THEATRE
SOCIAL DRAMA THE COLLECTION Brunton Theatre, Musselburgh, Thu 19 Sep; Traverse, Edinburgh, Fri 20 & Sat 21 Sep; Eastwood Theatre, Giffnock Sat 28 Sep ●●●●●
The Collection is, sadly, a timely revival. Mike Cullen’s play has shades of Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman in its study of a man who sees the emptiness of his profession and David Mamet’s Glengarry Glen Ross in the sharp, vulgar banter between men, yet its enduring relevance is emphasised by the presence of the Citizens Advice Bureau in the Tron’s foyer. A play about debt, and its social and emotional impact, is perhaps even more relevant now than when it was first performed in 1995.
Director Michael Emans has assembled a cast that includes two legends of Scottish theatre – Tam Dean Burn and Jimmy Chisholm – and the conflict between their characters provides The Collection’s dramatic tension. Lawson (Chisholm) has lost his edge as a debt- collector, while Shaw (Burn) is slowly being seduced into an immoral world by the quick-talking boss (David Tarkenter).
The sparse set, and the three actors’ solid performances, reveal Cullen’s simple tragic structure. While none of the characters are sympathetic – even Lawson’s recognition of his own guilt is tainted by vicious behaviour – Cullen exposes how the brutality of their world corrupts both victim and predator. The office banter of the three men – all macho survivalism and arrogant lechery – is contrasted with the anguish of the female debtor (Pauline Turner), who finds herself reduced to despair and useless aggression in her attempts to escape the cycle of debt. Lawson’s attempts to resolve the problems only draw him deeper
into the darkness, and the abrupt shifts of mood in the second act lend the production a gloomy fatalism. Rapture’s revival offers no surprises, but presents a well-made play in a measured, intense version that is unflinching in its portrayal of a real horror. (Gareth K Vile)
Jess Meets Angus/Andrew Meets . . . Fri 4 & Sat 5 Oct, 7.30pm. £11 (£8). German company resistdance explore the process of ageing. Part of the Luminate festival. Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet Fri 11 & Sat 12 Oct, 7.30pm. £12.50–£22.50. The New York company with a European style visit Scotland for the first time, to perform works by Jiri Kylián, Crystal Pite and Jo Strømgren. See preview, page 99. Our House Tue 15–Sat 19 Oct, 102 THE LIST 19 Sep–17 Oct 2013
7.30pm (Sat 2.30pm also). £15–£22. A fast-moving romantic comedy set in North London featuring the music of Madness. ■ KING’S THEATRE 2 Leven Street, 529 6000. James and the Giant Peach Thu 19–Sat 21 Sep. See Kids listings. Dunsinane Tue 1–Sat 5 Oct, 7.30pm (Wed & Sat 2pm also). £14–£29.50. Major new production from the National Theatre of Scotland. David Greig’s play
examines the pain of a war-ravaged Scotland after the death of Macbeth and an English invasion. Kiss Me Honey, Honey! Wed 16 & Thu 17 Oct, 8pm. £21.50. Comedy about two men who are united in friendship by their love of Shirley Bassey. Featuring Andy Gray and Grant Stott. Ages 12+.
■ LAURISTON CASTLE 2a Cramond Road South, 529 3963. Musing the News Sat 21 Sep, 11am. £20. Travel back in time with William Robert Reid and help him catch up with the day’s news. Brunch served afterwards in the old castle kitchen. ■ NORTH EDINBURGH ARTS CENTRE 15a Pennywell Court, 315 2151. Couldn’t Care Less Fri 11 Oct, 7.30pm. Sat 12 Oct, 2pm. £8 (£3–£5). Play about a woman in the early stages of Alzheimer’s, and her daughter’s reluctant assumption of the role of carer.
■ NORTHERN STAGE @ ST STEPHENS St Stephen Street, Stockbridge, 558 3047. FREE Make. Do. And Mend Thu 19 Sep, 10.30am. A day of action in which the gathered group spend the day imagining and implementing real solutions to problems you suggest – an attempt to change theatre (and perhaps the world) for the better – in one day. Beginning at St Stephen’s and concluding at Forest Fringe, with a collective jaunt between venues – including a new work created by Third Angel especially for the event.
■ ROYAL LYCEUM THEATRE Grindlay Street, 248 4848. Dark Road Wed 25 Sep–Sat 17 Oct (not Sun & Mon), 7.45pm (Wed & Sat 2.30pm also). £12–£27.50 (previews £10). Ian Rankin’s debut stage play, co- written and directed by Mark Thomson. See preview, page 98.
■ SCOTTISH STORYTELLING CENTRE 43–45 High Street, 556 9579. The Weegie Board Sat 21 Sep, 7.30pm. £7.50 (£3.50). Chilling play written by BAFTA winner David Cosgrove in response to a commission from Scottish Youth Theatre. Angus: Weaver of Grass Sat 5 Oct, 3pm & 7.30pm. £8 (£6). Horse + Bamboo Theatre presents a play about the extraordinary story of Angus McPhee, a crofter from the Western Isles who spent 50 years in a psychiatric hospital producing incredible woven grass costumes. Part of Scottish Mental Health Arts and Film Festival. ■ SUMMERHALL 1 Summerhall, 0845 874 3001. The Gates: Love, Liberation and Respect Wed 16–Sat 19 Oct, 8pm (Sat 4pm also). £12. West Side Story meets Cabaret meets Chicago in this extravaganza of 1950s blues, jazz and gospel. Featuring ex-MSP Rosie Kane. Paul Bright’s Confessions of a Justified Sinner Reconstructed Thu 17 Oct, 7.30pm. £12 (£8). Untitled Projects and actor George Anton present a reconstruction of Paul Bright’s legendary 1987 Scotland-spanning adaptation of the James Hogg novel.
■ TRAVERSE THEATRE Cambridge Street, 228 1404. The Collection Fri 20 & Sat 21 Sep, 7.30pm. £15.50 (£8–£12.50). Rapture Theatre Company presents a new play by leading Scottish playwright Mike Cullen about the seedy world of debt collection. See review, left. Rehearsed Reading: Et In Arcadia . . . Thu 26 Sep, 7.30pm. £6 (£4). Rehearsed reading of Peter Arnott’s play, written as the culmination of a year’s residency with the ESRC Genomics Forum and Traverse.
✽ Educating Ronnie Wed 2–Sat 5 Oct, 8pm (Sat 2.30pm also).
The Baroness Fri 27 & Sat 28 Sep, 7.30pm. £15.50 (£8–£12.50). Danish play about Karen Blixen, author of Out of Africa, and her relationship with a young poet, starring Roberta Taylor. £15.50 (£8–£12.50). See Tron Theatre, Glasgow. Idiot at the Wall Thu 3 Oct, 7.30pm. £15.50 (£8–£12.50). Stoirm Òg’s production about two sisters on a Hebridean island. Modern meets traditional and Gaelic meets English in this tale of myth and reality set during World War I. Oedipussy Wed 9–Sat 12 Oct, 7.30pm. £15.50 (£8–£12.50). Inspired by Barbarella, Spymonkey’s latest play is an outrageous subversion of the quintessential Greek tragedy. The Sound of Cracking Bones Wed 9 Oct, 8pm. £6 (£4). Elikia is kidnapped from her family and forced to become a child soldier. When the arrival of a young boy reminds her of her childhood, it gives her the courage to escape her captors. If These Spasms Could Speak Fri 11 & Sat 12 Oct, 8pm. £15.50 (£8–£12.50). Actor Robert Softley, also behind the NTS’ Girl X, presents a collection of stories about disabled people and their bodies. Couldn’t Care Less Thu 17–Sat 19 Oct, 8pm (Fri 2.30pm also). £15.50 (£8–£12.50). See North Edinburgh Arts Centre, Edinburgh.
OUTSIDE THE CITIES
■ THE BRUNTON Ladywell Way, Musselburgh, 665 2240. Ballet Black Thu 10 Oct, 7.30pm. £6.75–£11.25. The Scottish debut for this award-winning company of black and Asian ballet dancers, featuring works by Ludovic Ondiviela, Robert Binet, Javier De Frutos and company founder, Cassa Pancho. Tiger Tale Fri 20 Sep. See Kids listings and preview, page 100. Tiger Fri 20 Sep, 7.30pm. £6.75– £11.25. See preview, page 100. Jacques Brel: In Song and Dance Sat 21 Sep, 7.30pm. £11.25 (£9.25; children £6.75). A celebration of Brel’s work mostly sung in the original French by Claire Thompson and interpreted by dancer Agathe Girard. Lifeboat Fri 27 Sep, 10am & 7.30pm. £6.75 (family £25). Drama based on the true story of two 15-year-old girls who spent 19 terrifying hours in the water on an upturned lifeboat, willing each other to survive.
■ DUNDEE REP Tay Square, Dundee, 01382 223530. Victoria Thu 19–Sat 21 Sep, 2.30pm & 7.30pm (Fri 7.30pm only). £13–£19 (£10–£14; children £6). Scottish premiere of David Greig’s epic play. Roadkill Fri 20–Wed 25 Sep, 8pm (Sat 2pm also). £15 (£6). Cora Bissett’s award-winning production exposing the hidden world of sex-trafficking begins with a bus journey as a young woman travels towards Edinburgh and the promise of a new life. Ages 16+. Kiss Me Honey, Honey! Tue 24 Sep, 7.30pm. £14. See King’s Theatre, Edinburgh. ■ MACROBERT University of Stirling, Stirling, 01786 466666. Tiger Tale Sat 28 Sep. See Kids listings and preview, page 100. Tiger Sat 28 Sep, 7.30pm. £5–£10.50. See The Brunton, Musselburgh. Stirling Gang Show Wed 2–Sat 5 Oct. See Kids listings. The Snail and the Whale Mon 14, Wed 16 & Thu 17 Oct. See Kids listings.