It was a race against time as we started our journey north and hoped to make it on the 6pm ferry from sconser to raasay amidst rumours that the ferry had been cancelled due to high winds and severe weather. A christmas carol, educating agnes, confessions of a justified sinner, the bfg, the lion, the witch and the wardrobe, beauty and the beast, tartuffe, merlin. Whisky galore at home on the theatre stage glasgow times. Performances index national theatre scotland national. Coproduced by the national theatre of scotland and director gerry mulgrews communicado company, calums road will.
Macrae takes on the title role in calums road, the story of the raasay crofter who built a road across the island when the local authorities refused to take action. Calum s road has become the stuff of modern folklore. Calums road, tall tales for small people ntscommunicado. National theatre of scotland, a company limited by guarantee and registered in scotland sc234270, is a registered scottish charity sc033377. The cherry orchard, the elephant man, a christmas carol, equus, sweeney todd. Dec 22, 2011 calums road and roger hutchinsons book of the same name have become the stuff of modern folklore. His previous acting work for the national theatre of scotland includes the strange undoing of prudenciahart, calums road, tall tales for small people, peter pan, peeping at bosch, gobbo and home. Acting credits include the strange undoing of prudencia hart, calums road, tall tales for small people, peter pan, peeping at bosch, gobbo and home caithness national theatre of scotland. His play 365 was presented by the national theatre of scotland at the edinburgh international festival in 2008.
Calums road will tour across scotland before ending up in raasay in late november. Those of a suspicious nature and some critics might conclude that the national theatre of scotlands new coproduction, paul brights confessions of a justified sinner, is a witty and. Fine, slowpaced energy, permeates this coproduction between the national theatre of scotland and gerry mulgrews communicado that tells of a mans solitary and dogged fight against bureaucracy as he makes the choice between being defeated and being defiant. Calums road is an improbable piece of music and theatre. Calums road, a radio play written by colin macdonald and starring ian mcdiarmid, was broadcast on bbc radio 4 in october 20. Touring productions include a revival of calums road, the. Produced by the national theatre of scotland and communicado theatre company, directed by gerry mulgrew, it toured scotland in autumn 2011 and in the summer of 20. His previous acting work for the national theatre of scotland includes the strange undoing of prudenciahart, calum s road, tall tales for small people, peter pan, peeping at bosch, gobbo and home. What happened next can be found in calums road, a new stage play inspired and adapted by david harrower from journalist roger hutchinsons 2006 book of the same name. This national theatre of scotland and communicado theatre company production, adapted by david harrower from roger hutchinsons book, was rewarded with a sellout house when it stopped off at.
The european premiere of finnish playwright paula salminens haunting and poignant play has been translated and edited for this production by eva buchwald and is presented in association with the finnish national theatre. Nearly two miles long, it goes from south arnish to brochel castle on the inner hebridean island of raasay. Communicado theatre and the national theatre of scotland present calums road, touring throughout scotland from may to july 20. The show was revived and toured to different scottish cities in 20 for a shorter sixweek tour. Lewis trained at the rsamd now rcs and has worked extensively in theatre, film, television and radio. David harrower born 1966 is a scottish playwright who as of 2005 lives in glasgow career. Scandinavian horror film features as a drama in nts new. Books that will knock your socks off heraldscotland. The audience is introduced to real life in the western isles, from rides on the ferries to the use of gaelic and the eating of cormorant sandwiches. Calums road real lifeinspired drama about roadbuilding. Muriel and maria initiated conversations about a coproduction of sunken years with the writer and the finnish national theatre and they codirected rehearsal room 19 a live streamed rehearsed reading of sunken years performed in heart of hawick. Calums daughter, julia, also takes the road up over down and. Little did we know that the 1 st and 2 nd years we were to meet from portree high school were also stuck. The set of calums road and tall tales for small people had made it to raasay that morning but the cast and crew of were stuck in portree with us.
David greigs adaptation of calums road, about a dying way of scottish life, is also at the traverse tonight and tomorrow before heading to the adam. The national theatre of scotland, established in 2006, is the national theatre company of scotland. Just to complicate matters slightly, the production, backed by the national theatre of scotland, is being performed in gaelic. Dunsinane, calums road, mary queen of scots got her head chopped off, our teachers a troll, to begin national theatre of scotland. Well be using surtitles so that nongaelic speakers can follow the story, says iain.
It is the remarkable true story of one man s singleminded determination to challenge the powersthatbe. David harrowers adaptation of roger hutchinsons novel, calums road 2011, 20 tells the reallife story of calum macleod, and his quest. Next week, the national theatre of scotland will revive the remarkable tale of calums road, based on the book by journalist roger hutchinson, adapted for the stage by playwright david harrower. Fine, slowpaced energy, permeates this coproduction between the national theatre of scotland and gerry mulgrews communicado that tells of a mans solitary and dogged fight against bureaucracy as he makes the choice between being defeated and being defiant david harrowers adaptation of roger hutchinsons book relates. Calums road by roger hutchinson two summers ago, a wet day on holiday in scotland led me to stumble upon this deeply moving and widely lauded account of one mans struggle. More recently his story has reached a still wider audience thanks to roger hutchinsons bestselling 2006 book calums road. Presented by the national theatre of scotland in coproduction with. The story is told in roger hutchinsons 2006 book calums road and adapted here in a lyrical, musical and elegiac ensemble production by gerry mulgrew for communicado and the national theatre of. Oct 21, 2011 the national theatre of scotland and communicado theatre company present david harrower s take on the true tale of a man on the isle of skye who, faced with council indifference to his remote. His book the soap man birlinn 2003 was shortlisted for the saltire scottish book of the year 2004. There is a plaque on a beautifully constructed cairn at one point alongside the road. Jun 19, 20 those of a suspicious nature and some critics might conclude that the national theatre of scotlands new coproduction, paul brights confessions of a justified sinner, is a witty and.
The national theatre of scotland and communicado theatre company present david harrowers take on the true tale of a man on the isle of skye who, faced. It is the remarkable true story of one mans singleminded determination to challenge the powersthatbe and is now coming to stages across scotland for the first time thanks to scots playwright david harrower and the national theatre of scotland. Calums road real lifeinspired drama about roadbuilding on. Calums road tron theatre, glasgow, wed 5 oct the list. National theatre of scotland 20 brochure by national. Built in the 1960s, it is the singlehanded work of calum macleod, an islander who. Highland scotland,32 the dramatic adaptation of his novel takes the question. Communicado and the national theatre of scotland present the remarkable. The book series is now a hugely successful tv show, filmed in many places around scotland, from dramatic castles to stately homes and breathtaking landscapes.
Since then, the company has presented almost forty pieces of original theatre, and has played all. Calum macleod, having battled the inaction of authorities on raasay for years, sets off alone with a pick, a shovel and a wheelbarrow to build a road that will connect up the island. David harrowers adaptation of roger hutchinsons book relates the. The national theatre of scotlands season brochure for 20 detailing the companys productions. National theatre of scotland set to revive the markable. This national theatre of scotland and communicado theatre company production, adapted by david harrower from roger hutchinsons book, was rewarded with. Coproduced by the national theatre of scotland and the royal shakespeare company, its first scottish tour will open at eden court in inverness in august 20 for a week long run before going on to aberdeen and glasgow with other tour dates still to be announced. Now, this inspirational islander is the subject of a new national theatre of scotlandbacked play. About 30 websites of nationaltheatre org at topalternate. National theatre of scotland the day i swapped my dad for two goldfish. The national theatre of scotland and communicado theatre. By david harrower from the book by roger hutchinson. Calums road serves as an ideal example of how theatre can work to represent those often excluded from the national image created and propagated by the elites.
It had been the most awful day of weather, of the sort which only those who holiday regularly north of the border can understand, and in desperation for something to do. Produced by the national theatre of scotland and communicado theatre. The impetus behind the production came from actor iain macrae, who plays calum. A play calums road was adapted by david harrower from roger hutchinsons book. Calums road has been a huge bestseller, shortlisted for. Iain macrae centre with scott fletcher and finlay welsh in the national theatre of scotlands calums road. It is the first coproduction between two of scotlands leading theatre companies who champion the work of women in theatre, work with people with learning disabilities. After reading roger hutchisons book on the tale, he convinced.
Without telling anyone, the national theatre of scotland has mounted a minifestival of the work of gerry mulgrew, the celebrated founder of communicado. National theatre of scotland set to revive the markable tale. Simon and philippa headed to raasay, excited about going on a ferry, meeting raasay ps and portree hs pupils and visiting calums road. Nov 20, 2011 iain macrae centre with scott fletcher and finlay welsh in the national theatre of scotlands calums road. Paul brights confessions of a justified sinner, tramway. His play 365 was presented by the national theatre of scotland at the edinburgh international. A christmas carol, educating agnes, confessions of a justified sinner, the bfg, the lion, the. He trained in theatre arts at langside college, glasgow. Review of calums road at perth theatre daily record.
Calum s road it commemorates calum macleod of raasay who, when the local council refused to build a road to his croft, handbuilt the twomile road himself, taking ten years to complete it. It is regrettable, however, that records for the period 18731885 are missing but fortunate that the early book has been saved. Here about 30 popular bookshop, current productions, national theatre homepage, south bank sites such as. The single track road that runs much of the length of the island of raasay is pretty marginal in places. Theres no such sensual abandon in the story of calums road, set on the island of raasay between the 1960s and the present day, and transformed in 2011 into a powerful national theatre of scotland. National theatre of scotlands immersive show the strange. Communicado is a scottish theatre company, formed in 1983. The initial tour lasted three months, culminating in a production at the raasay community hall in november 2011. A full house at the traverse theatre for calums road provided ample opportunity to gauge audience reaction. Calums road and roger hutchinsons book of the same name have become the stuff of modern folklore. Other acting credits include the undersea world of bubble mcbea scottish opera, fergus lamont communicado, lost ones, invisible man vanishing point, homers. Towards a queer theatre for very young audiences in scotland and the united states paper niccole carner. Next week, the national theatre of scotland will revive the remarkable tale of calums road, based on the book by journalist roger hutchinson, adapted for. Alys work as an actor for the national theatre of scotland includes calums road, tall tales for small people, peter pan, peeping at bosch, gobbo and home caithness.
The story is told in roger hutchinsons 2006 book calums road and. May 17, 20 next week, the national theatre of scotland will revive the remarkable tale of calums road, based on the book by journalist roger hutchinson, adapted for the stage by playwright david harrower. This is a lovely tune which has gained in popularity since it was released on the blood is strong in 1987. A little beyond the point where it affords views across the sound of raasay into the mouth of portree harbour it heads across the spine of raasay to the island s east shore, emerging above it close to the spectacular remains of brochel castle. The national theatre of scotland s season brochure for 20 detailing the company s productions. Reviewing a production by the nts from 2011 that tells the story of a man who over ten years attempts to build a road by hand on the isle of raasay in order to improve living conditions on the island and convince residents not to migrate to the mainland. Sep 24, 2011 what happened next can be found in calums road, a new stage play inspired and adapted by david harrower from journalist roger hutchinsons 2006 book of the same name. Touring productions include a revival of calums road, the true tale of the raasay croft who built his own road on the island, and family play the day i swapped my dad for two goldfish, based on the childrens book by neil gaiman and dave mckean. Sep 21, 2011 now, this inspirational islander is the subject of a new national theatre of scotland backed play. Towards a queer theatre for very young audiences in scotland and the united states. Other books have also been restored and photocopied. Produced by the national theatre of scotland and communicado theatre company, directed by gerry mulgrew, it toured scotland in autumn 2011 and in the summer of.