An “honest, wicked and moving unpicking” of the character of the pantomime dame is among a range of original performances unveiled for this year’s festival programme at the Traverse Theatre.
Scotland's new writing theatre said it had unveiled a programme that “reaffirms its unwavering commitment to discovering, developing and showcasing the most vital new voices in theatre”.
This year's TravFest, which is comprised of 12 productions, including ten premieres, deals with issues from climate change to radicalisation and loved ones developing dementia. Other themes include global conflict and dysfunctional family dynamics, while also bringing joy, humanity, commonality and humour.
Gary McNair’s solo fable A Gambler’s Guide to Dying returns to the Traverse ten years on from its sell-out, award-winning debut. Another production is Standing In The Shadows of Giants, a world premiere of an autobiographical musical play written and performed by Lucie Barât – sister of The Libertines’ frontman and guitarist Carl Barât.
Meanwhile, The Beautiful Future is Coming – an “urgent” new play about the onrushing climate apocalypse - will span 250 years of real and imagined history through the eyes of three couples, from 1850s New York to present-day London.
The new play by Karis Kelly, winner of the Women’s Prize for Playwriting 2022, entitled Consumed, directed by Katie Posner, receives its world premiere on the Traverse stage this August.
9. Deliverance
Originally conceived and presented for audiences during lockdown, and described as "like a mindfulness exercise crossed with a dressing-up-box game", Deliverance has been brought back for audiences who missed it the first time around. | Traverse
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10. Consumed
Karis Kelly’s brand-new play Consumed, directed by Katie Posner, receives its world premiere on the Traverse stage this August, in a Paines Plough, Belgrade Coventry, Sheffield Theatres, Women's Prize for Playwriting co-production, in association with Lyric Theatre Belfast. A pitch-black and twisted tale of dysfunctional family dynamics, generational trauma and national boundaries, Consumed brings together four generations of Northern Irish women, a house full of hungry ghosts and a 90th birthday party that no one wants. | Traverse
11. A Gambler's Guide To Dying
Gary McNair’s beloved solo fable A Gambler’s Guide to Dying returns to the Traverse 10 years on from its sell-out, award-winning debut and subsequent tours which took it to stages across Scotland, the UK, and the world. An intergenerational tale of what we live for and what we leave behind, the play is written and performed by Gary and directed by Traverse Artistic Director Gareth Nicholls. | Traverse