Details

To begin, the National Theatre of Scotland travelled to Forres and Wigtown in May 2015 and started collecting stories from both local communities - real life stories about the journeys taken by the towns' inhabitants over the course of their lives. Now, six months later, those stories have made the journey from page to stage, giving rise to two new theatre productions to be performed for the first time respectively in Forres on Saturday 26th September and in Wigtown on Friday 2nd and Saturday 3rd October. Some of the locals who shared their stories will take to the stage, to perform alongside a cast of acclaimed professional actors, supported by a world-class creative team of theatre makers led by National Theatre of Scotland Associate Director Simon Sharkey. In Forres, the production will be presented as part of the Culture Day 2015 programme and in Wigtown as part of Wigtown Book Festival. To Begin... was originally inspired by Scottish Book Trust's Journeys project, inviting people across the country to write short stories about the physical and emotional journeys they have taken. This project will see submissions from across the country collected and distributed within a book during Scottish Book Week 2015. In addition, the National Theatre of Scotland will produce a book documenting the To Begin... project, including portraits of contributors, their backgrounds and the scripts from both productions. To Begin... invites audience members into a green park space, recreated within the local social hall, to take in a theatrical how-to-guide to making life's journeys, including tales of birth, death, triumph, disaster, love, adventure, football, friendship, planes, trains, automobiles and spaceships. Locals may recognise neighbours' stories - and faces - on stage, while other previously hidden histories will be laid bare for the first time. The production includes a collection of songs inspired by the collected stories and performed live by the cast, which includes actors Lewis Howden (Taggart, Rebus), John Kielty (Outlander, River City), Fletcher Mathers (Whisky Galore, Macbeth) and Frances Thorburn (The Tin Forest, Glasgow Girls). Both community casts include local school pupils.

Cast/Performers

Lewis Howden, John Kielty, Fletcher Mathers, Frances Thorburn

Creatives/Company

Producer: National Theatre of Scotland
Director: Simon Sharkey
Dramaturg: Davey Anderson
Design: Claire Halleran
Costume: Claire Halleran
Lighting: Grant Anderson
Sound: Daniel Krass