Random Accomplice are bringing their distinctive brand of comedy back to the Tron this February with the world premiere of Smalltown, written by a group of Scotland’s most dynamic playwrights. Read more …
After seeing a previous Random Accomplice show, a Scottish theatre writer wondered “did someone put something in the Ayrshire water 30 years ago?” Little did he know his comment would spark the imaginations of a trio of young Scottish writers to explore just what the consequences of such an event might be.
Drawing on their own experiences of growing up in three Ayrshire towns D.C.Jackson (The Chooky Brae, My Romantic History), Johnny McKnight (Little Johnny Trilogy) and Douglas Maxwell (Decky Does a Bronco, Promises Promises) have created an unashamed and unapologetic comedy weaving together three tales of the carnage wreaked when polluted water causes ordinary people to get caught up in extraordinary circumstances.
Those that aren’t ‘Pure Girvan’ are being killed by the water supply; in Stewarton, oversexed teenagers are turning animalistic, while in Ardrossan there’s a zombie trapped in a freezer. At the end of each performance, the fates of the towns will be in the hands of the audience who will decide which of three possible endings will be performed.
Not quite the three-for-one deal it may appear ... a fun night out.
It’s all the most preposterous nonsense and the lightest of thistledown but the cast, led in great style by Anita Vettesse and Julie Brown, with large slices of the finest ham, play it to the hilt and McKnight himself directs with his customary knack of going boldly over the top where others might fear to tread. Great fun all round.
A night of lighweight fun.
Rather, McKnight’s slightly over-long production is a rip-roaring excuse for an anarchically OTT compendium of bawdily madcap, genitally obsessed postmodern fun.
The playlets of Smalltown are unlikely to go down as great works of Scottish literature; but I doubt they have any pretensions to do so. However, they will be long remembered as a right rollicking night out.
Random Accomplice demonstrate their versatility and their clear connection to the west coast, creating a cheerful chase through Ayrshire’s hidden treasures.
Everyone went home with the kind of daft grin you get from eating too many sweets.
The three opinions that we arrived at on Friday night can be pretty much summed up as follows: Waldorf hated pretty much all of it, while I thought it had some moments but wasn't great. The third opinion? Well that would be the rest of the audience who appeared to love it.
I lost count of how many times I laughed out loud and continued to snigger well after a joke had been told. Each writer is undeniably talented at writing with a Scottish audience in mind, with fantastic use of sarcasm and wit, accompanied by a generous sprinkling of swear words. They also don’t shy away from controversial topics.
I wouldn't want tourists to think every Scot they're going to meet will talk like that, but the humour does translate.
If, overall, the show – whose ending is voted for by the audience – feels lightweight and inconsequential, the off the wall humour and bawdy set pieces mean it is never less than entertaining.
Smalltown is a delight from start to finish.
Random Accomplice's Smalltown offers three plays by leading Scottish playwrights
He's Just a Small Town Boy
Hometown inspiration
It takes two
Aquatic alliance
Smalltown zombies stalk the Honest Toun's Brunton Theatre
Tron Theatre, Glasgow from Tuesday February 15, 2011, until Saturday February 19, 2011. More info: www.tron.co.uk
On Tour, from Wednesday February 23, 2011, until Saturday March 26, 2011.
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