This year's Traverse Theatre's Festival programme, announced today, represents a diverse range of experiences, voices and dramatic forms from eight countries.
The Traverse Theatre Company itself will present five productions and confirming the vital role that art plays in turbulent times, the Traverse 2017 programme gives a platform to narratives that are often silenced or side-lined.
“We live in unpredictable times as the world pitches and shifts on a daily basis," says Traverse Artistic Director, Orla O’Loughlin. "An often frightening reality has become our new normal. We believe that at such times theatre has a crucial role to play in sounding a rallying cry for those who seek to resist the divisive and the unjust. This year’s carefully selected and proudly international line up represents a timely opportunity for our audience to gather and bear witness and feel part of a community that believes change is possible."
She continues: "Along the way there will be laughs a plenty, tears no doubt, surprises and provocation but overall this year’s programme speaks resolutely to the power of now and the responsibility we all have to come together even in times that seem to be hell bent on tearing us apart.”
8 World Premieres
Eight world premieres include the co-production with EIF of Meet Me at Dawn, an exploration of grief and loss inspired by the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice from Zinnie Harris. Another co-production, this time with Birmingham Repertory Theatre Co-Production in association with National Theatre of Scotland, is the tense domestic drama set in Glasgow The Whip Hand from Douglas Maxwell.
In association with the Tron Theatre and Part of the Made in Scotland Showcase 2017, award-winning playwright Gary McNair returns with a new solo show Letters to Morrissey that considers our human desire to be understood, explored through teenage letters written to singer-songwriter Morrissey and for 2 performances only Gary brings a production of his earlier sell out work-in-progress Locker Room Talk that is inspired by Donald Trump’s leaked sexually aggressive comments.
Add to this 2 NTS shows Adam and Eve each dealing with the separate journeys of trans people, and from Bush Theatre comes multidisciplinary Iranian theatre-maker Nassim Soleimanpour’s Nassim.
Visiting companies from Sweden and Australia bring Premieres like Nina – A Story About Me and Nina Simone; Wild Bore and Lilith: The Jungle Girl. Then there is An Evening with an Immigrant; Jess and Joe Forever and the critically acclaimed The Flying Lovers of Vitebsk that’s part of the British Council Edinburgh Showcase 2017.
VR-ing off-site
This year the Traverse goes off-site with 2 shows - Frogman that will be performed at Codebase in Castle Terrace using VR headsets and Party Game, an immersive audience experience where every audience member becomes a party guest in the Wee Red Bar in Lauriston Place.
Add to this Fringe favourites the Breakfast Plays, TalkFest 2017, the hosting of the award ceremony for the James Tait Black Prize for Drama 2017 and a Rehearsed reading from China Plate along with a series of live Party Political Broadcasts celebrating queer history, identity and spaces in Dive Queer Party’s Rainbow Soapbox and it looks like there’s something at the Traverse for everyone.
Watch this space for reviews of Traverse shows.