THEATRE LISTINGS
I ROYAL SCOTTISH ACADEMY OF MUSIC
AND DRAMA 100 Renfrew Street. 333 5057. [Access: I’I’A. 1.. Facilities: WC. WS. AS.
R. B. T. G. Help: A. AA]
Troilus and Cressida Tue ts-l-‘ri 21 Jun. 7.15pm. £3 (£1.50). The final-yeardrama students present their final show and they're hardly hedging their bets. ()ne of Shakespeare's least know it and most ‘difficult' plays has contemporary resonances aplenty as it explores the Trojan Wars.
I SCOTTISH MASK AND PUPPET CENTRE S‘ Baicarres Avenue. Kcly indale. 3396185. The centre is open Tue-"Sat 10am-5pm and Sun 2—5pm. A 30-minute talk and tour round the centre costs £1 (75p). Workshops and intorntation are as ailable by appointment (the centre's library containsov er 800 titles).
I THEATRE ROYAL I lope Street. 331 l 23-1 Box Office Mon—Sal Ilium-<0le. (730pm on perfevgs). Bar. Bullet. [Accessz l’.
umbemould
/"——T Thurs 20 - Sat 22 June 7.45pm
CUMBERNA ULD YOUTH THEATRE A MIDSUMMER
NIGHT'S DREAM
by William Shakespeare directed by Ben Twist
Tickets: £3.00/1.50
Thurs 27 - Sat 29 June 7.45pm
CLYDE UNITY THEATRE RAG WOMAN,
RICH WOMAN
by John Binnie from the novel by Margaret Thomson Davis
Tickets: Thurs £3.00/1.50 Fri/Sat £4.50/2.25
BOX OFFICE
0236 732887
THE. TRAVERSE mam - 2 2 e 2 a 3, 3
GIASSIAIKEI
031
I’PA. R. I‘acilities: WC. WS. If. (i. R. B.
Help; AA]
Big Friendly Giant Tue lS—Sat 22 Jun. 2pm and 7.30pm. £3.50—UII50. Roald Dahl's big story about a big person should provide fun for all the family. The company has been on the road since I‘ebruary in this first ever adaptation of IIIL‘ INIUR.
The Good Old Days of Music Hall Mon 24 Jun. 7.30pm. USU-£10.50. The staffare dressing up in Victorian garb and you are also encouraged to don those corsets fora night ofold-style entertainment.
I THIRD EYE CENTRE 3511Sauchiehall Street. 332 0523. Cafe open 1 lam—2.30pm Tue- I-‘ri and during evening performances. [Access: I’I’A. L. liacllitics: WC. WS. (i. R. B. Help:
A A]
Democracy L'niil Sat l5Jun. 7.30pm. £5 (£3 50). Second production by all-male physical theatre company . Pants. which has been in residency at the Third Eye to develop this performance. I Ierc they use dance. comedy and plagiarism in an attempt to get to the heart of the male psyche. See preview.
I TRON THEATRE ()3 Trongate. 553 4267. Box Office Tue—Sat Noon—8pm: Stilt 12.30—1 1pm. Closed Mondays. [Accessz R. ST. Facilities: WS. E. (i. R. 8. Help: AA]
Made from Glrders Fri 15-Sle loJun. 7.30pm. £5.50(£2.50). .\'ot the story ofthe making of the lrn Bru ad but something equally tragic. 'I'heatremachine presents the life of the world's worst poet. William
‘ Mc(ionagall and establishes him as one of
Scotland's unsung heroes. Entertaining and amusing if a little lackingin depth.
See That's HerTue 25—Sun 30Jun. 7.30pm. £5.50 (£2.50). Dorothy Paul. one of Scotland‘s finest entertainers. usually contents herselfwith being the brightest sparkler in panto. L'nbclievably . this is her
Rabc Nesbitt
children's sensitive disposition (or innocence) then leave them at home. You certainly will not see this kind of thingon BBCZ.
And Then There Were None l'rom Mon 24—Sat ZUJun. £7.30pm. £5. The Colin McIntyre Repertory Company present the first in a season of summer thrillers courtesy of Agatha Cltristie.
I MURRAYFIELO ICE RINK CAR PARK Riversdale Crescent. 313 4501.
Gerry Cottle’s Circus Tue lS—Sun 30Jun. 5pm and 7.30pm (weekdays). 2pm and 5pm (Sat and Sun). £(>—£ 10 (Li—£8). When Archaos were still in short trousers. Mr Cottle was w owing adults arid kidsalike. This is traditional circus. In other words. the kids can come but they will see animals having chairs poked in their faces. See preview.
I NETHERBOW ARTS CENTRE «I3 High Street. 556 957‘). Box Office. “lam—4.30pm, 7—9pm perf. evgs. Cafe. [Accessz R. Facilities: WC. W5. E. Cr. B. R. Help: A. AA]
We. Charles XII L'ntil Sat 15 Jun. 7.30pm. £5 (£3.50). A new company. Fifth Estate.
presents Allan Sharpe's translation of
Bernard da Costa's power play. Spring Fling. See review. I ROSS THEATRE Princes Street Gardens.
I The Story OI Oshossi Sat 15 Jun. 1pm. Free.
first ev er one-woman show. It‘s written by
Dorothy and directed by John Bett.
I ASSEMBLY ROOMS 5-1 George Street.
; Skyhean and Moon L'mil Sat l5iun.
7.30pm. £2.50(£1.50). Creation fable with mov ement. music and drama presented by Lung I la's Theatre Company. Spring Fling.
I DIVERSE ATTRACTIONS Riddles Court. 332 Law nrnarkct. 225 8%1.
Writers‘ and Playwrights‘ Workshops lit-l )4 Jun. final day of workshops leading toa public reading at the Tray erse Theatre Spring Fling.
I KING'S THEATRE I [.0 en Street . 2.“) 1301. Box ( )lIiec Mon 7 Sat 10am Spin. Bar. ] Access: I’I’A. l.. I‘acilttlcs: WC. ws. .-\s. 1-..(i. it. Help; AA]
Rab C. Nesbitt l‘ntil Sat 23.1uu. Mon- l-‘ri "50an Sat 5pm and Spm. Wed mat 3.30pm. t5 LS50. All your favourite uncouthtes from the TV show aliveon stage II you're worried about your
EDIIlI-UIIGII
ttxeiris'r; JIM: scams or vrsrris'o eostmsnes cos'ris't:i:s . . . Wed June 12 - Sun June 16 7.30pm ()NE YELLOW RABBIT (CANADA) present THE EROTIC IRONY OF OLD GLORY
"Everything theatre should be - daring, dangerous and disturbing“ - The Toronto Star
Wed June 19 - Sat June 29 (Except Mondays) 7.30pm OXYGEN HOUSE present TRADE
"Raw energy and authenticity. Audiences have been shell-shocked" - Iivening News
58Thc List 14 — 27.1unc 1991
f EDINBURGH a
Oshumare Music Dance Drama Company keep the traditions of African culture alive in this performance about a nation which
l
overcomes the power of a great black eagle using spiritual. physical and mental powers. The performance includes local people starring after a w eek of workshops with the company. Spring Fling.
I ST BRIDE'S CENTRE ()rweli Terrace. 340 1-105.
The Hired Man Wed lO-Sat JUIune. 7.30pm. Sat mats 2.30pm. £4 (£3). The Edinburgh Mtisic Theatre('ompanv present Melvyn Bragg's (yes. that Melvvn Bragg)storyofCumbria.minesand ' working-class passions and give us a song or two into the bargain. i I TRAVERSE THEATRE l 13 West Bow. (’irassmarket. 22o 3633. Box Office Tue-Sat 10am—8pm. Sun (v-ltlpm. Bar. Rest. Tickets also available from the Ticket Centre. Market Street. |Accessz St. Facilities: It Help: AA]
The Erotic Irony of Old Glory t 'ntil Sun If» Jun. 7.30pm. £0 (£3). (‘anada's()ne Yellow Rabbit in a tast~paced. disturbi lg. dance-d rapla.
Erotic pleasures with One Yellow Rabbit
Two's Company L'ntil Sat 15 Jun. 8pm. £1.50(£l ). Leith Rep Community Theatre present adouble bill of plays. The ll'ully
; Drugs is about an afternoon tea party with a difference and The Factory looks at
women workers during the Second World War. Authors are Jess Wilson and Linda Henry.
Women Write Sat 15 Jun. 2—3.30pm. Free.
Readings from women writers. performed
I l l
in conjunction with Theatre Workshopfor
[113111311— WE, CHARLES Xll
Netherbow Arts Centre, Edinburgh until Sat15June. It doesn’t require two hours to make the point that brute ambition and an obsessive will to win are dangerous and likely to have destructive effects. yet this is the only idea conveyed with any clarity in Fifth Estate's new production.
Loosely based on the story of a 17th-century Swedish king, the play follows him and his dwindling. increasingly disillusioned army across Europe as he fights battle after battle, purely for the sake of adding to his list of triumphs. It is described as a ‘parable', and we are all too obviously meant to compare Charles's ruthless megalomania with that of certain modern rulers or captains of industry (they even spell this out at the end in case you miss it). While it seems to be attempting an examination of the seductive charisma which often
accompanies such a will to power, neither the play nor the perfomances are sophisticated enough to carry this off. In addition, it is stated more than once that Charles has ‘no choice' but to act as he does (precisely why is not explained) thus removing the ground for debate the play is supposedly trying to occupy.
A central problem is the playing of the king himself: he is clearly meant to be a compelling, mesmerising figure, inspiring others to join his mad adventures through sheer force of personality. Unfortunately Kevin Rooney lacks the physical presence, and more often comes over like a petulant overgrown schoolboy having a tantrum. This is compounded by a frequently wooden script (translated from a French original: badly, it would appear) and the largely unvarying tone of the production, particularly in the repeated confrontations between the king and his generals: they offer worried advice, he shouts them down then orders them into battle yet again.
At times it wobbles awkwardly into farce, as when a besotted baroness tries desperately and unsuccessfully to seduce Charles, but this sits too uneasily with the rest of the piece to be funny, welcome as a laugh would be. Towards the end, when Charles is finally losing a battle, he exclaims,
‘This is hellish!’.Sittinginthe audience, one can only agree. (Sue Wilson)