NOMINATED FOR 3 CATS AWARDS, Best Director, Best Production and Best Ensemble
‘What emerges from this intense and brilliant Lyceum production is an essential show for our time, put together by a world-class Scottish-based team, that takes us back to the raw beginnings of postwar Europe, and forces us to think again about the need to cherish the peace Boland’s generation succeeded in bequeathing to us, against all the odds. See it or miss the most important, timely and thrilling event to grace and disrupt a Scottish stage any time this year.’
**** The Scotsman
‘Wils Wilson takes over the whole of the Lyceum. Banners hang from the circle and the use of on-stage seating makes the audience part of the scenery. The seats even shake when the transit lorries arrive, such is the technical brilliance of her team. Aly Macrae’s music, a mix of East European styles sung by the cast, enhance the modern feel…. Wilson draws great performances from her cast, capturing the bitterness, need and weariness of those who had lived through years of Nazi control. Ana Ines Jabares-Pita’s immersive design is well-used and there’s a moment of magic, when Sandra Kassman’s lost amnesiac finds her voice as an opera singer, that illustrates how, when we find our common humanity, we lose sight of our differences.’
***** The Stage
‘Wilson and her international ensemble expertly handle the gradual build in tension, which is occasionally punctured by nicely judged scenes of collegiate activity and a show stopping sequence in which a young soprano brings everyone briefly together with a rendition of Violetta’s aria from La Traviata.’
**** The Times
‘By using the entire theatre as its stage, Wilson has herself broken through a symbolic barrier that makes for a thrilling theatrical experience. With a soundtrack of aching east European chorales pulled together by composer and musical director Aly Macrae, a twelve-strong international cast spill out across the space.’
****The Herald
Directed by Wils Wilson
Designed by Ana Ines Jabares-Pita
Original music composed by Aly Macrae
Movement direction by Vicki Manderson
Lighting designed by Kai Fischer
Sound designed by Matt Padden
Photographer: Mihaela Bodlovic