Theatre and Performance in Contemporary Scotland

The book aims to capture the diversity and eclecticism of Scotland’s contemporary performance culture by examining work across a spectrum from children’s theatre, community theatre, mainstream theatre for adult audiences and live and performance art.

“Theatre and Performance in Contemporary Scotland maps the impact of the many major dramatists and companies that have emerged from Scotland in recent decades, showing how they have forged and developed a distinctive cultural and theatrical identity. The book is, simply, inspirational: it allows readers to think anew about how theatre can intersect with the political – and how great art can affect a whole society.”

Patrick Lonergan, Professor, University of Galway, Ireland

This is the book I have been waiting for. It offers a rigorously insightful encounter with a rich range of Scottish theatre and performance practices in the post-devolutionary context. Thinking through the relationships of cultural production and cultural identity extends its relevance well beyond one nation, though I admit a particular pleasure in sharing it with my peers – students and colleagues alike – across Scotland.

Deirdre Heddon, Professor, James Arnott Chair in Drama, University of Glasgow, UK

This textbook offers a detailed and expansive account of theatre and performance in contemporary Scotland. It considers the underlying historical and cultural developments that have enabled the recent renaissance in Scottish theatre and the emergence of playwrights of international standing, such as David Greig, Zinnie Harris, David Harrower and Rona Munro as well as companies of significant international note. Some prominence is given to the National Theatre of Scotland, which was established in 2004 in the aftermath of Scottish devolution, and which has become a key organization in the creating and dissemination – nationally and internationally – of Scottish theatre and performance. The book aims to capture the diversity and eclecticism of Scotland’s contemporary performance culture by examining work across a spectrum from children’s theatre, community theatre, mainstream theatre for adult audiences and live and performance art.

Trish Reid is Professor of Theatre and Performance and Head of the School of Arts and Communication Design at the University of Reading, UK. She has published widely on contemporary British theatre and is the author of Theatre & Scotland (2013) and The Theatre of Anthony Neilson (2017). She is from Glasgow.