Book by David Greig Music by Marc Shaiman Lyrics by Scott Wittman and Marc Shaiman Directed by Fraser Grant Review by Dominic Corr ★★★★ What magic lies beyond these walls, these enormous and embossed gates with a familiarly whimsical ‘W’ cast in a golden light. Well, what else but a world of Pure Imagination? Turning … Continue reading Review: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory – Church Hill Theatre, Edinburgh
Written and Performed by Michael Daviot Directed by Michael Nardone Review by Dominic Corr ★★★★★ Despite the preconceptions, Scottish Theatre is young. Very young. Hardly out of infancy, though it very much feels to be in its troublesome teenage years. And yet the wealth of history and culture already emanating from the nation’s catalogue of directors, … Continue reading Review: A Noble Clown – The Scottish Storytelling Centre, Edinburgh
Written and Directed by Gordon Barr Review by Dominic Corr Tickets from £14.00 ★★★★ A decade of decadence, dance, fairytales and farts. That’s what it’s all about, right, kids? For the past ten years, the Byre Theatre has worked with writer and director Gordon Barr and the folk of Bard in the Botanics to maintain … Continue reading Review: Beauty and the Beast – The Byre Theatre, St. Andrews
Written by Francis Beaumont With Additional Text by Ben Jonson, El Josar and Matthew Schwarz Adapted and Directed by Marc Silberschatz Tickets from £10.80 Chivalry is dead. Isn’t it? At least, that’s what we’ve all been claiming for decades now. Well, centuries. But what chivalry truly is, and when it found itself dead and buried, is something we’ve … Continue reading Review: The Knight of the Burning Pestle – The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Glasgow
Written by William Shakespeare Freely adapted from “The Merry Wives of Windsor” by Gordon Barr Directed by Gordon Barr Tickets from £19.00 ★★★★ There's nothing that a good roll n’ sausage, chamomile tea, or solid sesh’ down at the pub won’t solve. And for those difficult days which need something a little extra, well, there’s … Continue reading Review: The Merry Wives of Wishaw – Bard in the Botanics, Glasgow
Written and Directed by Jennifer Dick Adapted from the novel by Charlotte Bronte Tickets from £19.00 ★★★★ Shifting from the 'grim (up) north' to the bristle and howl of the Scottish Highlands (via the Glasgow botanic gardens), Jennifer Dick’s new version of Bronte’s genre-defining and eyebrow-raising novel firmly roots itself in the grit and gravel … Continue reading Review: Jane Eyre, An Autobiography – Bard in the Botanics, Glasgow
Written by Oscar Wilde Directed by Gordon Barr Designed by Heather Grace Currie ★★★★★ Dig out the finest silverware, prep those cucumber sandwiches, and for God’s sake, stop eating the muffins – The Importance of Being Earnest is the star of the season, and everyone will be looking for its hand if they’ve got any sense of … Continue reading The Importance of Being Earnest – Bard in the Botanics
Adapted and Directed by Gordon Barr From William Shakespeare ★★★★ Questions of the purpose, necessity, and our perplexing obsession with the ‘God-given right to rule’ hangs on the lips of the nation once more, as in a time of austerity and wide-spread ruinous inequality - the cost of regalia and crown continues to weigh heavy … Continue reading Henry IV – Bard in the Botanics
Written and Directed by Gordon Barr Musical Direction by Andy Manning ★★★★ There’s a touching duality to this year's Byre Theatre production of Snow White, featuring a tag-line theme of re-writing our stories. Traditionally, pantos of old suffer the lop-sided representations of their fairy-tale foundations, swinging the opposite way to recover this ended in a … Continue reading Snow White – Byre Theatre
Directed and Written by Gordon Barr Musical Direction by Stephen Roberts Dust off the tinsel, crack open the advocaat and expand those pipes – it’s Pantomime season. With a vast tradition within the community, The Byre Theatre may have changed a few hands, had a few facelifts and seen more people through its doors than … Continue reading Mother Goose – The Byre Theatre
