LOOKING backwards makes complete sense, doesn’t it? Just as we were getting our heads around the pandemic, World War Three becomes a possibility.

Then we have to try and figure out the fuel crises and heating costs – and now we wake up to the news that ordinary decent pop stars such as Rod Stewart are having to fix the pot holes in their street before they can drive the Ferrari down to Homebase.

That’s why theatre has recognised our need for nostalgia. New York right now is set to reintroduce the work of the brilliant Neil Simon to the masses, the writer who wrote better than anyone about relationship confusion and turmoil.

In London, Aaron Sorkin’s To Kill A Mockingbird is being staged, a reminder that the battle for justice is a crazed and continual one. Across the country there are revivals of the likes of Kes. And a new stage show, Friends, reminding of the love for the TV show.

And here in Scotland we’re also flashing back to the familiar.

Yes, our theatre is focusing on a late 1990s piece featuring chaos, darkness and despondency – themes which we love – but laced with humour blacker than a Russian president’s heart.

The National Theatre of Scotland is set to stage Orphans, Peter Mullan’s acclaimed dark comedy which follows the adventures of the Flynn siblings on a stormy night in Glasgow after the death of their mother.

The Flynns’ story – tonally, somewhere between Quentin Tarantino and Ken Loach – reveals one brother has been stabbed, another won’t leave the church and one has a gun and is roaming the streets looking for revenge.

Meantime, their cerebral palsied sister just wants to get on with her own life.

Mullan’s tale isn’t being simply retold however. It’s been turned into a musical by Roddy Hart and Tommy Reilly.

And if that weren’t a recommendation enough to see the show, it’s also being directed by Cora Bissett, who certainly appreciates the value of replicating a madness we can appreciate. (And laugh at, in parts.) “This musical is about raw grief, and the madness that lies within that,” she offers.

“The emotions are epic and messy and the songs raucous, and heart aching. It’s for people who think they hate musicals but love a great story, and for musical lovers who would like to see a musical rooted firmly in a world that feels like theirs.”

Bissett is covering the bases with that statement, but she knows the story manages to blend just enough of the surreal with the raw feelings. And the NTS has the experience to pull off this theatrical adventure.

The adaptation is by Douglas Maxwell, who will certainly have learnt a great deal from working on the NTS production Yer Granny (a piece of theatre which appeared to have been written by a Mujahideen of crazed playwrights and made as much sense.)

Peter Mullan’s madness which arises from family disconnection – think Eugene O’Neill with Buckfast – will appear in a form we’re far more familiar with. And desperately need.

The challenge will be to bring a huge story, with songs, to the theatre, to pack scenes as tightly as Rod packs his potholes.

Orphans, April 1-30, touring Greenock, Glasgow, Edinburgh and Inverness.

DOUGLAS Maxwell’s writing talents are certainly not confined to the National Theatre of Scotland production of Orphans.

This week at Glasgow’s Oran Mor he has written Man’s Best Friend, described as ‘a comic and poignant tale about the give and take of companionships.’

We discover that walking his neighbours’ dogs has kept Ronnie (Jonathan Watson) together during a very difficult lockdown. 

And who amongst us hasn’t had to rely upon the easy familiarity of a four-legged friend? The routine of exercise, the opportunity to pass a period in the day has been all too necessary.

That has certainly been the case with Ronnie. We come to realise that he has more of a need for companionship than most.

But when a series of mishaps result in the dogs slipping their leads and disappearing off into the woods, Ronnie’s forced to take chase and face up to some hard truths. 

This is Douglas Maxwell’s third Oran Mor play. A previous effort A Respectable Widow Takes to Vulgarity went on to be produced in New York and Montreal.

Man’s Best Friend stars Jonathan Watson, who currently stars as the oleaginous Colin in the hugely successful BBC sitcom Two Doors Down, written by Simon Carlyle and Gregor Sharp.

Watson has enjoyed a long career in Scottish comedy, appearing in the cult sitcom City Lights, alongside the late Andy Gray. And he more recently appeared in the searing Clydeside-based play Fibres, by Jemima Levick, who directs this work.

Man’s Best Friend, Oran Mor’s Play Pie and a Pint series, March 21- 26, is presented in association with the Traverse Theatre.