Muddy farm tracks and real people put in drama
The World Premiere children’s show Baba Yaga comes to Perth Theatre for two days this week before opening at the Edinburgh International Children’s Festival at the end of May.
Tomorrow at 1.30pm and 7pm and Thursday,10am and 1.30pm the new children’s show is performed by Scotland’s Shona Reppe (The Curious Scrapbook of Josephine Bean), Christine Johnston (Fluff ) and Rosemary Myers (Girl Asleep).
Baba Yaga is a hilarious musical show for children aged 7 to 12 years and their families.
Retelling an old Russian folktale, it’s the story of Vaselina, who’s been living the quiet life on the third floor of a very tall apartment block. But one day she’s forced to confront her new neighbour, the terrifying Baba Yaga. Tickets £7.50; conc essions £5, schools £3.50, 01738 621031. A production about the highs and lows of life on the land is coming to venues around Perth and Kinross.
Perth Theatre is taking its new original rural production, A Six Inch Layer of Top Soil and the Fact it Rains around the county’s farming towns this week and next.
Two actors, Melody Grove and Aly Macrae, will be in halls and schools in Aberfeldy, Birnam, Crieff, Blair Atholl, Alyth, Blairgowrie and Kinross, dishing the dirt on tractor treads and sipping tea while discussing advances in baling equipment.
The production draws words and song and music together and the audience at the rural performances will get to hear Ally Mclean play fiddle.
It has been an interesting project given that the script has been written by Kieran Hurley, using real sound extracts from visits to county farms.
Kieran set out last year to speak to the farming community at home, and Perth Theatre director Lu Kemp took her wellies and went along too.
“Once we found our way to homesteads we had lots of cups of tea,” explained Lu.
“Our investigations took us to some stunning places, I particularly enjoyed finding subjects to talk to on the North side of Loch Tay.
“At one farm we sat and talked and it was beautiful, as time passed the light began to fade and we kept listening and the room got darker, all without a light going on, it gave a uniquely natural atmosphere.”
Lu explained it wasn’t just the words of A Six Inch Layer of Top Soil and the Fact it Rains that came from on the hoof visits. “We recorded the sheepdogs barking high up on a hill farm, the audio makes its way into the finished piece, it’s really lovely. Co-stars Shona Reppe (left) and Christine Johnston (right) in Baba Yaga. Pic by Shane Reid Aly Macrae (left) and Melody Grove (right) have a country chinwag in Kieran Hurley’s new drama “We took the piece ‘And Then Come the Nightjars’ out touring rurally last year, and once again Perth Theatre comes out of Perth. We think its really important to enter the space of out-ofcity audiences, by coming to them, we get a very different, very positive energy,” concluded Lu.
A Six Inch Layer of Top Soil comes to Aberfeldy Town Hall (Wednesday, May 9); Birnam Arts Centre (May 10); Strathearn Artspace, Crieff; (Fri, 11); Blair Atholl Village Hall (Wed 16); Alyth Town Hall (Thurs 17); Blairgowrie Town Hall ( Fri 18) and Loch Leven Community Campus, Kinross on Sat 19. Tickets £10 from Perth Concert Hall, Perth Theatre and directly from venues.