Big plays of all kinds abound on Scotland’s stages this month, with some but by no means all of the wonders opening highlighted here in the hope that readers will try and see as much of this as possible.
Waiting for Godot
Citizens Theatre, Glasgow until 14 March.
Samuel Beckett’s twentieth century classic is brought to life by Matthew Kelly and George Costigan in the Citz’s brilliant new main stage production. Beckett’s darkly comic piece of existential vaudeville has long attracted major actors to playing his double act, and Kelly and Costigan’s longstanding friendship and working relationship going back half a century sees them spark off each other in tragicomic fashion in this co-production between the Citz, Liverpool’s Everyman Theatre and Bolton Octagon.
Saint Joan
Perth Theatre, 7 March; Lemon Tree, Aberdeen, 12-14 March; Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, 18-21 March.
George Bernard Shaw’s 1923 play about Joan of Arc, was probably last seen on the Citizens’ Theatre stage back in 1970 in a production by the theatre’s then recently appointed artistic director, the late Giles Havergal. More than half a century on, Shaw’s play is reimagined for today by director/designer Stewart Laing in a stripped back, close up fashion that uses an unfilmed screenplay by Shaw, complete with directions and descriptions in a story of the French teenager who led France to victory in the Hundred Years War and ended up being burnt at the stake then canonised. Featuring a set of fine performances led by the remarkable Mandipa Kabanda in the title role of this quietly devastating affair.
Matilda the Musical
Playhouse, Edinburgh until 22 March.
Roald Dahl’s 1988 children’s novel about the uber smart little girl with a passion for learning and the gift of telekinesis was already something of a wonder long before Dennis Kelly and Tim Minchin’s stage version was originally produced by the Royal Shakespeare Company. Since then it has toured the world in an epic staging that saw Kelly win a Tony award for Best Book for a musical. One of the real wonders of the show is that the children on stage aren’t just going through the motions, but actually lead things in a remarkable display of well-drilled panache that makes for an unmissable experience.
Medea
Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh until 7 March; The Gaiety, Ayr, 10 March; Corn Exchange, Melrose, 12 March; Borough Halls, Dunoon, 14 March; Byre Theatre, St. Andrews, 17 March; Beacon Arts Centre, Greenock, 19 March; Mull Theatre, 21 March; Tron Theatre, Glasgow, 25-28 March; The Lemon Tree, Aberdeen, 8 April; Lyth Arts Centre, Wick, 10 April; Eden Court Theatre, Inverness, 11 April.
Bard in the Botanics comes out to play early this year, moving indoors for a 25thanniversary revival of one of the best non-Shakespeare shows the company has ever done. Kathy McKean’s new version of Euripides’ Greek revenge tragedy sees the ever brilliant Nicole Cooper return in the title role of Gordon Barr’s Critics Awards for Theatre in Scotland winning production for an extensive tour of one of the most thrilling shows around.
Sailmaker
Beacon Arts Centre, Greenock until 7 March; Cumbernauld Theatre, 10-11 March; Perth Theatre, 13-14 March; The Studio, Edinburgh, 18-21 March; Eastwood Theatre, Giffnock, 24 March; Theatre Royal, Dumfries, 25 March; Gaiety Theatre, Ayr, 31 March-1 April.
Alan Spence may be better known for his novels and short stories such as The Magic Flute and ????, but in the early 1980s he wrote two plays for Edinburgh’s Traverse Theatre that tapped into a similar sense of awareness of his Glasgow roots. Sailmaker tells the story of father and son, Davie and Alec, and their different responses to the death of Alec’s mum and Davie’s wife. A tender study of the working class male psyche, Spence’s play probably hasn’t been seen since its 1982 premiere, and is worth savouring on this extensive tour.
The Trials
Tron Theatre, Glasgow until 14 March.
Like Matilda, Dawn King’s play puts children at the centre of its story, set in a near future where the climate crisis has taken its toll enough to provoke the grown ups being put on trial for their generation’s complicity in such environmental catastrophe. But is this justice or revenge, King asks in the Tron’s Scottish premiere of a work first seen in Germany in 2022, and which here features twelve young people acting alongside a professional cast directed by Joanna Bowman.
Woman in Mind
Theatre Royal, Glasgow, 10-14 March.
Seeing Sheridan Smith take the in Alan Ayckbourn’s off-kilter 1985 play about a woman who moves between two worlds would be a treat by itself in this touring revival. Throw in extra-added Louise Brealey and comedian Romesh Rangnathan into this darkly unsettling portrait of sanity, madness and the family, and something very special is promised.
One Day: The Musical
Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh until 19 April.
David Nicholls’ 2009 novel charting the lives and times of two Edinburgh University graduates after they meet on St. Swithin’s Day 1988 has already been adapted into Lone Sherfig’s 2011 film and a Netflix series a decade later. David Greig’s brand new stage musical brings Nicholls’ story back home with a songbook by Nashville singer-songwriting duo Abner and Amanda Ramirez, who for the last two decades have released records under the name Johnnyswim. The demand for this co-production with the Melting Pot company has already seen an extra two weeks added to its run. Book early, as they say.
A Giant on the Bridge
Gaiety Theatre, Ayr, 7 March; Beacon Arts Centre, Greenock, 10 March; The Studio, Edinburgh, 13-14 March; Tolbooth, Stirling, 18 March; Birnam Arts, Birnam, 19 March; LAS Portree, Skye, 21 March.
Liam Hurley and Jo Mango’s dramatic compendium of song led theatre about life after prison for those released into the world was first seen in 2024. Since then, its poignant and powerful songbook has been performed live in the show by an array of singer/songwriters, including Louis Abbot from Admiral Fallow, Jill O’Sullivan, Raveloe and Solareye, who continue in this latest tour.
Flight
Citizens Theatre, Glasgow, 21 March-4 April.
The Vox Motus company’s adaptation of Caroline Brothers’ novel, Hinterland, was a remarkable experience when it was first seen at the 2017 Edinburgh International Festival. The late Oliver Emanuel’s script telling the story of two orphaned Afghan brothers seeking sanctuary from their dangerous homeland as they flee across Europe was a fine enough feat in itself. It is seen by one audience member at a time in a booth that utilises meticulously realised models in a revolving diorama. At points this resembles a private reading of a graphic novel narrated by the recorded voices off transformed it into an even more thrilling experience that itself travelled the globe before returning home for this short run at the Citz.
The High Life The Musical
Dundee Rep, 27 March- April-4; Festival Theatre, Edinburgh, 7-11 April; His Majesty’s Theatre, Aberdeen, 14-18 April; Eden Court Theatre, Inverness, 29 April-2 May; Dundee Rep, 6-9 May; King’s Theatre, Glasgow, 12-23 May.
To some, putting a short-lived thirty-year-old sit-com onstage may not be the sort of classic fare one has in mind when one thinks of a national theatre’s repertoire. Then again, the National Theatre of Scotland’s staging of Alan Cumming and Forbes Masson’s camp in-flight fare has reunited Cumming, Masson and fellow original cast members Siobhan Redmond and Patrick Ryecart for what promises to be a mid-air romp in a show co-created with the mighty Johnny McKnight. Co-produced by the NTS with Dundee Rep in association with Aberdeen Performing Arts and Capital Theatres Edinburgh, audiences are advised to buckle up and enjoy the ride.
The Constant Wife
Festival Theatre, Edinburgh, 31 March-4 April.
One doesn’t see much of W. Somerset Maugham’s work on stage these days, but his 1920s comedy about the seemingly perfect wife and mother promises much in this new adaptation by Laura Wade, which stars Kara Tointon in the title role as Constance. Wade’s work was last seen in Edinburgh by way of her stage version of Sarah Waters’ novel, Tipping the Velvet, with her milieu a delicately balanced mix of posh froth and a heap of grown-up stuff to go with it.
The Herald, March 8th 2025
ends
Comments