Theatre
11am. £10 (£8). A brand new opera written by young composer Gareth Williams and librettist David Brock, inspired by the rites of passage played out in Sloans many times over the years – christenings, birthdays, engagement parties, weddings and wakes. The performance takes place over the three floors of the pub, and culminates in an interactive finale in the Grand Ballroom. ■ THEATRE ROYAL 282 Hope Street, 0844 871 7647. The Pitmen Painters Mon 25–Sat 30 Jul, 7.30pm (Thu & Sat mat 2.30pm). £17–£26. The acclaimed Newcastle Live Theatre’s touring production of Lee Hall’s play about a group of Northumbrian miners who, in 1934, started taking art appreciation classes, only to become celebrated artists themselves, all the while never giving up their day jobs down the mine.
■ TRAMWAY 25 Albert Drive, 0845 330 3501.
✽✽ Untitled Love Story Thu 28–Sat 30 Jul, 7.30pm. £12 (£8). First
chance to catch a new show by David Leddy’s award winning Fire Exit company before it goes to the Fringe for August. The piece asks audiences to close their eyes and meditate on the Venice-set love story unfolding on stage before them.
■ TRON THEATRE 63 Trongate, 552 4267.
✽✽ Casablanca – The Gin Joint Cut Until Sat 23 Jul, 7.45pm (Sat mat 2.30pm). £11–£15 (£7–£11). Of all the theatres in all the world, Morag Fullarton’s three-hander heads to The Tron with some of the most iconic scenes and lines ever written. See review, page 85.
✽✽ Whatever Happened to Benny Hill? Until Sat 23 Jul, 8pm. £9 (£7).
Grant Smeaton explores the fall from grace of one of Britain’s most popular comedians. Prom Night of the Living Dead Tue 2–Sat 6 Aug, 7.45pm (Sat mat 2pm). £10 (£6). Werewolves and witches have infiltrated the high school dance in Scottish Youth Theatre’s fun Summer Festival 2011 piece.
■ VARIOUS VENUES Merchant City.
✽✽ Surge Thu 21–Sun 24 Jul, times vary. Prices vary (most performances
free). Festival of challenging, surprising and above all entertaining physical performance taking place in the Arches and the surrounding Merchant City area of Glasgow.
✽✽ Merchant City Festival Thu 21–Sun 24 Jul, times vary. Prices
vary (most performances free). Crossing over somewhat with Surge, the Merchant City Festival returns with a programme bursting at the seams with intriguing outdoor theatre pieces (many interactive) on the streets of the district, plus a dance programme on Sun 24 Jul at the Briggait, Grimm tales and Shakespearean sonnets in the Ramshorn Churchyard, and many more events elsewhere. See merchantcityfestival.com for full listings.
EDINBURGH ■ CHURCH HILL THEATRE 33a Morningside Road, 529 4147. Mary of the High Seas: Concert Reading Fri 22 & Sat 23 Jul, 7pm; Sun 24 Jul, 1pm. By donation. Staged reading of a new musical by Joel Mason, promising adventure on the high seas, action on the battlefields and romance in the back streets. This reading is designed to raise funds for a full production of the show, plus a significant proportion of the money raised will go to the Edinburgh Younger Parkinson’s Group, of which the show’s writer and director is a member. Dunedin International Folk Dance Festival Fri 29 Jul, 7.30pm. £8–£10 (£6–£8). See George Square, Glasgow. Tickets via The Hub, call 0131 473 2000.
86 THE LIST 21 Jul–4 Aug 2011
T T A Y W L U A P
: O T O H P
■ THE MOUND dunedindancers.org.uk FREE Dunedin International Folk Dance Festival Tue 26 Jul, 2–4pm. See George Square, Glasgow.
■ PLAYHOUSE 18-22 Greenside Place, 0844 847 1660. John Edward Thu 21 Jul, 7pm. £55.50–£67.10. The superstar psychic medium reaches out from the land of the living. The Glee Club Experience Fri 29 & Sat 30 Jul, 7.30pm (Sat mat 2.30pm). £18. Over 100 local youngsters who have taken part in the annual Edinburgh Playhouse Stage Experience show off their singing, dancing and general razzmatazz. Halfway To Paradise: The Billy Fury Story Thu 4 Aug, 7.30pm. £23.25. Rock’n’rolling musical charting the rise to fame of the pop icon who sold more singles for Decca than the Stones.
■ SCOTTISH PARLIAMENT Holyrood Road, 348 5000. dunedindancers.org.uk FREE Dunedin International Folk Dance Festival Mon 25 Jul, 1–3pm. See George Square, Glasgow. This performance is preceded by a parade down the Royal Mile from 12.30pm. ■ SCOTTISH STORYTELLING CENTRE 43–45 High Street, 556 9579. dunedindancers.org.uk
FREE Dunedin International Folk Dance Festival Mon 25 Jul, 2.15–3.45pm. See George Square, Glasgow.
OUTSIDE THE CITIES
■ DUNDEE REP Tay Square, Dundee, 01382 223530. SDT Under Construction Wed 27 Jul, 7.30pm. £8 (£5). The Rep’s resident dance company showcases recent short contemporary works choreographed by company members.
✽✽ Futureproof Wed 3 Aug, 7.30pm. £13. The first in a series of co- productions by the Traverse Theatre Company and Dundee Rep, this new play by Lynda Radley tells of a travelling freak show that hits hard times. Catch a preview before the Fringe run, or see it when it returns to the Rep in the autumn.
■ THE HILL HOUSE Upper Colquhoun Street, Helensburgh, 0844 493 2208. Great Expectations Sun 31 Jul, 6pm. £12 (children £8; family ticket £38). An outdoor adaptation of a classic Dickensian tale. Bring something to sit on or a picnic if you wish.
■ THE LODGE GARDENS North Berwick. Booking via Brunton Theatre box office: 665 2240. Twelfth Night Sat 30 Jul, 7pm. £9 (£6). Shakespeare’s classic gender-swapping, mistaken identity romp performed by Quantum Theatre.
■ MACROBERT University of Stirling, Stirling, 01786 466666. Hamlet Sun 24 Jul, 3pm. £12 (£6–£9). Glasgow’s Bard in the Botanics takes its first ever production of Shakespeare’s Danish tragedy to the grounds of the Macrobert. Bring a picnic and something to sit on and pray for sunshine. Little Shop of Horrors Fri 29–Sat 30 Jul, 7.30pm (Sat mat 2pm). £12 (£6–£9). A young cast, directed by Johnny McKnight, performs the cult musical. The Lady Boys of Bangkok Mon 1–Wed 3 Aug, 7.30pm. £19.50 (£17.50). Feathers, sequins, gender confusion: you know what to expect.
■ STIRLING CASTLE Old Town, Stirling, 01786 450000. dunedindancers.org.uk Dunedin International Folk Dance Festival Sat 30 Jul, 2–4pm. Included in £13 (£10; children £6.50) castle admission. See George Square, Glasgow. This performance is preceded by a parade from 1.30pm. ■ ST ANDREWS Various town centre streets, for info contact the Byre Theatre: 01334 475000. FREE Inside Out Street Theatre & Outdoor Performance Festival Thu 28–Sat 30 Jul, times vary. Third edition of this St Andrews festival of outdoor performance, music, dance,
PREVIEW CONTEMPORARY YOUTH DANCE PROJECT Y RSAMD, Glasgow, Wed 27 Jul, then touring
From the Shetland Islands down to the Borders, the prospect of spending a summer with Project Y entices young dancers from all quarters of Scotland. Now in its sixth year, this unique programme, run by Y Dance, gives 16-21-year-olds a chance to work with four professional choreographers, before going out on tour.
But with 90 young people auditioning for just 25 places, you need more than good technique to stand out from the crowd. ‘In the practical audition we do look for a certain level of technique and performance quality,’ says Anna Kenrick, acting artistic director of Y Dance. ‘But the main element we’re looking for is a passion for dance – a real energy and interest which
comes through not just when they’re dancing, but when they’re being interviewed.’ During the rehearsal period, the dancers will help shape four very different works created by Kenrick herself, Y Dance’s assistant director Yvonne Young, and freelance choreographers Ruth Mills and Marc Brew. All the while being treated as if they were in a professional contemporary dance company.
‘Our ethos is to try and push youth dance to its full potential,’ says Kenrick. ‘Just because they’re young people we don’t need to treat them differently. I think sometimes choreographers go in thinking that they’re creating a youth dance piece – so it comes out looking like a youth dance piece. Whereas if you go in thinking I’m going to use the bodies and minds I have in front of me appropriately, then you can make some very high quality work.’ (Kelly Apter)