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Martyn James and Shirley Darroch in Whisky Galore - A Musical in 2009

3 February 2012 theatreSCOTLAND

James remembered

NO ACTOR appeared on the stage of Pitlochry Festival Theatre more than Martyn James. He had a similarly formidable record at Perth Theatre. Story continues here . . .

3 February 2012 theatreSCOTLAND

Rants and games

ST ANDREWS is the largest town to win a Creative Place Award from Creative Scotland in recognition of its contribution to the cultural life of the community. Story continues here . . .

3 February 2012 theatreSCOTLAND

Cheek it out

AFTER making an open call for performance proposals, the Cheeky Breakfast, a group of independent producers, is launching The Pitch, a night of physical theatre, devised drama, film and improvised movement. Story continues here . . .

SCOTTISH THEATRE REVIEWS AND ARTICLES

Mark Fisher, author of The Edinburgh Fringe Surival Guide Pic: Lotte Fisher

1 February 2012 The List

Mark Fisher on The Edinburgh Fringe Survival Guide

Five things I learned while writing the book

CHOOSING a title takes ages: It's as straightforward as they come, yet The Edinburgh Fringe Survival Guide was a title born of months of discussion. The subtitle, How to Make Your Show a Success, was arrived at no quicker. My editor couldn't believe it.

30 January 2012 Northings

The Captain's Collection

By Hamish MacDonald. A Dogstar Theatre review.

YOU probably heard the fuss kicked up by fans of the Smiths in the run-up to Christmas. They were outraged with department store John Lewis for using one of the indie band’s finest songs, ‘Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want’, as the soundtrack to an advert. What greater insult than using a song of heartbreaking yearning as a way to get people to buy things? If Smiths fans were up in arms, just think how Jacobite sympathisers must have felt about Captain Simon Fraser.

Gavin Mitchell in The Infamous Brothers Davenport

25 January 2012 The Guardian

The Infamous Brothers Davenport

By Peter Arnott. A Vox Motus/Royal LyceumTheatre review.

IN the theatre is a stage. On the stage is a panelled room. In the panelled room is a wardrobe. In the wardrobe is a music box. Like Russian dolls, these boxes within boxes promise revelations, but provide only further layers of obfuscation. Just as the music box dulls the sound of domestic violence coming from a neighbouring room, so the bigger boxes divert us from the truth about life and death.

The Edinburgh Fringe Survival Guide by Mark Fisher is published 16 February

8 January 2012 Scotland on Sunday

Survival guide is just the ticket for Fringe acts

News piece about Mark Fisher's Edinburgh Fringe Surival Guide

IT IS a gruelling three-week marathon with more than 1.9 million tickets sold for 40,000 performances in 250 venues. So no wonder first-time Fringe performers arrive in Edinburgh with a sense of trepidation. But now help is at hand with the publication of an independent 'survival guide' for rookie artists bringing a show to the world's biggest arts festival. Based on insights from Fringe veterans, including comics Ed Byrne and Mel Giedroyc, magician Paul Daniels, and actresses Siobhan Redmond and Cora Bissett, the book covers every aspect of Fringe life, providing tips on budgets, promotion, finding a venue and avoiding pitfalls.

Martyn James and Shirley Darroch in Whisky Galore - A Musical in 2009

6 January 2012 The List

New Citizens Theatre boss Dominic Hill brushes up his Shakespeare

Interview with Dominic Hill. A Citizens Theatre preview.

TAKE on the Citizens Theatre and you take on the past. Any artistic director of the Glasgow institution can only be aware of the building's history. Opened as the Royal Princess's Theatre in 1848, it became home to James Bridie's Citizens' company in 1945 and was where Giles Havergal, Philip Prowse and Robert David MacDonald sealed their international reputation during a 34-year reign.

4 January 2012 The Scotsman

Martyn James and the unsung heroes of Scottish theatre

Obituary/blog.

EVERY time Martyn James took to the stage at Pitlochry Festival Theatre, you sensed a tremendous surge of warmth from the audience. There was something about the actor, who died yesterday after a long illness, that people loved.

theatreSCOTLAND © Mark Fisher 2009–2012