Dogstar Theatre Company's revived show tells the story of Captain Simon Fraser, best known for his 1816 collection of Gaelic songs, The Airs and Melodies Peculiar to the Highlands of Scotland and the Isles.
What is nice about this short bio-play is that is doesn't romanticise the truth or treat Fraser like a laudable hero. Instead, it highlights his flaws and weaknesses and perhaps makes him a far more accessible subject.
Played by handsomely craggy Matthew Zajac, Fraser's life is told from where he starts out as ambitious and foolhardy until his deathbed when he doubts his own achievements and is oft-haunted by the Highlanders who think he turned his back on his heritage. Through the character device of Mairi (played superbly by singer Alyth McCormack) his motives are questioned and his denial of his own responsibility for his errors examined. McCormack's haunting vocals are also the perfect addition to the live music from Jonny Hardie and Ingrid Henderson.
Directed by Alison Peebles, the staging is simple yet the treatment of two short stories stand out: firstly, the comedy of the puppetry segment which made the two performers much more genial and, secondly, the cleverly told Scottish folk legend about the musical fairies in the mountain, which was laugh out loud funny, especially as there was a little corpsing when things went awry.
Draped fabric was a motif which worked well throughout and McCormack's clever costuming (when it stayed put) was also a nice touch. Informative and entertaining with one witty referendum gibe, it's worth catching on its spring tour.
At Brunton Theatre, Musselburgh tonight, then touring Scotland in May.
HHHH
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