Utterly compelling – a stunning and emotional production
On the hottest day of the year in Edinburgh, it felt strange being ushered into the functional and vaguely industrial Studio theatre, but in the space of an hour, a full house were kept in grip of Shelley Middler’s superb The Collie’s Shed.
The production opens in 2022 – we find ourselves in a Men’s Shed in East Lothian, where three retired miners of the Bilston Glen Colliery are uneasily reunited with someone from their past.
A sparse stage of two woodworking tables and four chairs are all that’s needed to show the men in 2002, as an independent review of the policing of the 1984 strikes is announced. Best friends Billy (Kevin Parr) and Tommy (Alasdair Ferguson) are natural sparring partners – the buzzing energy of Billy, and the good natured Tommy, lasting decades of friendship. Charlie (Stephen Corral), the family man, who has a more paternal relationship with Billy, and then there’s Glen (Paul Wilson), returning after many years away following a rather unexpected career.
We’re seamlessly taken back in time, and shown the younger versions of themselves, on a strike day in 1984. Young Billy (Joey Locke) and Young Tommy (Calum Manchip) are heading out on the picket line as usual, confronted by Charlie clearly heading back down the pit – in conflict but desperate to provide for his family, supported by Young Glen (Ben Robert Cunningham), who had stayed in work since the start of the strikes. An impassioned speech from Young Charlie (John Gray) brought a genuine lump in my throat, and a few sniffs from other areas of the audience showed I was not alone in feeling the emotional turmoil of his character.
We move back and forth between the decades, hearing the effects of that day, and how it influenced the men as they are today. We’re given glimpses into the history, but this is not a documentary (and deliberately so) – the focus on the characters rather than a timeline of the strikes themselves. The announcement of a pardon on a deeply emotional day, leads to some form of reconciliation, and served as a perfect showcase of the complicated nature of this subject.
There were accomplished performances from all of the cast. The characters had a deeply harmonious connection with their younger counterparts – closely matching their energies, mannerisms and mirroring their relationships across the decades. Joey Lock’s unbridled idealism as Young Billy, reflected in the still-burning embers of Kevin Parr’s Billy, was perhaps my favourite pairing.
The script itself was drumskin-taut, with every second accounted for, and no extraneous description. Some darkly comic moments, and distinctly Scottish mannerisms kept this true to the location. The unspoken fact that Bilston Glen was a mere 6 miles away from our current location felt at times very intimate. Sound and lighting were pitch perfect – as the audience was seated, the 1980s scene was set with carefully curated music featuring The Newtown Neurotics (Living with Unemployment and Wake Up), with Scottish influence from Big Country.
As we filtered back into the sunshine, it would have been too easy to shake off the powerful events of the last hour, but I couldn’t lose the raw emotion brought to life in these characters. This show will stay with me for a long time, and it deserves to be seen by many.
This was the opening night of an eight night tour, continuing with shows across Fife, North Lanarkshire and East Lothian.