Charting the rise of youth group from stage to screen
a real sense of ownership of the play now. We’ve tried to bring it up to date, but it’s been surprising with some of the things the group didn’t want to change. They’ve all been saying, ‘No, I’ve seen that film, leave it in.’”
McArthur’s new production of Multiplex is the latest in a series of revisits to some of Tron Participation’s greatest hits over the past 10 years since it was founded in 2003. Then as now the aim was to open up the theatrical experience to all-comers, from primary one age-group upwards.
“They can come along, have fun and meet friends,” McArthur
Some people come in when they’re very young, and as they stay with it they end up taking it quite seriously
observes, “but we also try to take things a step up, and teach them about theatre-making and being part of a group in a theatre building. That’s why we bring in professionals from various different aspects of theatre-making.”
With this in mind, for Multiplex, the company has brought on board audio-visual artist Jamie Macdonald, who worked wonders on Random Accomplice’s award-winning show, The Incredible Adventures Of See-Thru Sam. Also working on Multiplex are costume designer Kirsty McCabe, who worked on Tron productions of Scenes Unseen and Stones In His Pockets, lighting designer Callum Smith and sound designer RJ McConnell. Beyond Multiplex, a forthcoming tenth anniversary project in October will see the groups working with writer/director Martin O’Connor.
“With Jamie they’re making short films and learning about storyboarding,” McArthur says, “while RJ McConnell will come in and play them some new pieces of music, which they’ll have the chance to contribute to. For some people in the groups it’s just a hobby, and that’s absolutely fine; but some others come in when they’re very young, and as they stay with it they end up taking it quite seriously. One of the group has just been offered a place at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, which is great.”
Although working with young people is a key part of Tron Skillshops, Tron Participation goes beyond youth theatre to engage adult groups into the theatrical process.
“There are adult writing classes, set design classes and projects with Glasgow City Council,” McArthur says. “When Tron Participation started it was just Laura Keenan, now there are two of us we’re able to do a lot more. We’re making better connections with other companies, and trying to raise our profile, not just in youth theatre but with adult participation. We’ve also started storytelling classes for children who are six months old and their parents. All classes are open access as well, so age and ability don’t matter. We’re also introducing a second level of the set design classes. With level one I think we’ve taken things as far as we can. We really want to push people’s skill sets.”
Tron Participation and Tron Skillshops are as inclusive as they can be. “We just want to get people who might not normally come to the Tron,” says McArthur, “or any theatre for that matter, to come into the building and participate in what we do here rather than just be a member of the audience.
“We want to give them a different experience of somewhere they can come in and access the facilities we have here. Whether that’s through taking part in writing workshops or set design, it’s important to realise there’s a lot more to being in the arts than going onstage.
“We also try to run projects that run parallel with whatever’s going on the main stage. So with Running On The Cracks (Tron director Andy Arnold’s adaptation of Julia Donaldson’s novel for teenagers about a runaway girl), we did a massive outreach project about the subject. Things like that really seem to matter. If Tron Participation and Tron Skillshops are about anything, it’s building relationships.” THE V&A in London has announced that on August 13 audiences across the country will be able to join the museum for a live cinema event screened from its David Bowie show as the finale to the exhibition.
The cinema event will be introduced by exhibition curators Victoria Broackes and Geoffrey Marsh, and will feature special guests offering an insight into the stories behind some of the 300 objects on display from the David Bowie Archive. It will be the last opportunity to experience the exhibition before it goes on international tour.
David Bowie Is Happening Now will be directed by Bafta-winning filmmaker Hamish Hamilton and screen at 7pm on August 13 in more than 200 cinemas, including the Cameo in Edinburgh and the Belmont in Aberdeen.