Segal The Very Reverend Professor Iain Torrance 26

27

GAELIC DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME In 2011, the National Theatre of Scotland appointed its first Gaelic Associate, Catriona Lexy Campbell, with the strategic aim of establishing and developing links with Scotland’s Gaelic artists and the wider Gaelic speaking community.

One of the first things Catriona wanted to tackle was the revitalisation of Gaelicspeaking amateur dramatics groups, who were once the catalyst for a generation of Gaelic professional performers.

“There has been a perceivable decline in non-professional Gaelic drama over recent years, which has led in turn to a reduction in the number of Gaelic speaking performers working professionally,” says Catriona Lexy. “We ran a series of workshops around the country to encourage the formation of new groups and I’m proud to say that as a result of this initiative several new Gaelic amateur groups now exist across Scotland.”

As a writer/director and performer, Catriona Lexy has also had an opportunity to develop her own work, Gaelic for Beginners, a new play addressing bi-lingualism. “It’s influenced by conversations with Irish and Polish groups, and also with Solar Bear, who work a lot with the deaf community.” Gaelic for Beginners is presented at Reveal in May 2012 (see page 22).

Through the Gaelic Associate programme Catriona Lexy has fostered strong relationships between the National Theatre of Scotland and many diverse groups around the country. A Gaelic Writers’ Seminar in March 2012, co-hosted by the Gaelic Books Council, saw the conclusion to a successful, if hectic, year. “It’s been wonderful to work with such positive and talented people and to bring both communities a little closer.”

CO-PHÀIRTICHE EALAIN GÀIDHLIG Chuir Theatar Nàiseanta na h-Alba a’ chiad Cho-phàirtiche Gàidhlig aca, Caitrìona Leagsaidh Chaimbeul, an dreuchd ann an 2011 le amas ro-innleachdail air ceanglaichean a stèidheachadh ’s a leasachadh le luchd-ealain Ghàidhlig na h-Alba agus leis a’ choimhearsnachd Ghàidhlig san fharsaingeachd.

B’ e aon de na nithean san robh Caitrìona Leagsaidh a’ sùileachadh a dhol an sàs sa chiad àite, ath-bheothachadh a dhèanamh air buidhnean dràma Gàidhlig neo-dhreuchdail a bha aig aon àm nam bun-adhbhar air ginealach de chleasaichean proifeiseanta Gàidhlig.

“Tha crìonadh nochdte air a thighinn ann an dràma Gàidhlig neo-dhreuchdail thar nam bliadhnaichean a dh’fhalbh, a tha air toradh ann an lùghdachadh san àireamh de chleasaichean le Gàidhlig a tha ag obair gu proifeiseanta,” tha Caitrìona Leagsaidh ag ràdh. “Chuir sinn sreath de bhùithtean-obrach air bhonn air feadh na dùthcha gus cruthachadh bhuidhnean ùra a bhrosnachadh agus tha mi toilichte a ràdh, mar thoradh air an iomairt seo, gu bheil àireamh de bhuidhnean ùra Gàidhlig neo-dhreuchdail air a thighinn gu bith a-nis air feadh Alba.”

Mar sgrìobhadair / stiùiriche agus mar chleasaiche, tha cothrom air a bhith aig Caitrìona Leagsaidh air an obair aice fhèin, Gàidhlig do Luchd-tòiseachaidh, a leasachadh, dealbh-chluich ùr a’ dèiligeadh le dà-chànanas. “Tha e gu mòr fo bhuaidh chòmhraidhean a bh’ agam le buidhnean Èireannach is Pòlainneach agus cuideachd le Solar Bear, a bhios a’ dèanamh mòran obrach le coimhearsnachd nam buidhre.” Bidh Gàidhlig do Luchd-tòiseachaidh ga thaisbeanadh aig Reveal sa Chèitean 2012 (faic duilleag 22).

Tro phrògram nan Co-phàirtichean Gàidhlig, tha Caitrìona Leagsaidh air dàimhean làidir a thogail eadar Theatar Nàiseanta na h-Alba agus mòran bhuidhnean de chaochladh sheòrsa air feadh na dùthcha. Chuir Co-labhairt nan Sgrìobhadairean Gàidhlig sa Mhàirt 2012, a fhuair co-aoigheachd bho Chomhairle nan Leabhraichean, deireadh air bliadhna a bha fìor dhripeil ach glè shoirbheachail. “Tha e air a bhith mìorbhaileach ag obair còmhla ri a leithid de dhaoine deimhinneach is tàlantach agus a bhith a’ toirt choimhearsnachdan nas dlùithe da chèile.”

28

Gaelic Development programme As a national performing arts company, the National Theatre of Scotland has a duty to lead the way in the inclusion and presentation of work by minority cultures in Scotland. As a living language, we believe Gaelic to be an important part of Scotland’s identity, and wish to better understand, represent and value the Gaelic language across the Company’s full range of activities.

As an art form, theatre is constantly reinventing its form and structure, making it an excellent artistic tool for assimilating Gaelic’s rich artistic and cultural traditions into contemporary and relevant drama projects for Gaelic and non-Gaelic speakers living in Scotland today. This programme will allow us to build better links with Gaelic artists and communities and develop work that seeks to promote excellence and participation with, and access to, Gaelic language and culture.

Get Involved If you are a Gaelic Artist living and working in Scotland, we’d like to hear from you. Please send your CV or information about future productions/ showings/ gigs etc. to dawn.taylor@ nationaltheatrescotland.com Prògram Leasachaidh Gàidhlig Mar chompanaidh coileanaidh ealain nàiseanta, tha dleastanas air Theatar Nàiseanta na h-Alba stiùir a ghabhail air an t-slighe gu in-ghabhail is taisbeanadh air obair bho mhion-chultaran na h-Alba. Mar chànan beò, tha sinn a’ creidsinn gu bheil a’ Ghàidhlig na pàirt chudromach de dhearbh-aithne na h-Alba agus thathar airson tuigse, riochdachadh is luach nas fheàrr a chur air a’ Ghàidhlig thar an raoin iomlan de ghnìomhachdan na Companaidh.

Mar aon riochd de na h-ealain, tha theatar ancòmhnaidh ag ath-innleachadh a chruth agus a structar, agus ga thoradh fhèin mar inneal ealanta airson traidiseanan saidhbhir cultarach is ealaineach na Gàidhlig a ghabhail a-steach ann am pròiseactan dràma buntainneach is co-aimsireil do luchd-labhairt na Gàidhlig agus daoine gun Ghàidhlig, a tha a’ fuireach ann an Alba san latha an-diugh. Bheir am prògram seo cead dhuinn air ceanglaichean nas fheàrr a thogail le luchdealain is coimhearsnachdan Gàidhlig, agus obair a leasachadh a bhios a’ sireadh air sàr-mhathas adhartachadh a thuilleadh air com-pàirteachadh ann agus ruigsinneachd air cànan is cultar na Gàidhlig.

Thig an sàs Mas e Neach-ealain Gàidhlig a th’ annad, a’ còmhnaidh agus ag obair ann an Alba, bu mhath leinn cluinntinn bhuat. Feuch gun cuir thu do Chunntas-beatha (CV) no fiosrachadh mu riochdachaidhean / taisbeanaidhean / coileanaidhean àrd-ùrlair is eile, a tha san amharc agad, gu dawn.taylor@nationaltheatrescotland.com

To find out more about any part of our work or to help us improve our service, contact: Marianne Maxwell Audience Development Manager National Theatre of Scotland Civic House, 26 Civic Street, Glasgow G4 9RH T: +44 (0) 141 221 0970 E: marianne.maxwell@nationaltheatre scotland.com TW: @NTS_Marianne AUDIO DESCRIPTION Audio Description offers a live commentary for audience members with visual impairment. The description starts about 10 minutes before the show and includes information on the production.

The audio describers then provide commentary on the action and visual effects throughout the performance. This information is relayed over an infrared system to individual headsets, which are available free of charge from the venue Box Office.

TOUCH TOURS Touch Tours offer blind and visually impaired members of the audience a chance to orientate themselves with the set and costumes immediately prior to an audio described performance. The Stage Manager will lead these tours. Those wishing to take part in a touch tour should register with the Box Office when booking tickets for the performance.

AUDIO GUIDES When we are unable to offer full audio description we will provide an Audio Guide to the performance.

This will be free and available at venues and to download from our website prior to the performance. The guide will provide audience members with thorough detailed content about the show including scene by scene breakdowns, descriptions of the set and information provided by key members of the cast and creative team.

BSL INTERPRETATION BSL (British Sign Language) interpretation offers deaf and hearing impaired audience members a live translation of all spoken words and sound effects into sign language. Please mention when you contact the Box Office that you are booking for the BSL interpreted performance so you can be allocated seats with the best view of the signer. To find out who will be signing each show visit www. nationaltheatrescotland.com in advance.

CAPTIONED PERFORMANCES Captioning converts the spoken word into text that provides people with hearing loss access to live performance. In captioning, the words appear on a screen at the same time as they are sung or spoken.

Captions also include sound effects and offstage noises.

TICKETS FOR ALL ACCESSIBLE PERFORMANCES, HEADSETS FOR AUDIO DESCRIPTION AND AUDIO GUIDES MUST BE BOOKED IN ADVANCE FROM VENUE BOX OFFICES.

CONNECT WITH YOUR NATIONAL THEATRE AT THE NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND WE ASPIRE TO LET YOU CONNECT WITH US IN A WAY THAT SUITS YOU. Everything that we do should be accessible to you. In 2012, there are several ways for audiences everywhere to get closer, get involved and get more from us.

CHAMPIONS We have recruited a team of voluntary Champions from across Scotland. Our Champions come from all backgrounds, ages and locations. Working closely with members of the National Theatre of Scotland team, this team of theatre lovers helps to spread the word of our work to their local communities.

Keep up to date with the Champions online and register interest in being a Champion in 2013 by emailing champions@nationaltheatrescotland.com YOUNG ADVISORY GROUP 10 exceptional people aged between 13 and 19 from all over Scotland have been selected to form the first National Theatre of Scotland Young Advisory Group. The group have the chance to influence and shape the future of the National Theatre of Scotland and represent the voice of Scotland’s young people. As volunteers, the group are mentored by members of the Board of Directors and will help us continue to be one the most exciting theatre companies in the world.

The next Young Advisory Group selection process will begin early in 2013.

DEAF THEATRE CLUB Now in its second year, Deaf Theatre Club is set to roll out nationally. Working in partnership with Solar Bear, we are creating innovative theatre packages for deaf audiences including information on all our BSL performances, interpreters, ticket deals and exclusive talks, tours and events. During 2012 we will be delivering integrated interpretation on several productions.

To find out more and to sign up to Deaf Theatre Club contact natalie@solarbear.org.uk "A joyous night at the theatre, thank you" Deaf Theatre Club member A Christmas Carol December 2011 FIRST NIGHTS First Nights is a National Theatre of Scotland initiative which brings young people to the theatre for the first time. First launched in 2009, First Nights has opened theatre doors across Scotland to hundreds of young people with little or no experience of theatre, from socially or geographically disenfranchised communities.

If you work with a group of young people that could be part of First Nights you can find out more about upcoming projects in 2012 by contacting marianne.maxwell@nationaltheatrescotland.com "I didn’t think I would like to go and see a play but it was fun. I enjoyed it."

First Nights audience member Men Should Weep October 2011

29

COMING SOON

MÉNAGE À TROIS AUGUST – OCTOBER 2012 DEVISED, DIRECTED AND PERFORMED BY CLAIRE CUNNINGHAM CO-DIRECTOR & VIDEO DESIGNER GAIL SNEDDON THE GUID SISTERS SEPTEMBER 2012 WRITTEN BY MICHEL TREMBLAY TRANSLATED BY MARTIN BOWMAN AND WILLIAM FINDLAY DIRECTED BY SERGE DENONCOURT

MÉNAGE À TROIS A hauntingly beautiful study of love, obsession, loneliness and manipulation, Ménage à Trois is a visually stunning new piece of dance theatre from awardwinning performer Claire Cunningham.

Exploring Claire’s twenty year relationship with her crutches, this darkly humorous and deeply personal portrait

MY SHRINKING LIFE An exciting collaboration between Alison Peebles, one of Scotland’s leading actors, directors and theatre/ film makers, and European experimental theatre-maker Lies Pauwels (Knives in Hens). It was during rehearsals for David Greig’s The Cosmonaut’s Last Message To The Woman He Once Loved In The Former Soviet Union, when a creeping numbness and

LIFEGUARD Adrian Howells creates an intimate, immersive theatrical experience at Govanhill Baths in Glasgow. His performance invites audiences to engage with their memories of swimming pools and their relationships with water. In the evocative setting of the old Baths,

THE GUID SISTERS Following recent successes with 27 and Dunsinane, the National Theatre of Scotland again joins forces with the Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh to present a Scots classic, directed by leading Canadian director Serge Denoncourt. Bill Findlay’s Scots version from Quebecois writer Michel Tremblay's play Les Belles -soeurs premiered at the Tron Theatre,

30

asks if it’s possible to find love when there are already three of you in the relationship…

The project is principally funded by the National Lottery through the Olympic Lottery Distributor, and is delivered in partnership between London 2012, Arts Council England, Creative Scotland, Arts Council of Wales, Arts Council of Northern Ireland and the British Council.

too many falls led Alison to her doctor and an eventual diagnosis with Multiple Sclerosis.

My Shrinking Life, created from interviews with family, friends, colleagues and the medical profession, examines the journey Alison has been on physically and emotionally since that first diagnosis in 2001. Celebratory, irreverent and challenging, it is the story of Alison and her shrinking life.

audiences enter into a multi-sensory poolside encounter with their own ‘lifeguard’.

Govanhill Baths is a Georgian swimming pool and wash-house in the southside of Glasgow. Closed to the public 11 years ago it is now looked after

by Govanhill Baths Community Trust whose aim is to preserve and conserve the baths for the public benefit.

MY SHRINKING LIFE SEPTEMBER & OCTOBER 2012 CREATED AND PERFORMED BY ALISON PEEBLES DIRECTED BY LIES PAUWELS LIFEGUARD OCTOBER 2012 CREATED AND PERFORMED BY ADRIAN HOWELLS IN COLLABORATION WITH MIKE BROOKES, MINTY DONALD, ROB DRUMMOND, NICK MILLAR AND NICHOLA SCRUTTON.

GLASGOW GIRLS OCTOBER & NOVEMBER 2012 CONCEIVED AND DIRECTED BY CORA BISSET WITH MUSIC BY PATRICIA PANTHER, MC SOOM T AND CORA BISSETT WRITTEN BY DAVID GREIG MONSTER IN THE HALL OCTOBER & NOVEMBER 2012

BY DAVID GREIG, DIRECTED BY GUY HOLLANDS A TAG PRODUCTION SUPPORTED BY THE NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND PRESENTED AS PART OF TFD YELLOW MOON OCTOBER & NOVEMBER 2012

BY DAVID GREIG, DIRECTED BY GUY HOLLANDS A TAG PRODUCTION SUPPORTED BY THE NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND PRESENTED AS PART OF TFD

GLASGOW GIRLS Based on a true story, Glasgow Girls is a brand new life-affirming Scottish musical with seven strong female leads and a vibrant multi-cultural voice at its heart.

The musical promises to be a celebration of Glasgow and the power of teenagers with a cause

MONSTER IN THE HALL

In 2005, the real life Glasgow Girls became one of the most vocal and powerful pro-asylum seeker campaigners in the country, appearing in two television documentaries and hosts of interviews. At the peak of their success, they won a clutch of awards for their appeals, including Best Public Campaign at the Politician of the Year Awards in 2005.

A low budget indie comedy musical sees a girl on the verge of a nervous breakdown played out by four actors and a big fat motorbike which goes vrrooommm.

THE GUARDIAN * * * * THE TIMES * * * * Supported by Bank of Scotland Pioneering Partnership

YELLOW MOON

A modern Bonnie and Clyde tale that follows the fortunes of two teenagers on a quest to find out who they really are.

“Outstanding . . . leaves you feeling as though you’ve watched a fulllength road movie, with added intimacy and intensity.”

The Scotsman Supported by Bank of Scotland Pioneering Partnership

Glasgow in 1989. After winning a million Green Shield stamps, Germaine Luzon is in for a windfall but the only way she can collect the money is to stick each stamp into a book. Calling upon her family, friends and neighbours to help, the play listens in as this formidable group of women talk about life, the world and the men in their lives.

Supported by Bank of Scotland Pioneering Partnership

31

NATIONAL THEATRE OF SCOTLAND CIVIC HOUSE, 26 CIVIC STREET GLASGOW G4 9RH Tel: +44 (0) 141 221 0970 Fax: +44 (0) 141 331 0589 info@nationaltheatrescotland.com www.nationaltheatrescotland.com

Design by Graphical House www.graphicalhouse.co.uk Interviews by Gareth K Vile Copyright 2012 National Theatre of Scotland and individually named contributors. All information correct at time of going to press and subject to change. The National Theatre of Scotland reserves the right to alter casts, performances, seating or ticket arrangements. Booking fees may apply on tickets, please check with the venue Box Office when booking.

The National Theatre of Scotland is a registered Scottish charity SCO33377.

The National Theatre of Scotland is core funded by the Scottish Government.