Head of Planning and Trust and Foundations Manager vacancies

The National Theatre of Scotland have two new vacancies;  Head of Planning and Trust and Foundations Manager.

We are a theatre without walls and have imagination without limits. This makes Planning a key function within our ambitious, groundbreaking organisation. We are looking for an extremely organised, creative mind to help us realise our wide-ranging dreams across Scotland and beyond as Head of Planning.  The ideal candidate will have great skill in communications, both internally and externally, will be required to spread the word and help manage the programme of the National Theatre of Scotland.

We’re also looking for a gifted Trust and Foundation Manager to work within our Development Team. You’ll play a major role in helping us secure funding for projects across our programme. If you can craft creative, intelligent applications, build relationships with a wide portfolio of grant-giving trusts and foundations and have at least 4 years’ experience in this specific area of arts fundraising then we’d like to hear from you.

For full details of both positions and to download a job pack go to the jobs page of our website.

You can also call Fiona Hanrahan at National Theatre of Scotland on 0141 221 0970 or send an email to: recruitment@nationaltheatrescotland.com

The closing date for applications is Friday 10^th February 2012.
Interviews will be held in Glasgow, date to be confirmed.

The National Theatre of Scotland acknowledges the need and right of everyone connected with the organisation to be treated with respect and dignity in an environment in which a diversity of  backgrounds and experience is valued.

Live chat and streaming of Staging the Nation: Thorn in Their Side

On Friday 27th January at 3pm, we will be streaming ‘thorn in Their Side: Nurturing the Thistle of Scottish Political Theatre’ from our Staging the Nation site.

This event was originally held on Thursday 15th December 2011 in the heart of the Scottish Parliament. Acclaimed writer, producer and director David MacLennan hosted the evening of discussion, performance, provocation and celebration asking does Scotland have a nature of dissent? Can theatre ever galvanise the people around a political cause?

In conversation and performance were Peter Arnott, Cora Bissett, Alan Bissett, Catrin Evans, Morag Fullerton, Mike Gonzalez, Kieran Hurley, Arthur Johnstone, Nicola McCartney, Liz MacLennan, Linda Mackenney and Amanda Monfrooe.

See the event in full on Friday at 3pm at http://stagingthenation.com/live/ accompanied by a live chat with David MacLennan. Get involved and give instant feedback on topics raised during the event.

Emerging Artist Amanda Monfrooe blogs

Amanda Monfrooe (photo by Andy Buchanan)

Bank of Scotland Emerging Artist Amanda Monfrooe reflects on her attachment with the National Theatre of Scotland and what 2012 holds in store .

Although this is the start of a new year and although I am approaching the end of my formal association with the National Theatre of Scotland, things have never been busier. In particular the first couple of months of 2012 are full to the brim with creative projects. Aside from my National Theatre of Scotland work I am writing for a collaborative project about the Enlightenment’s poster boy Jean-Jacques Rousseau and facilitating a project for Arika12, a well regarded festival of experimental visual, video and performance art. To reignite my National Theatre of Scotland work, I am also taking part in Emerge, an evening of performance pieces from the artists associated with the Bank of Scotland’s Emerging Artists and New Directors schemes. For this performance I am directing a ten minute section of my play “Dog Eat Dog.” And that’s just January and February!

But once the air clears after a mad few months what will 2012 hold? I took my year in attachment to the National Theatre of Scotland in 2011 as an opportunity to reflect, to practice slowly, investing my time and energy in new forms and unfamiliar ways. I was free of the urgent desire to produce a show because for the first time it didn’t feel utterly necessary. I was expanding my practice and that was more important than keeping myself in the limelight for the sake of it. But in the new year I am conscious that without the support of the National Theatre of Scotland it is important that I re-establish myself in the sector by producing.

In the last few months I have written two scripts that I look forward to developing and hopefully producing. But I am particularly excited about creating a new one-woman show, which I will develop in the final month of my attachment. I hope to realize the show later in 2012. I was never under the impression that my work during the attachment would lead to easy success after it wrapped up. I knew that the year was for my progress as an artist in whatever form that might take. And so I hope to take the contacts I have made during the year, with a new portfolio of work under my arm, and step back out on my own once more, but this time equipped with a sense of purpose about my practice that only patient reflection, trial and error, and the confidence of others can inspire.

Associate Director John Tiffany is curating Emerge, an evening of work from Emerging Artists and New Directors at the Citizens Theatre, Glasgow, on 26 January at 6pm.

Find out more about Emerge.

Emerge is a free but ticketed event. Tickets can be booked through the Citizens Theatre box office.

Join the cast of Reasons to Dance

The National Theatre of Scotland invites the people of Falkirk to join the community cast for the final performance events of Reasons to Dance.

Community Casting Days

Falkirk Old and St Modan’s Parish Church
Manse Place, Falkirk FK1 1JN

Wednesday 25th January (7 – 8.30pm)
Saturday 28th January 28th (11.30am – 1pm, 2 – 3.30pm)

Since September 2011 individuals and groups across a wide range of ages from the Falkirk Council area have been sharing their stories (and confessions!) on the theme of dance.  As this latest National Theatre of Scotland large scale community participation project, Reasons to Dance, moves into its final stages, the people of Falkirk are invited to become part of the theatrical finale (taking place in the last week of March), by attending one of three community casting sessions.

Through a series of workshops, events, interviews and questionnaires the Reasons to Dance embedded creative team has tapped into the thoughts and memories of over 1000 people from the local community, exploring the reasons, rituals, music, venues, clothing, styles, disasters and triumphs linked to ‘the life of dance’.  These collected tales and materials will inspire and shape the final theatrical event – created by, and for, the people of Falkirk.  Part installation, part performance, the production will take place at a secret Falkirk location, and combine personal stories brought to life with drama, music, creative writing, photography and film.

Whether they have already engaged with the Reasons to Dance project, or are interested in becoming involved for the first time, local people have the opportunity to star in the show by attending one of three community casting sessions at Falkirk Old and St. Modan’s Parish Church on Wednesdsay 25^th (7 – 8:30pm) and Saturday 28^th January (11:30am – 1pm and 2 – 3:30pm).  People of all ages and abilities are welcome (minimum 14 yrs) and it’s important to be aware that no dancing ability is required. These community casting days will provide an opportunity for participants to meet the National Theatre of Scotland’s creative team and to take part in a practical drama workshop and information session.

 

Other Information

• Participants can choose to attend one of the three community casting sessions
• Please wear loose, comfortable clothing
• Availability during the theatrical finale performance week is necessary (Monday 26^th – Saturday 31^st March 2012), with some availability in the rehearsal week also required (Monday 19^th – Saturday 24^th March 2012)
• If you have any access requirements, please do contact the team in advance.

 

For further information on Reasons to Dance, visit www.nationaltheatrescotland.com or our dedicated Facebook page.  The team can also be contacted directly at reasonstodance@nationaltheatrescotland.com or by calling 0141 227 9230.

Details of the performance venue and the final events will be announced soon.

One Day in Spring with Blipfoto

The National Theatre of Scotland is proud to be collaborating once again with Blipfoto.

Blipfoto is a daily photo blogging community and Scottish digital success story. Blipfoto members post one photo a day to the site and invite responses from their fellow community of “blippers”. Blipfoto won the 2009 BAFTA Scotland Award for Best website, and topped The List’s celebration of the best Scottish websites of 2011.

To celebrate the collaboration, we have an exciting competition for Blipfoto members to have their images featured within the pages of the National Theatre of Scotland’s next brochure. See last year’s for an idea of how our brochure looks. If your image is chosen, you stand the chance to gain exclusive access to performances, to photograph behind the scenes and have your finished art work signed by the stars.

To enter, you need to be a member of the Blipfoto community. So, the first thing to do, if you’re not already a member, is to head over to Blipfoto and sign up.  If you’ve been given a fancy new phone for Christmas, why not start your new year by becoming part of a new community of fellow photo lovers.

The theme for our next brochure is One Day in Spring. To put an image forward for consideration, simply add the tag “SpringNTS” to your photograph -you can do this with new or existing blips.

The closing date for submissions is Monday 16th January 2012.

One thing to bear in mind, however. Since the image will be printed large, all uploaded entries need to be at least 4MB – so mobile phone shots probably won’t be big enough.  And think squint. We’re probably not going to be publishing a brochure full of daffodils buds and snowdrops . . .

Happy New Year . . . and happy blipping!

A Christmas Carol social media round up

National Theatre of Scotland Digital Associate Eve Nicol joins in the social media call for A Christmas Carol, 29th November 2011, at Film City Glasgow and meets some of the participants . . .

A Christmas Carol company, with puppet-maker Gavin Glover (front left) and director Graham McLaren (right).

The dusty Victorian office of Messrs Scrooge & Marley were visited by altogether more modern guests bearing high tech wizardry that would’ve made short work of the tomes of figures and sums that swamp the high shelves of Ebenezer’s workplace.

More corporeal and far friendlier than the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come, these visitors were here to take part in our Social Media Call for the exciting new production of A Christmas Carol.

There was a diverse group of bloggers, photographers and student broadcasters in attendance, with their iPads, notepads, smart phones and fancy cameras raising a cacophony of clicks.

The Company shared three scenes from the show with us, running each one twice to make sure everyone had time to line up their shots – they even tweaked the atmospheric dark lighting to accommodate for slow shutter speeds.

Photographers clamoured over the carpeted seating banks to get the best shots and Graham, the director, made sure no-one was excluded from getting good material.

Whilst the cast and crew were well prepared with what they wanted to show, the course of the morning was very much shaped by those in attendance. Photographers asked for some poses to be held and were able to get the perfect shots.

Social media call participants

Broadcast Production students from the University of West of Scotland had come with a full crew and made good use of the freedom of the set to grab some cutaways. Callum Smith from Glasgow University’s SubCity Radio brought along his notepad and iPhone to grab some content. Blogger Alex Cory and photographer Kenny Mathieson, both National Theatre of Scotland social media call veterans, had travelled from Edinburgh for the morning. Our friends from Scottish Opera came along too.

The exciting difference about a social media call, as opposed to a traditional press or media call, is that everyone who attends is doing it out of passion for their area of interest and a love of live performance.  Unlike a press call, where attendees might attend many similar events in a month, this is an occasion for participants, true amateurs, many of whom are taking time out of their usual schedule. Spending time in the company of cast and having free reign to take photos and videos of a production is a real treat, and a new experience for many of the cast too.

Social media calls make an enjoyable change for cast and crew, but it can be scary presenting work before independent writers and commentators who aren’t tied to an editorial policy. One disgruntled tweet from a disapproving blogger could be enough to put a poor spin on a show before it has even opened!

Photographer reviews his shots

With such a convivial atmosphere at A Christmas Carol social media call there is no worry of this happening. As the visitors make their way back to their editing suites and desktops, they leave smiling and perhaps with even more excitement for the production than they had when they arrived!

An hour flies by, and after one last check to make sure everyone has the material they were after, Scrooge’s office is quiet once more. Quiet at least until the arrival of more ephemeral midnight guests.

Find out more about the show:

Listen to SubCity radio’s Christmas Carol feature
Feature starts at 1 hour, 5 mins.

Review from Callum Smith
Follow him on Twitter @CallumSmith1234

Alex Cory’s blog
Follow Alex on Twitter @cory_face

Kenny Mathieson’s Flickr page
Follow him @KennyMathieson

Review from Jack Harty
Follow Jack @jack_harty

Reviews of A Christmas Carol

Scrooge meets the Ghost of Christmas Past (photo by Peter Dibdin)

Performed in a small room in the former Govan Town Hall, the walls stacked high with ledgers and scrolls, the show brings us distressingly close to the story’s terrors. Benny Young makes an austere Presbyterian Scrooge, gaunt, grubby and humourless; the last man you’d ever feel sympathy for. Yet when Gavin Glover’s superlative puppets magically appear through the apparently solid walls of the set, they have such a fearsome, otherworldly demeanour, you can only feel for the guy. . .

It is rare to see horror so intensively evoked in the theatre, but it’s not only for effect. Rather than being a sentimental portrait of a man who doesn’t like Christmas, this is an evocation of an unjust society – the true horror of Dickens’s tale – and a powerful broadside against anyone who thinks there’s no such thing as society.
The Guardian * * * * *

[Graham] McLaren (who directed the NTS’s recent and deservedly acclaimed production of the Ena Lamont Stewart classic Men Should Weep) directs and designs this Christmas Carol with a wonderfully complete vision . . .  every aspect of the piece contributes perfectly to its irresistibly magical atmosphere.

A talented cast shift deftly from playing the supporting characters to operating the puppets; giving great physical and vocal expression to, for instance, the ethereal, girl-like Spirit of Christmas Past, the avuncular Spirit of Christmas Present (who hails, somehow appropriately, from Yorkshire) and the deathly Spirit of Christmas Yet to Come.

Deserves to be remembered as one of the classiest pieces of theatre to have been staged in Scotland, not only in the winter season, but at any time of year.
Daily Telegraph * * * * *

This pared-back, inventively staged version of A Christmas Carol uses puppetry to bring the ghosts and their visions into play within the specially constructed intimacy of Scrooge’s workplace. Every inch of this room is crammed with dingy details. . .

What follows is closer to the cartoon horrors of Tim Burton or Neil Gaiman. Puppets, some grotesquely fanciful and even larger-than-life, some persuasively human, even when on a much smaller scale, slip out of the woodwork with alarming ease. . .

There’s no doubting the power and intention of their visitations. Scrooge learns to pity the poor – and Christmas-time theatre is much enriched in the process.
The Herald * * * *

Every inch is put to good use in the National Theatre of Scotland’s first ever festive show. Benny Young is a wonderfully gruff Scottish-accented Scrooge, tartly dispensing the carol singers and charity tin rattlers before supping his gruel and curling up on his bleak counting house floor. The spirits that invade his sleep are puppets, masterfully rendered by Gavin Glover, emerging from the wall, descending from the lampshade, staggering out of the cupboard.
The List * * * *

 

Benny Young’s Scrooge (think George Osborne crossed with Jeremy Clarkson and given a Newton Mearns accent) sets about humbugging Christmas and everyone who would spread seasonal cheer.

No sooner has the wretched miser cast the well-wishers and charitable fundraisers from his door than he is visited, courtesy of brilliant puppet-theatre maker Gavin Glover, by the most extraordinary series of spirits. . .

Glover’s puppets (which are given great body and fabulous voice by an excellent cast) combine with fabulous live music (by Jon Beales) and sound (by Matt Padden) and flawless costume and lighting design (by Graham McLaren and Paul Claydon respectively) to generate an absolutely compelling atmosphere of Victorian gothic.
Sunday Herald

Social Media Call for A Christmas Carol

Social media users are invited to take pictures and film footage of the National Theatre of Scotland’s first ever Christmas production A Christmas Carol adapted, directed and designed by Graham McLaren on Wednesday 30^th November at 10.45am for 11am start.

 There will be the opportunity to photograph and film two scenes from the production. The cast and creative team will also be available for interviews.

The National Theatre of Scotland’s production will bring Dicken’s classic Christmas fable to life for contemporary audiences with sinister life-size puppets and live music, played out in an unique setting.

Scrooge will be played by Benny Young and he is joined by four actors and puppeteers; Ben Thompson, Stephen Clyde, Josh Elwell and Beth Marshall. Originally penned in 1843 as a novella , A Christmas Carol was an instant success and Dicken’s redemptive tale of Scrooge, Jacob Marley and the ghosts of Christmas’ Past, Present and Future, has long become an enduring Christmas favourite.  

The total number of people allowed access is limited so if you would like to attend please register in advance by emailing andrew.neilson@nationaltheatrescotland.com

 In the meantime why not tweet about production using the hashtag #AChristmasCarol

 A Christmas Carol is at Film City, Govan from  Wednesday 30 November to Sat 31 December

More details at www.nationaltheatrescotland.com

National Theatre of Scotland launches 2012 season

The National Theatre of Scotland has launched its season for 2012.

Alan Cumming joins Vicky Featherstone to launch National Theatre of Scotland's 2012 season - photographer Colin Hattersley

Vicky Featherstone artistic director said:

“The National Theatre of Scotland was created to reach and appeal to a wide range of diverse audiences across Scotland. Our innovative model enables us to do that.  Our 2012 season, in collaboration with so many of Scotland’s extraordinary artists and companies is an example of that. From work for Scottish primary schools, to teenagers, for older audiences, for large scale popular appeal and for intimate and thought-provoking personal experiences, I am thrilled to unleash this range of work to the world.”

 At a glance the season looks like this:

APRIL TO MAY 2012

• The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Hart, by David Greig and Wils Wilson, their devilishly good reinvention of the Border Ballad is back by popular demand with a Scottish tour and a subsequent UK and international tour.

• The National Theatre of Scotland collaborates with GI Festival for the first time with The Making of…… A collaboration with Graham Eatough and Graham Fagen and an exploration in film, theatre and visual art, at the Tramway, Glasgow.

• The National Theatre of Scotland partners with Oran Mor again to present the One Day in Spring with brand new pieces of work from across the Arab world, curated by David Greig.

The season will play for 6 weeks at Oran Mor,Glasgow with a subsequent run at the Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh.

• The National Theatre of Scotland’s first experiment in Carbon Lite Theatre. The Company takes to the road on bicycles to perform award-winning writer and illustrator Harry Horse’s The Last Polar Bears in primary schools and community centres across the lowlands of Scotland.

• Vicky Featherstone and Abi Morgan’s 27, a co-production with the Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh, is a beautiful meditation on faith, love and loss, returns with runs at the Citizens Theatre, Glasgow and the Cambridge Arts Theatre.

 JUNE TO JULY 2012

• Alan Cumming returns to Scotland with a new and radical take on Macbeth. Alan Cumming’s solo show will be directed by John Tiffany and Andy Goldberg and will have performances at tramway, Glasgow before transferring to the Lincoln Center, New York.

• The National Theatre of Scotland’s popular Exchange festival, in partnership with macrobert Stirling is now in its 6^th year and returns with the premieres of six new pieces of theatre by Scottish Youth Theatres and two by international Youth Theatres.

SEPTEMBER TO OCTOBER 2012

• My Shrinking Life brings together leading Scottish theatre maker  Alison Peebles and radical European director, Lies Pauwels, to take us through Alison’s personal struggle with MS.  Touring Scotland, opening at the Tron Theatre, Glasgow.

• The Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh and the National Theatre of Scotland are back in business, with a new production of The Guid Sisters by Michel Tremblay, in Scots translation by Bill Findlay, directed by acclaimed Canadian director, Serge Denoncourt.

• Adrian Howells is hoping to make a splash with his new site specific project, lifeguard a co-production with the Arches, set in the derelict Govanhill Baths in Glasgow.

OCTOBER TO NOVEMBER 2012 

• A brand new musical for Scotland, conceived and directed by the award-winning Cora Bissett telling the feel good story of Glasgow teenagers with a cause. Glasgow Girls is at the Citizens Theatre. A co-production with Theatre Royal Stratford East, Pachamama Productions, Richard Jordan Productions Ltd in association with Citizens Theatre and Merrigong Theatre Company (Australia)

• The National Theatre of Scotland partners with Vox Motus for the first time to present a magical new show for families; Dragon, directed by Jamie Harrison and Candice Edmunds .

THROUGHOUT 2012

• The award-winning  tfd is back. The Company is presenting a package of five shows for young  people across Scotland and the UK, including the Citizen’s Theatre’s Yellow Moon and The Monster in the Hall, both by David Greig, Count Me in by Gary McNair, Love Letters to the Public Transport System by Molly Taylor and Mr Write by Rob Drummond. The productions will be accompanied by workshops, talks and opportunities for young people across Scotland.

• The Bank of Scotland continues their Pioneering Partnership with the Company, with support  shown across a programme of selected productions and initiatives.

• Staging the Nation continues throughout the year, with readings, lectures, debates, curated events and book clubs. Join in the conversation and watch online at www.stagingthenation.com.

Additional touring and a programme of work at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe will be announced in 2012.

The full release can be found in the press section of our website.

Change of performance for Menage a Trois

Just a quick note to say that due to circumstances outwith our control, the performance of Ménage à Trois next Wednesday 30th November has been moved to Thursday 1st December. Friday & Saturday performances remain unaffected.

Ménage à Trois is a hauntingly beautiful study of love, obsession, loneliness and manipulation, and a visually stunning new piece of dance theatre from award-winning performer Claire Cunningham.

Performances are at Platform, Easterhouse, Glasgow, next Thursday 1st to Saturday 3rd December 2011, 7.30pm. Tickets £8/£4.50/£3.50 (Local Links)