Written and Performed by James Clements

Composed by Lisa Rigby

Directed by Cora Bissett

Review by Dominic Corr

The Georgian House

Reinvention: it’s the necessity of survival. But for theatrical retellings of Scotland’s Bard, additional takes on Robert Burns’ turbulent life are starting to threaten to burn at both ends. In a cultural landscape already saturated with tributes, reinterpretations, and musical homages to Scotland’s national poet, the reintroduction of the Festival Fringe success, The Burns Project, risks feeling like one more entry in an already overflowing catalogue. Luckily, the production benefits from a more ethereal sense of creativity in utilising Burns’ greatest tricks: music and spoken word, fending off many a new take to justify its existence.

This immersive staging, created by James Clements with musician Lisa Rigby, certainly succeeds in carving out its niche. Returning to Edinburgh after touring historic venues, the production settles into an ornate 18th‑century townhouse on Charlotte Square, The Georgian House. The setting is undeniably atmospheric; from entryway to drawing rooms – oil portraits glowering from the walls, polished wood gleaming under soft light, but the grandeur also highlights the show’s limitations. The intimacy is striking, yet the close quarters sometimes expose the unevenness of the material rather than enriching it.

Intimate; audience members are seated around a long dining table, warped, glistening in an ivory cloak of something spiritual, as they are invited into a world that imagines Burns as both guest and spectre. Rigby’s gentle guitar sets a reflective tone before Clements enters, styled in loose linen and tousled hair. The immediate impact if that the pair have the room, and that Clements makes a far superior incarnation of the bard than others of their craft. The opening moments promise a richly textured encounter with the poet, but the production’s structure soon reveals itself to be more fragmented than cohesive; reminiscent of the cracked tabled before us.

Across the hour, Burns’ life is presented as a collage of letters, poems, anecdotes, and modern commentary, often spoken of and voiced with additional aid from Karen Fishwick, Albert Robertson, Crawford Logan, and Robbie Hall. While this patchwork approach aims to illuminate the contradictions that defined him, romantic yet reckless, principled yet compromised – it can feel more like a series of loosely connected vignettes than a fully realised dramatic arc. The reliance on verbatim text occasionally stalls the momentum, creating stretches that feel more like a museum audio guide than a piece of live theatre.

The contradictions in Burns’ character are laid out plainly: the ploughman‑poet torn between tenderness and irresponsibility, the egalitarian who nonetheless worked for the crown, the man who contemplated seeking fortune in Jamaica despite the brutal realities of slavery. These complexities are essential to any modern portrayal of Burns, and credit to Clements for the acknowledgements, yet the production sometimes struggles to move beyond stating them in their factual manner – the emotional stakes remain curiously muted, even when the material invites deeper interrogation from the audience. Some of the more powerful elements, such as the more contemporary voices and academics discussing the ‘behaviour’ of male celebrities and artists, is deserving of a louder voice and prominent seat at the table.

Clements delivers a committed performance, shifting between charm and agitation with ease, though the audience is most clearly in for the show when Clements conjures up the cad or the rakish rogue, flirting with anyone with a pulse. But the fleeting moments of passion give way to occasional moments of genuine pathos and loss, Clement’s cadence speaking volumes in the control of Burns’ words. The design team introduces clever touches across the performance; hidden props, glowing glassware, and a striking line of light running down the centre of the table. It’s all tied together with Garry Boyle’s sound design, which bolsters Rigby’s composition.

Atmospheric, The Burns Project offers an uneven exploration of Robert Burns, but an inventive one with a whimsical foot in both realms. Its immersive setting and inventive design create memorable images, and the musical elements add warmth and texture. However, the production’s fragmented narrative and familiar territory make it difficult for this version to stand apart in an already crowded field of Burns interpretations. It’s a thoughtful and often beautiful mélange of spoken word and performance, but one that never fully escapes the sense of déjà vu that haunts so many modern retellings of Scotland’s most mythologised poet.

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