New play challenge for Annie MacDonald

MAY 2 | Eden Court, Inverness

THERE should be almost no-one better at describing what is at the core of new play The Wound, The Rag And The In-between than Annie MacDonald, as cast and crew hit the last few days before it premieres at Eden Court in Inverness.

The emerging playwright is trying to sum up the 90-minute drama that is set in the Highlands in Victorian times, but also right now, as a journalist returns, delving into the past, and uncovering a death…

Annie laughs looking back to those original ideas for the play: “I’d originally pitched a very happy piece, but I feel the whole play is now quite angry, yet balanced by some dark humour!”

It’s an intriguing prospect for a theatre experience that embraces present and past, as well as the queer experience and often unheard voices of women from an earlier time.

Presented as the first play from new company Vivid Roots Collective, it also showcases the work of a North creative team, including Annie, producer Laura Valerie Walker who is Vivid Roots’ CEO, director Keira Smith, as well as set designer Caitlin Riddell from Lossiemouth, now based in Nairn.

Keira is interested in work which “… centres on the nuances of the queer experience in rural areas in response to the current socio-political climate”.

Annie, who co-hosts the hit podcast Stories of Scotland, has worked in the past on audio drama and audio documentaries, but the stage play is a first. And with a passion for folklore, Annie has trained in traditional storytelling from Traditional Arts & Culture Scotland.

In many ways, it sounds as if the play – through the writing of it and workshopping over a week at the Lyth Centre in Caithness plus rehearsals at the Spectrum Centre in Inverness – has moved on quite a way since Annie’s original ideas.

The playwright explained: “The commission was funded – I want to say in
2022, I think? – by Creative Scotland and local theatre company Vivid Roots which was set
up by drama graduates of UHI (the University of the Highlands and Islands).
They put out an open call for someone to write a piece in response to gender
inequality in medicine. It maybe sounds quite obscure on the surface of it, but
it’s a very important topic.

“I wanted to do something that was grounded in the Highlands and so I
pitched the idea of writing a play set around a tree. They were very positive
about that and I’ve used the tree to ground different narratives of people
dealing with their health.

“And then it became something a little bit more than that.

“The company was very interested in me exploring different time periods.

“So we’ve got a present-day narrative and a Victorian timeline. And I had splendid fun with both of them,” Annie laughed. “For the Victorian time, I’ve gone into some very dark stories in the Highlands.

Commissioned by the Highland-based Vivid Roots Collective, The Wound, the Rag, And The In-Between wanted to explore gender inequalities in medicine. And researching the subject, Annie discovered a Highland story which inspired the writing to unite two different times and taps into things that, in some ways, are still asking the same questions, all these years on.

Annie recalled the moment the design of the piece was revealed and is enthusiastic and complimentary about the stage set.

“They have got a local designer – Caitlin Riddell – to do all the staging and scenery and it’s absolutely beautiful. A little model was made and I was stunned when I saw it.

“So we’ve got the Highland identity in the scenery on stage.

“I’ve also thought about the way the characters speak, the things that are really important to them – and the kind of reasons people find belonging – or not being able to find belonging – in the Highlands.”

“It’s my first play and it’s Vivid Roots’ first play, so I feel as if we have space to grow. I’m very proud of what we have made with a cast from across Scotland as well as Highlanders in the cast. It is a phenomenally talented cast and they have brought the characters to life more than I could have imagined.”

Annie also pays tribute to mentors for the piece, including the local Dogstar Theatre Company and its artistic director, actor and writer Matthew Zajac.

“There are people like Dogstar who have been making mind-blowing theatre for years and we have been so grateful for their support in this process. I definitely think you can see a little flavour of Matthew in the script as well! Matthew read it and really liked it – and he helped me make it even more radical.

“ Though Vivid Roots is a very young theatre company, we definitely know which giants we’re standing on the shoulders of!”

Why would Annie like people to come and see it when the performance comes round on Saturday?

“I built the play on research that shows some truths about Highland history that I had no idea about till I looked into the archives of Inverness District Asylum and the deaths of Highland women. I feel their stories really spoke to me but they all seem forgotten.

“And though this is a work of fiction, there are pieces in it that are so close to the history itself that it kind of hurts.

“I’d love people to engage with those stories and it’s such a brilliant cast and crew making this work in the Highlands – a team of maybe 11 people over the past few weeks, working incredibly hard bringing this to life. Homegrown talent – and I’m really excited that something like this is happening in the Highlands.

“You don’t often get independent art given free rein – or to create something this big in Inverness.”

The Wound, the Rag, And The In-Between focuses on following a Highland journalist as she unravels a Victorian death and exposes secrets that have been buried for generations.

Central to the play’s story and staging is the clootie tree, in a place where people have tied rags for generations to ask for healing. The play draws inspiration from Highland history to explore ideas of mortality, trust, health and folklore. And in the production, we follow five different characters, from Victorian times to the present day, as they come to terms with their relationship with a body in the bog. Who lies buried? Why did they come to rest in this place? Annie’s play provides the answers.

And despite the many hours researching, rehearsing, rethinking and working on the play, there may be some surprises left for Annie on Saturday as she watches.

“It was brilliant to have the time to develop this piece of work and redraft it several times. You almost don’t recognise the script after it’s been tweaked – and it’s something new to me each time. I very much enjoyed the process.

“I felt as if all the characters became my friends – and my enemies, in some ways. When I saw the casting for the play, it was very surreal because it felt as if something had just been pulled out of my imagination.”

The production has been funded by the National Lottery via Creative Scotland and supported by Eden Court.

The Wound, The Rag And The In-between is performed at Eden Court, Inverness, presented by the Vivid Roots Collective on Saturday (May 4) at 7.30pm in the OneTouch theatre. There are pay what you can ticket options (from £5 to £20 plus booking fee). It’s for a 16+ audience. More info HERE: