The Front
THE oPININ
Catherine-Ann MacPhee and Elizabeth MacLennan in .. aid Mhor from
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In the year of John McGrath’s death, has the time for 7:84 passed? Words: Mary McKay
be news is that the artistic director and board of 7:84 Theatre (‘ompany have 'parted company". The difficulty for 7:84 is that it‘s no longer clear what it is for. The company was founded in the 7()s with a pioneering aim to present political theatre to a popular audience. liamously it toured 77W ('lit'i'inr. the Stag and the Blur/v. B/(lt'k ()i/ to the far-llung parts of Scotland. playing village halls. bars and barns with a play based on the ceilidh and tottching the heart of Scotland. But the single track roads that 7:84 explored have become highways carrying not only trucks delivering fresh croissants to villages that once never saw fresh milk. but also the vans of the 'l‘ravers‘e. TAG and Borderline. 7284's footprints have been trod by so many that the paths have had to be reinforced like the route up Ben l.awers. Similarly the popular theatre that 7:84 pioneered has become part of the standard Scottish repertoire. Plays written in various Scots dialects abound. The voices of Scottish playwrights are sought out by so many companies that they face a shortage of new writers. Surveys tell us that rural audiences are fed up with new work and long for a decent Shakespeare. Arthur Miller or Ayckbourn. ‘ , Political theatre has changed with the s a sad cultural landscape. The long but enjoyable for a
evening for John McGrath earlier this vear
reminded us why we admired 7:84’s earlier company work. but also why we stopped attending. used to L'nfortunately this seems to have affected tours in 7284‘s current work too: a recent survey response by a large theatre indicated that an 728-1 might expect to sell 220 tickets over a
two-night run. This is a sad position for a
company that used to sell whole tours in an afternoon.
An area where 7:84 might score is grassroots work in (ilasgow. where the company is based. It does good community work. such as a current project looking at mental health and a recent one focusing on domestic abuse. But these are social issues rather than political. and areas of work that many non- theatre organisations undertake. Last year it was left to the MacRobert from Stirling to do work with (ilasgow‘s young refugees 7 resulting in ('lu/i Asylum. Hanna/1 um! Ila/mu and lit/[ml l’ulun's. This was a real theatrical response to a political issue of the moment. Yet when we are facing a war with Iraq. 7284‘s present touring show. l'iu'rmjv (iir/s. and the planned production of Dario l‘o‘s (hit '1 Pay. Him 'I Pay are hardly tackling current issues head on.
Scotland needs political theatre as much as ever. and good political theatre springs. often oppositionally. from the circumstances of the day. Maybe the difficulty for 7:84 is that the weight of its past prevents it from being a vital expression of the present. It is difficult for a political theatre company to be a part of the establishment. .‘Vlany touring theatre companies have a finite life span. With the news about the company‘s artistic director coming soon after the death of the company‘s charismatic founder. John .\lc(irath. is it time for the board to call it a day and bring the company to a dignified end'.’
Disagree? react@list.co.uk
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2 All or Nothing
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3 Queens of the Stone Age Music Dripping rock attitude. QOTSA are Black Sabbath hanging loose with the Stooges. Satanic rock made flesh for those bold enough to sample it. See preview. page 46. Barrow/and, Glasgow.
4 The Sopranos
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5 Donnie Darko
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7 Al Murray
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8 Big Big World
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9 Umberto Eco
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10 John Deakin
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