John Byrne
The Guardian 1 December 2023 If John Byrne had been known only for The Slab Boys, he would be considered one of Scotland’s great cultural figures. But Byrne, who died…
Starcatchers Baby Studio
The Scotsman 28 November 2023 “This is a yes space,” says performer Kerry Cleland. We are surveying the scene in the Baby Studio in Wester Hailes, a place where there…
The Snow Queen
The Guardian 27 November 2023 When the curtain goes up on this Caledonian Snow Queen, the view is both familiar and strange. Familiar, because we recognise the austere silhouette of…
Morna Young and Finn Anderson on The Snow Queen
The Scotsman 13 November 2023 A first-time collaboration is a risky thing. What if the participants don’t hit it off? How do they negotiate if one is not happy with…
A guide to modern panto
Published in The List 3 November 2023 If the culture wars were an actual thing rather than the delusions of some Tory sociopaths, where would pantomime be in the battle?…
The Ghosts of North Leith
The Scotsman 3 November 2023 You can tell a lot about the life of a place from its graveyard. That, at any rate, is the premise of The Ghosts Of…
Stage and Screen exhibition
The Scotsman 27 October 2023 Scene one. The lights go up on a narrow Victorian townhouse near London’s King’s Road. We are greeted at the front door by James Gordon,…
Andy Arnold on Nae Expectations
The Guardian 18 October 2023 Andy Arnold is a director with staying power. Nae Expectations, which has just opened at Glasgow’s Tron theatre, is his swansong production after nearly 16…
Scottish International Storytelling Festival
The Scotsman 3 October 2023 The plan had been to make this year’s Scottish International Storytelling Festival a wee bit smaller. The event in 2022, which was Scotland’s Year of…
Douglas Maxwell on The Sheriff of Kalamaki
The Scotsman 19 September 2023 The story goes that Douglas Maxwell was on holiday in Greece when he met a man in a bar. The guy was a DJ with…