THEATRE LIST
Bod Hull and Emu Thurs 31 Mar(2.3()pm) & Fri 1 Apr. ( l lam 8: 2.30pm). £2.25-£3.75. Concs £1 off stalls and grand circle. 75p off upper circle. Man and bird in perfect harmony. See Kids Listing and (iuestlist.
I MANOELA THEATRE Gateway Exchange. 2—4 Abbeymount. not (I982. Cafe and bar facilities during performances. Performance Project Rehearsals Saturdays 2pm. Rehearsals are currently underway for a mammoth community performance projectabout the life of Elsie lngils. tobe performed early in May. Anybody interested in getting involved at any level— acting. music. design. stage management etc. — is very welcome to attend. I NETHEROOW 43 High Street. 556 957‘). Box Office Ilium—4.30pm. 7—9pm perf. evgs. Cafe. [1)]. [E]. The Plastic Surgery is Complete- and Others Wed 16— Sat 1‘) Mar. 1pm. £1 . ()xygen Ilouse in four very short new plays by Iain Heggie (author of Wholly Healthy Glasgow). including the funny and obscene ll'aiting for Shuggie's Ma. The Lion in Winter Wed In — Sat 19 Mar. 7.3(lpm. £3 (£2). Edinburgh Youth Theatre in a play by James (ioldman. The Tryst Wed 23 — Sat 26 Mar. lpm. £1. Oxygen Ilouse in the final production in their current season of lunchtime theatre: anew play by Colin Mortimer based on a New Anatomies Mon 21. Wed 23 8.- Fri 25 Mar. 7.30pm. £2 (£1). Telford College present a play by Timberlake Wurtenbaker (see Adam Ilouse Theatre in Scottish Student Drama Festival listings). Red Noses Tue 22. Thurs 24. Sat 26 Mar. 7.30pm. £2 (£1). Telford College in Peter Barnes' comedy (see Adam House in Scottish Student Drama Festival listings). Scottish Student Drama Festival Productions See separate listings. 1988 Edinburgh Puppet Festival Wed 30 Mar - 9 April. Started just a few years ago the Puppet Festival is now a phenomenal success: last year sold out across the board. So book early this year — shows are not all just for children. but a full list is given on the Kids Listing Page. I PORTOBELLO TOWN HALL. Portobello High Street. Tales of the Arabian Nights Tue 29 Mar. 2.30pm. £1 (50p). Tickets avail. in advance from A & J Murray. Newsagents. 8a Bath Street. Portobello. Communicado Theatre Company in their touring revival of Gerry Mulgrew‘s stage adaptation of five of the famous Tales. See also Touring. I ROSEBERY HALL South Oucensferry. Tales of the Arabian Nights Wed 30 Mar. 2.30pm. £1 (50p). Tickets avail. in advance from Ainsworth the Chemist. 27 High Street: The Town Cryer. 42 High Street; District Council. 53 High Street. South Oucensferry. Communicado in their revival of Gerry Mulgrew‘s lively stage adaptation of the famous Tales. See also Touring. I ROYAL LYCEUM Grindlay Street. 229 9697. Box Office Mon—Sat Illam—bpm. lflam—Spm on perf. evgs. Bar. Rest/Cafe. [D] (TheatreSaver Concession Cards cost £1 . last all year. give £1 offthc full price each time you come for you and a friend — available to OAPs. UB4()s. Students. Disabled. Under-24 railcard holders. YTS scheme and young people under 18). Tickets for Lyceum productions are also available at the Ticket Centre. Waverley Bridge; branches of AT May‘s travel and the Queen‘s Hall. Clerk Street. Loot Fri 11 Mar — Sat 2 April. 7.45pm. £2.7()-£6. TheatreSaver holders £1 off. Sat mat 26 Mar 3.15pm. Hugh Hodgart directs Joe Orton‘s black comedy. See Review. I ST BRIOES CENTRE Orwell Terrace. Tales of the Arabian Nights Thurs 31 Mar. 7.30pm. For tickets please call 031 346 1405. Communicado Theatre Company in their revival of Gerry Mulgrew‘s lively adaptation of the famous Tales.
CONSENT
Boughcast Theatre Company. On Tour. A play about a family coming to terms with bereavement and trying to fathom the reason for the father's death might sound like a grim evening in the theatre. In fact, Michael Duke addresses his subject matter with an honesty and sense of humour that makes the result positive.
Eric, laid off work. seems to will himself into the grave. His iamin cannot understand, and Duke's play shifts to and fro from past to present, as does the mind when worrying at a problem, to unravel the relationships in the family. As he does so your feelings switch back and forth, sympathising with different characters in turn, until a complex picture builds up of the way people unintentionally form walls between one another.
Ashley Forbes’ production, set on a grey, abstract background (Graham Johnston) is spare and slightly stylised, avoiding the plodding naturalism that the subject matter could invite. The rather token ‘career-girl’ daughter-in-Iaw is not entirely plausible, otherwise though the characters are instantly recognisable and well performed, and there is a strong performance from James Martin as Eric, 3 man who is suddenly left staring into the void and cannot communicate this to anyone. (Sarah Hemming). Seen at the Tron, Glasgow. Now at Theatre Workshop. Edinburgh. See Listings.
STATE OF CONFUSION
On Tour
David Kane's new play (produced by Edinburgh’s Theatre Workshop Company and premiered at the Theatre Workshop) is an ambitious attempt at a Dario Fo-type political farce. Set in Scotland in the nearfuture, Charles is on the throne and Britain has a new PM — but a government with an apparently similar set of principles to the current one.
The PM (played by Andrew Dallmeyer as a deranged Sir Keith Joseph look-a-Iike) has been admitted to a private nursing home after coming face to face (he claims) with an apocalyptic
vision in the Gents at a CBl dinner. No one must know— least of all the press. There are more important things at stake than the PM's career, believe his aids— namelytheir careers.
Add to this a belligerent nurse, 3 randy female psychiatrist, a scoop-hungry journalist and a Scottish separatist terrorist on the run from prison, and there's the scope for laughs. Unfortunately, the result is frenetic rather than funny and the relentless Sledgehammer satire is for much of the play simply (wherever your sympathies lie) annoying.
There ought to be mileage in taking the tone of a government and portraying it in a madcap nightmare vision. But here something has gone very wrong. State Of Confusion progresses to the point where the audience is uncertain what the aim originally was, and the target remains unscathed. (Nigel Billen)
State Of Confusion can be seen in The List area this fortnight at the George Square Theatre, Edinburgh and The Drama Centre, Glasgow. See Listings.
THE TROJAN WOMEN
Bedlam Theatre, Edinburgh. Bun ended. Set immediately after the fall of Troy, Euripides‘ The Trojan Women is a bitter lament overthe ravages of war. In a static setting before a backdrop of a smouldering city. the play focuses on a group of Trojan Women whose suffering and loss are to be made worse by their imminent slavery to the conquering Greeks. In turn we see Cassandra (Simona Hughs), a virgin once consecrated to Apollo, now earmarked as a concubine to King Agamemnon, then Andromache (Andrea Spencer-Cooke), now destined to live with her husband’s murderer, then Helen (Cathy McNair). the cause of the war and loved by no one and finally Astyanax who, despite being a small boy is killed by the Greeks for fear that he might grow up to seek revenge. These scenes are unified by the mourning Hecabe (Lucy Morgan) whose emotional loss. as wife, mother and grandmother, is unsurpassed.
In a play where little in the way of
action or character development takes place, the emotional impact ofthis devastation cannot be overstated and l while EUTC handled it competently, l they neverquite realised the play‘sfull ' dramatic potential. Betteruse could I have been made of the chorus which was distracted and zombie-like where 1 it should have been conveying the full ‘ horrific weight ofa war-torn city. and l I would have liked more of the lighting i and sound effects which created a i desolate atmosphere at the start and finish but were neglected elsewhere. But despite the segmented and static nature of the play EUTC did succeed in giving a proficient reading which held the attention throughout. (Mark Fisher)
LOOT
Boyal Lyceum, Edinburgh Presumably part of Joe Orton's intention for Loot was that it provide an i unsettling evening ratherthan a l hilarious one. Although a farce in structure - and thus very different to the ' black melodrama of Entertaining Mr , Sloane —the characters break the rules ' by seeming not to care about their fate. Hal cheerfully hides the proceeds of his and hisfriends‘ bankjob in his mother's coffin and talks blithely about I an Dedipal complex. Even the widowed father, when finally wrongfully arrested forthe murderof his wife, can only bemoan what a terrible thing it I is to happen to a man who has kissed i the Pope. i Hugh Hodgart’s production is true to this comic imbalance. The farce is i secondaryto the sharp wit orthe i absurdity of the one-liners. However, I the result fails to be entirely satisfactory. We are all so much more used to Orton‘s view of authority and society, that the shock waves—which should take the place of hysteria — take longerto make an impact. An entertaining play well worth seeing—with a fine performance by Peter Jonfield as the now famous police inspector character, Truscott— but it could do with the injection into the direction of something really tasteless. (Nigel Billen)
I THEATRE WORKSHOP 3411amilton Place. 226 5425. Box Office Mon—Sat 9.3(lam—5.3(lpm. Bar. Cafe. [1)] Consent Fri 18 & Sat 1‘) Mar. 8pm. £3(£2). Roughcast Theatre Company in a new play by Michael Duke. See Review. Youth Theatre Double Bill Fri 25 & Sat 26 Mar. 7.3(lpm. £1 .50 (£1 ). Theatre Workshop's two older youth theatre groups in a double bill of shows they have been working on recently. Lessons in Time. presented by the Middle Youth Theatre ( 13- 15 years) takes a look at how groups are formed and why. through the eyes of a group ofschoolehildren who
travel back in time. The Best Things in Life
Are Free considers money and why who own what. and is presented by the Senior Youth Theatre ( lb years and over).who Claim not to have any.
I THOMAS MORTON HALL Leith (Behind Leith Library).
Tales of the Arabian Nights Mon 28 Mar. 2.30pm. £1 (50p). Communicado in their revival of Crerry Nlulgrew‘s lively stage adaptation of the famous Tales. See also Touring. -
I TRAVERSE THEATRE I 12 West Bow. (irassmarkel. 226 2633. Box Office Tue—Sat lilam—Spm. Sun (>- ltlpm. Bar. Rest. Tickets also avail from the Ticket Centre. 22 Market Street. Seats from£2. Sundays all seats £2 (non-members £2.50). Brendon Nash Fri is a Sat 1‘) Mar. 1(lpm. See Cabaret.
Lupus'I‘ue 22 Mar. 7pm. £1 (Slip). Edinburgh Playwrights‘ Workshop in a workshopped production of a new play by Ken Waldrun.
The Straw Chair Thurs 24 Mar -- Sun 17 April. 7.30pm. £4.5Il(£2.5(l):
NB. THESE ARE Tl 1E 'I‘RAVERSE‘S NEW ’I‘ICKE'I‘ PRICES — FROM NOW ON NO MEMBERSHIP IS REQUIRED. THOSE W1 10 ARE MEMBERS ALREADY WILL CONTINUE TO RECEIVE DISCOUNTS UNTILTI IEIR MEMBERSHIP RUNSOUT.
(Econ. members £4: Full members £3.51); Student members £2). The Traverse start their twenty-fifth anniversary season with a new play by Sue (ilover set on St Kilda. See Feature and panel.
Marcus Grant Hi 25 .2 Sat 2631;”. lllpm. See Cabaret.
Three Short Plays by Hugh MacDiarmid Tue 2‘) Mar. 7pm. £1 (511p). lzdinburgh Playwrights \Vorkshop in workshopped productionsot three short playsby oneol Scotland‘s most famous poets.
Scottish Student Drama Festival See separate listings.
I WILKIE HOUSE Cowgate
Scottish Student Drama Festival and Cabaret See separate listings.
TOURING
This section lists shows that are touring Scotland. We give detailed listings only for periods when they are not truly hundreds of miles from the Central Belt. There is a phone numberfor each company. however. should f you require more information. Unless otherwise specified. the number aftereach venue listed is the telephone numberlor ticket enquiries for that particular evening (please note. this is not always the venue number).
I The Importance of Being Honest Wildcat
The list 18— 31 March 198321