Scotland Archives - North West End UK

4Apr

By Greg HolsteadNo Comments

Scotland

Nessie – The Studio, Edinburgh

Produced by Capital Theatres & Pitlochry Festival Theatre, Nessie, is a family-orientated tale of friendship, set to music with nods towards global warming, climate change and clean energy production that plays out a bit like a tick-box exercise for the 21st Century. However, from the reactions, the ooos and awwws, of the younger audience members and their quiet attention for 80 minutes it certainly seems to hit its target. And that, as we all know, is no easy feat! The life-sized puppets of Otter, ‘Oggie’ played by Keith Macpherson and Grey Heron ‘Heather’, operated by Alison Orr play a big role and are certainly cute and cuddly. And star of the show Nessa operated by Eden Barrie has a gurgling prehensile presence and a clever operation which allows her to be handled and operated r...

3Apr

By H.S. BakerNo Comments

Scotland

Little Women – Festival Theatre

Louisa May Alcott’s classic, much loved tale of the coming of age of the March sisters in 19th century Massachusetts, is brought to the stage in an adaptation by Anne-Marie Casey. The narrative will be familiar to many, and is loosely based on Alcott’s own life. Sisters Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy, living a frugal life with their mother, Marmee, whilst father is away fighting in the American Civil war, struggle to keep spirits up as they endure the deprivations that poverty brings them. They could ask rich Aunt March for money, but no one really likes her or her strict views on what is considered proper behaviour in good society. When father is injured in battle, Jo (always one for the dramatic gesture), cuts off her hair and sells it for $25 to help pay for Marmee to tra...

Beauty and the Beast – Church Hill Theatre

2Apr

By Greg HolsteadNo Comments

Scotland

Beauty and the Beast – Church Hill Theatre

We all know that opening nights can go one of two ways; either a riot of mistakes ,technical blunders and missed lines or that rare perfect explosion of nervous energy which propels the production to new heights. I’m happy to say that tonight, on April Fool’s day, this is no blundering joke, instead it is one of those unique stunning, wonderful events. But this is no happy accident. Whether by stick or carrot, Director Louise Sables pulls off a masterclass of amateur direction and casting, to marshal the talented folks of EMT to tell a simple story with real emotion, humour and clarity, and at a pace that many a professional production would only dream of, whilst eking out a meagre budget in all the right places. Take the costumes for example: to open the programme and find that the ...

2Apr

By Kathleen MansfieldNo Comments

Scotland

Down The Hatch – Pleasance Theatre

What began as slightly self-conscious soon developed into a showcase of joy for this young collection of enthusiasts. The premise was simple: a tavern with a collection of characters who told their stories through song and dance. It reminded me of Jim Cartwright’s TWO but the stories were somewhat thinner, each tale being bound by the lyrics of a particular song. My favourite was the traditional Irish ballad, Aililiú Na Gamhna, sung by second-year, Lily Hodge. It was pitch-perfect and filled with tender anguish. The blocking enhanced the sentiment of the piece. Ewan Robertson has a fine, sweet voice living within the body of a construction worker - tall, wide and muscular. He concluded the first half with a stunning lift of Elham Khosravipour who seemed anomalous in her belly-dancing...

28Mar

By Nazaret RaneaNo Comments

Scotland

Ghost Stories – Festival Theatre

I went to see Ghost Stories at the Festival Theatre in Edinburgh on the 26th of March, and I have to admit—I didn’t actually enjoy it. Not because it was a bad show, but because it genuinely scared me. I suppose that means it did its job well! I’m not usually one for horror, and while I went in hoping for something atmospheric and thought-provoking, I left shaken and, embarrassingly, had nightmares afterwards. If you’re a fan of horror theatre, you shouldn’t expect anything particularly groundbreaking in terms of storytelling, but you can definitely count on plenty of jump scares. Photo: Hugo Glendinning The play, written by Jeremy Dyson and Andy Nyman, follows Professor Goodman, a parapsychologist, as he investigates three different supernatural encounters. Without giving away any s...

Ensemble Teams – Scottish Storytelling Centre

28Mar

By Marcelina KruczyńskaNo Comments

Scotland

Ensemble Teams – Scottish Storytelling Centre

Throughout you could feel both Ensemble Teams slowly guide you into the unpredictable and often unhinged nature of improvisation. Coached by Deborah Tarica and Alison Thea-Skot the two teams after one day of preparation took to the stage. Both teams were comprised of eight people. Interestingly despite all eight people standing on stage throughout the performance, once the scene started, they faded into the background and only became noticeable again once they entered centre stage or wherever the main action took place. Tarica’s and Thea-Skot's influence was clear since there were similar methods employed by both groups. For example, both employed the same method to enter or finish a scene. Multiple times actors communicated through a tap on the shoulder or someone yelling “scene” which en...

Kolliflower & Stupid & Favourite Cousin – Scottish Storytelling Centre

28Mar

By Marcelina KruczyńskaNo Comments

Scotland

Kolliflower & Stupid & Favourite Cousin – Scottish Storytelling Centre

Irresistibly funny, completely bonkers and chaotically out of pocket is the best way in which Kolliflower & Stupid & Favourite Cousin can be described. The three acts playing sequentially one after the other managed to keep the audience entertained with their improvised madness. Thanks to the tiered seating the view of the stage was impeccably clear meaning the audience could dedicate more of their attention to the acts themselves rather than on trying to avoid heads that may have been obscuring the view. Kolliflower kicked off the performance in their 80s styled fits. The usual duo consists of Kimi and Holly however on this occasion Jiavani stepped in to cover for Holly. The duo interacted with the audience asking for a word and the ever so eager crowd provided them with on...

All-Star Armando – Scottish Storytelling Centre

24Mar

By Beth EltringhamNo Comments

Scotland

All-Star Armando – Scottish Storytelling Centre

After a weekend full of improv for the participants of The Edinburgh International Improv Festival, in came the All-Star Armando team to finish the festival off with a bang! Consisting of performers: Keiko Agena, Alex Berg, Lilan Bowden, Todd Fasen, Alex Fernie and Jiavani along with a couple of invited guests from other productions within the festival. As with any improv show there can be a fine line between creating a priceable show and producing something that can be compared to a bunch of performers playing warm up games. A structure is needed but not so much that the show is scripted, something to work from and ground the performers without losing the audience's trust. In this case the cast’s structure came in the form of a chosen word from the audience and a guest actor spouting a...

Northern Ballet: Hansel & Gretel – Festival Theatre

23Mar

By Nazaret RaneaNo Comments

Scotland

Northern Ballet: Hansel & Gretel – Festival Theatre

If you’re looking for a fun way to spend a Saturday afternoon with the family, Northern Ballet’s Hansel & Gretel is an absolute must-see! I had a lovely time at Edinburgh’s Festival Theatre, completely swept up in this magical, modern twist on the classic fairy tale. It’s got adventure, laughs, and a really important message about looking after our planet—perfect for both kids and grown-ups. Hansel and Gretel, played by Archie Sherman and Julie Nunès, were these city kids totally obsessed with their video games. Their dad, hilariously portrayed by Andrew Tomlinson, was so fed up he dragged them on a woodland adventure. The forest set, designed by Ali Allen using recycled materials, was stunning—whimsical and creative but also thought-provoking. The whole production was bursting w...

Raintown and Bumnotes – Scottish Storytelling Centre

23Mar

By Jessie MartinNo Comments

Scotland

Raintown and Bumnotes – Scottish Storytelling Centre

Never in my life did I expect to see grown men pretending to be raccoons, or see the bible rewritten to be about jelly babies instead of Jesus, but I suppose that’s the fun of the Edinburgh International Improv Festival. In the penultimate double bill of Saturday night at the Scottish Storytelling Centre we saw the Irish musical improv group Bumnotes belt out show tunes completely off the cuff, with Glasgow-based group Raintown performing right afterwards. Musical improv is becoming increasingly popular and after watching Bumnotes’ performance I have no questions as to why. Funnily enough the suggested word was ‘garbageman’ which was a reference to an earlier performance done by The Imposters - clearly the audience are enjoying the improvisation as they are coming back f...