Fringe Show in Rosslyn Chapel
It is enormously exciting to think that Hairy Maclary is about to join his friends on stage at the Fringe. As a dog whose motley ancestry includes a generous contribution from Scotland, he is bound to feel completely at home in Edinburgh!'
(Lynley Dodds, Author)
Local theatre company ‘NonsenseRoom Productions’ based in Roslin are certainly going to be busy this summer as two of their productions are staged at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
NonsenseRoom Productions was established in 2003 by Roslin residents Simon Beattie and Bruce Strachan. After both attending the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in Glasgow, the two friends formed their own company and have been staging productions in Edinburgh at the last 7 Festivals, as well as touring Scotland with Christmas classics ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ and ‘A Christmas Carol’.
This year the company is extremely excited to have obtained the rights to produce the first ever UK stage adaptation of the Lynley Dodds ever popular ‘Hairy Maclary’ books.
“ My two young daughters love these books and I emailed Lynley back at the start of 2009 regarding obtaining the rights, however they were tied up with another producer” says Simon. “Out of the blue at the start of the year I received an email asking if I would still be interested as the rights were back on offer and I immediately said yes! We have been working with a great team of local actors, musicians and Bill Scott, our costume designer from Loanhead to make sure the books come to life on stage in a fun and engaging way for both children and adults”.
Bill began working with NonsenseRoom Productions in 2005. “To begin with the boys asked me to make them a couple of medieval costumes for their period drama they were producing” remembers Bill. “but with every show I find myself asked to do more and more, and with Hairy Maclary I have had to design and make six dog outfits and a cat costume!”
“Bill is brilliant!” says Simon, “the outfits he comes up with are always more than we could hope for, and sometimes the material looks very familiar. We often have to ask him Bill, wasn’t this dress one of your curtains last week?!”
The show will be on at The Assembly Rooms, Edinburgh from 5th – 29th August each day at 10.30am.
On a completely different theme ‘The Apprentice’ also written by Simon will be performed in the mysterious and historic Rosslyn Chapel as part of the fringe.
“Having grown up in Rosslyn and working at the Chapel I have long been fascinated by the stories and mysteries surrounding it. I was particularly drawn to the legend surrounding the famous Apprentice Pillar and put pen to paper to flesh out the story and put it in a dramatic context. Performing the show in the Chapel itself is a unique experience and adds a whole new element to the production” The Apprentice has previously been performed at the fringe to sell out audiences.
It runs from 5th – 19th August at 7.30pm, with special events on the 7th and 14th where a guided tour of the chapel and buffet supper is included.
Bruce is delighted to be back at the Chapel after not being able to perform in the building in 2009.
“Because of the conservation work going on at the Chapel last year, we were unable to perform in the building” says Strachan. “This year though, we are delighted to be back in the venue that began it all for us in 2003. This will be the first year that the large metal canopy over the top of the Chapel won’t be there during the show, and I think the audience will love being able to see the whole building again.”
Productions:
The Apprentice
Rosslyn Chapel, Edinburgh
5th -19th August 7.30pm
Hairy Maclary and Friends
The Assembly Rooms
5th-29th August 10.30am
Tickets from www.nonsenseroom.co.uk or www.edfringe.com or (0131) 226 0000
For more details please contact
Simon Beattie
0771 4590749
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