It is difficult to look across the firmament of Scottish theatre in 2024 enthusiastically, as you are drawn constantly to buildings. We start with the temporary closure of the Centre for Contemporary Arts in Sauchiehall Street in Glasgow. Those of us old enough to remember the immediate closure of the Third Eye Centre in the same venue decades ago will feel a flutter of nervousness at the fact that it has had to close its doors to redraft its fiscal responsibility.
Finance has been much in the mind of many over the last 12 months, not least at Summerhall in Edinburgh, where their fight with HMRC has led to a massive delay in the payment of artists who were part of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
The Fringe Society itself has warned that it is lacking funds to continue its development. However, its meddling in venues in 2024 did lead Greenside to be absent from one. In fact, it led everybody to be absent from that venue, as the Festival Fringe Society had bagged it for their new headquarters, but there did not seem to be much by the way of progress in developing it for August 2024. There was also the Nicholson Square venue, given up by Greenside, that was mostly closed off, though they did reopen a venue that had been shut for some time and previously run by Spotlite.
The lack of the Citizens Theatre after seven years of closure does feel a little less pressing, although their recent announcement that they did not have the funds to complete their renovation was rather startling. They have managed to secure cash from Glasgow City Council and elsewhere. They are now telling us that they shall be back in autumn 2025, opening with a new performance piece based upon Lockerbie, though we get Deacon Blue frontman Ricky Ross rather than Colin Firth as the star vehicle. Refurbishments in Paisely at PACE have now concluded with their panto back home and not in a shopping centre, whilst The Palace in Kilmarnock will be back up and running after having their panto in a circus-style tent in the shadow of the new sports centre for 2024.
Fiscal responsibility has also been much in theatrical people's minds as Creative Scotland has hung on and hung on, then hung on some more, without sending out the joy / disaster of funding decisions. January 2025 is now the time almost all theatrical companies in Scotland will hear their fate for the immediate future. It has meant “looking forward” to 2025 has been done with trepidation rather than security or confidence, despite increased arts funding being announced for the Scottish Government—there are insufficient mince pies in anyone’s tin to satisfy all theatrical appetites in venues across the country.
And finally, of course, two of our theatres are literally on the RAAC as both the Brunton in Musselburgh and Motherwell’s Concert Hall are to be demolished as they have been found stuffed with the offensive concrete. There is much by way of council promises—one might think, impending council elections in a febrile political atmosphere—but also a healthy dose of local scepticism wrapped around their hope that something might actually happen.
As for what I saw in 2024 that I felt was particularly worthy for British Theatre Guide, I go back to the early part of the year for Chunky Jewellery by Barrowland Ballet. They are bringing this back in early 2025 to tour and is an absolute joy to behold and I said, “this worked so well that if this does not have a second wind, a new lease of life, or even a tour, I don’t know what else can give us being in your stage and age of life where wearing chunky jewellery is the straitjacket we all want to avoid.”
I also rediscovered Pitlochry Festival Theatre and was delighted to go up there to see Nan Shepherd: Naked and Unashamed, which was delightful. I have been a fan of the show since the day I first saw it as a rehearsed reading, so to see a full production was tremendous. It also shall return in 2025, and I said, “this truly is epic theatre in an intimate setting.”
One venue I managed to get back into which for many years had stopped reviewers being allowed in to pen their opinions was the Pavilion Theatre in Glasgow. Hen Night Horror was brilliant, and I was very grateful to get the opportunity to go see it. Not necessarily going to be an application for any form of Creative Scotland funding, Hen Night Horror contributed to the Pavilion reasserting itself as a variety theatre with something you can get your unsophisticated laughing gear round as I pointed out, “this was a theatre filled by people out for a good time and were in a theatre watching actors onstage earning a crust. It may not be to everyone’s tastes but when people rose at the end to applaud, they did so with genuine affection for the characters, the event and in a theatre. That’s the thing about variety, it needs to be good to last. And here is the evidence we have it good.”
Back at Pitlochry, my children's theatre pick for the year for the BTG is The Secret Garden. A children's classic performed outdoor in a venue that was developed to cope with COVID, this was a beautiful reenactment that I enjoyed massively, not just because of the performances, but it was performed within its own garden. It was, a masterful amalgamation as I said, “it cannot be underestimated that the simplest, often take the most complex of belief to happen in such a magnificent fashion. And for that, Pitlochry have an absolute cracker on their hands.”
The Festival Fringe this year gave me a few things to enjoy and love, not least VL at the Roundabout in Summerhall, which was the sequel to Square Go which I had loved so much. I was also delighted to see Scottish politician Mhairi Black on stage and Fifth Step by Davy Ireland managed to hit the spots for an old recovering alkie like me.
I mused on each as follows, firstly VL: “I may not have laughed as heartily as the woman in the audience, but I could see this having more in it to take both Max and Stevie further forward. Imagine them on their first day in their first ever job, in a call centre, or at the school prom, trying to get into college and face that interview and all of that. I can. And I would happily hang roon the bins tae watch it.”
Followed by Mhairi Black: “it cements her as an icon of a breed that sees hersel as ithers sees her but refuses to accept their opinion as a final epitaph nor as a sequence of chains. Black has broken free, and the next stage somewhere will beckon. On the evidence of this she is going to be quite the formidable presence.”
And finally of Fifth Step: “this asks questions and rather than being any kind of advert or any kind of exposé it is precisely what it needs to be. In the week that drugs deaths have been announced as being on the rise, this is a vital addition to the debate, which is authentic, real and very entertaining. Some might say, I might even need a meeting after that…”
I ended the year off to see some panto, which is not my favourite genre, however, came away totally and utterly entranced by Johnny McKnight and Peter Panto & the Incredible Stinkerbell, as I noted, “this cast has delivered a fantastic update to the genre that takes us on to the next level of how we see our national Christmas dish and it should always be served with as much McKnight on the plate as possible.”
As for my favourite of the year, I think for me I am going to sit back and put my feet up and return to see Chunky Jewellery because it made me laugh and giggle the first time round.
Roll on, 2025…