Lau Unplugged, Queens Hall

The tickets said Fri 22 May 2020.  And, nearly two weird years later, here we were.  The trio Lau were back.  They looked as pleased to see us as we were to see them.

This was Lau Unplugged, the show I reviewed from Kings Place in London, back in January 2020.  With two significant differences.  There was no bird based soundscape.  And this was The Queens Hall, in Edinburgh, the band's home gig, their favourite venue, and the place where they are most loved.  It was a special night.

In the first half the guys sat centre stage, introduced and played songs and tunes from all periods of their deep history.  For The Cruel Brother they brought three backing singers from the audience - no less than Karine Polwart, Inge Thomson and Kirsty Law.  But otherwise this was genuine Unplugged - accordion, fiddle and guitar, Drever's voice, with occasional vocal contributions for Green and O'Rourke.  A reminder that, without the electronics, Lau is comprised of three virtuosos, and that the three together are capable of producing layers of incredible complexity.

The second half was... different.  Theatrical, flowing, wondrous.  No introductions, just segue after segue, movement that took in the whole stage, background soundscapes from the strangely beautiful audio cassette machine, and some ticktocking rythms from a couple of metronomes.  Plus a hilariously physical sequence involving four improvised bits of electronica, each a sound box with large cardboard coffee cup gaffertaped on. The standing ovation this 45 minute sequence received was fully deserved.

The finale brought us the wonderful, ever relevant, Ghosts, and ahppy trio Lau walking off to tumultous applause and cheering.  In a long list of outstanding Lau gigs I've been to, this one tops the lot.  

My Doric Diary (A Play, a Pie and a Pint), Traverse

 It's Hogmanay 2010, and Daisy turns 17 tomorrow.  Tonight she wants to go and welcome in her big day at a party, in the glamourous surroundings of the Fraserburgh Liesure Centre.  And if she's not being allowed to go, can an unexpected discovery in the wardrobe do anything to help?

Want to hear Whitney Houston lyrics sung in Doric?  Experience time travel?  See the dead come back to life?  As Daisy tells us, anything can happen in the theatre, and here it does.  There's nods to Judy Garland and Charles Dickens and other elements of popular culture.  Written by Katie Barnett and James Siggens, Barnett herself plays Daisy, and all the other parts, with Siggens and Gavin Whitworth providing musical and vocal accompaniment.  It's not always easy to catch all the lyrics, but Barnett has a good singing voice and is an engaging and energetic performer.  The script is witty, moves along at a strong pace, and the songs are kept short and snappy.  There's even a bit of a moral in the ending.

Funny, frothy, sentimental, a bit of a tearjerker, and always entertaining, My Doric Diary brings out the smiles and if there's little of real substance to the piece, that's entirely forgivable in a performance that's so much fun.  A worthy ending to this season of A Play, a Pie and a Pint.

Daniel Getting Married (A Play, a Pie and Pint), Traverse

 Covid-19 strikes again.  From a cast of three we had two hit by the virus, and two replacements drafted in at very short notice.  Told on Monday, they were given minimal chance to rehearse and found themselves on stage on Tuesday lunchtime.  So this was their third performance.  Both were still, for obvious reasons, script in hand, but were working to improve their performances day by day.  Under the circumstances both Emily Winter and Michael Dylan did a fine job, and it was easy enough to forget the big wodge of paper in their hands.  

Fortunately Neil John Gibson, playing the central character of Daniel, has the adaptability to cope with these new presences on stage.  He told me after that they were now on their third run of the play, and had their third Joy and fourth Gabriel.  None of which was allowed to spoil the entertainment, or take away from the central message.

Daniel is getting married to Zac, and enters his dressing room in the church to adorn himself with a few 'products' and his smart suit.  Gibson sets a light tone, teetering between fear of the day and the campness he wants to introduce to the occasion.  His nerves aren't helped by the arrival of Joy, his mother, who isn't beyond giving her own son a bit of a wind up, including reminiscing about Gabriel, his great love who he spilt up with about four years before.  Daniel asks her to leave so he can get back his equilibrium.  But then Gabriel turns up.  Unexpected, uninvited, and still a huge contrast to the stable figure of Zac.  So what is Daniel to do?  Is he still getting married?  And if so, who's the lucky man?

J D Stewart's script can be a little predictable at times, but has more than enough laughs and tension to keep the action flowing and the audience engaged.  As well as the will he/won't he dilemma, and a bit of underlying conspiracy, it delivers an impassioned plea for the normalisation of all queer cultures - gay, bi, trans - in society, via an excellent monologue from Gibson.  An enjoyable story and a timely reminder, what more can you ask for from a fifty minute drama?