Theatre
se'Asows GREETINGS King's Theatre. Edinburgh, Tue 9— Sat 13 Nov
Neil McKinven (centre) in _. ,1, HE CARETAKER Woyzeck (2002) at the Lyceum Brunton Theatre. Musselburgh, Thu " ~ ., 11 Nov then touring.
N. ' 1 . . ‘ 1 ° . 7' o 1 l’nif" ‘l' .' l. 1) v ‘ .13 l I v v ‘t ‘ ° m J .' .HHH, ., ' H . l 111’ ' 1 1 . . 11 1 ' ' t " ' 1.1 . 1 . l ‘ °' ' tr. ' 1 t, " » 1 1' z . ’ l 1 ? T'1» ' ‘ 'l 1 ' 1:11.. 1'1211.1 ,I11,'; "l ' approaches performance will surely stand him in good Tai' ’ .1‘ 971-:‘1-27 * I .' ' .: 2" ~lT::!:1)1IveaAyNGclaEsgow Tue 16—Sat 20 Nov then touring Stead for the jet). And his grasD Of SUbjec.tiVitY’ . T, W W. " 1 7 '. ’ ' I " ' ‘ ‘ ‘ ' emotional need and the necessity of healing in this . .' : x ‘ " " 1 We can‘t rely on God for redemption any more, as not piece augurs well for the production. ‘lt’s about :‘ " ' ’1 " ' 1': . tr many of us believe in this entity. So where do we go to everybody beginning to understand what happened. It‘s " w 3! . :' ,' " w ' :' 1 71-1 . assuage our guilt, be shrived, and move on? The new not about revenge or anything like that; it’s about 1’ m: " :‘ . . rz' ' ‘ .' .'..' . high priests of this human necessity are perhaps accepting what happened. I think that was present in 5.11? ' ‘ ' : .' 1v" 7 psychiatrists, yet few of us have access to these folk, Word for Word, the last text by Linda we saw here, but Wu: 11' : " " r 1:: .' ‘ ’ . 1 w and they sometimes prove only able to prescribe also in this, her first. It’s about events, but events can M‘s; ineffective chemical surrogates for human needs. be used in many ways, to hate or try to understand, for Perhaps most of us turn to our friends for help, but example. People have choices, although their choices often only in dire necessity. are often limited,’ McKinven says. Such circumstances occur in this acclaimed Fringe And how is he finding his new role? He peers over his hit of 1999 by Linda McLean, which posits the reunion, pint of cider at the television screen suspended on the under conditions of great stress, of three old friends, wall behind me in Edinburgh’s Cask and Barrel pub; separated by years and distance from their shared there‘s a football match on. ‘It’s not unlike managing a Glasgow childhoods. Each is haunted by past love, as football team,’ he says. ‘Like someone who’s a player well as physical and psychological violence, and each who goes on to football management, you glean carries unhealed and sometimes undisclosed scars. certain things from people who you’ve worked with and It‘s good to see the first substantial revival of the respected as a professional. The big piece of advice play. and to see the directorial debut of Neil McKinven, I’ve been given is to do something you’re passionate one of Scotland’s most distinguished actors, with this about, and that’s how I feel about this text.’ Produced production. Directing seems the next step for by the admirable new company Spartaki, of whom I McKinven, for his notable textual sensitivity and the think we’ll be hearing a lot more, this piece looks set to analytic manner with which this likeable man intrigue. (Steve Cramer)
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