HAPPY HOGMANAY!
It’s bigger, it’s better and it’s back -— Edinburgh’s Hogmanay Festival returns, and this year Glasgow has one too. There’s never been a better time to take to the streets for the Bells, with free music, comedy and theatre on offer in both cities, plus the chance to wish your fellow citizens a’ the best for 1995. Haaaappy New Year!
‘1 J i 1‘ z"&- :5? . A Bay City Rollers ‘We’re trying to stay away from the hard-core nostalgia gigs,’ says veteran rocker Eric Faulkner. It’s been a tough few years for one half of a legend (Les McKeown is still at it too) that has kept on rolling in the face of legal wrangles and a huge credibility problem. The teen idols are no longer teen, nor is their tan-base, but there are enough grown-ups who still want to Shang a Lang. You can too, as the Bay City boys (plus one girl) bring in the Bells. See Edinburgh’s Hogmanay for details.
V The Kaiser’s”
As the Festive season looms ever closer on the horizon copies of The Beatles’ BBC sessions album will no doubt fly out of the shops faster than buttons busting off post-prandial shirts on Christmas Day. Those wishing to recapture the Hamburg days spirit of the coiffure-challenged popsters could do a lot worse than nip down to George Square to catch the beat- inspired choons of The Kaisers. They look sharper than the moptops and all of them are alive. The Kaisers play George Square, Glasgow. See listings.
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16 The List l6 December l994--l2 January 1995
V Karnavires
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The Marseilles-based street theatre company Karnavires is coming to Edinburgh on an exploratory expedition. The fourteen-strong team of comedians, musicians, technicians and fireworks wizards has been together for ten years, stunning audiences of up to 20,000 people with wild pyrotechnic displays and the innovative use of street sets.
‘Performing in the street allows you to reach an audience who would never go to the theatre, and often they end up going away saying how much they enjoyed the experience,’ says director Remy Auda, who regards street theatre as an egalitarian form of drama.
They’ve come a long way since their first independently-produced album ‘Play Gaelic’. Nearly thirteen years on, the band has sold countless albums and played to countless thousands of fans in their Scottish heartland.
Street theatre brings the audience much closer to the action than conventional drama and Kamavlres recognise and exploit this to create the illusion of danger and a sense of
urgency, comparing themselves to the
bulls who are allowed to run the streets on feast days in Spain. Still, Auda insists there is no chance of anyone being gored.
‘The show is frightening, but not dangerous,’ he says reassuringly. ‘We’re not there to kill people but to
entertain them. We’re masters of what
we do and there’s no need to worry.’ Karnavires perform at Edinburgh’s Hogmanay. See listings.
Runrig’s Celtic rock touches a national
nerve and reaches parts other brews can't reach. Catch them at The Concert in The Gardens during
Edinburgh’s Hogmanay. See listings for
details.
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