Strange Tales
聊斋

A co-production between GRID IRON and THE TRAVERSE THEATRE

Adapted from Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio by Pu Songling
by Pauline Lockhart with Ben Harrison

30th November – 21st December 2019

Traverse Theatre, Cambridge Street, Edinburgh

AWARDS

  • Nominated for Critics Awards for Theatre in Scotland in the Best Technical Presentation and Best Production for Children & Young People categories.

  • Nominated for The Drum Scottish Event Awards Cause Related / Charity Event of the Year

  • Winner of The Drum Scottish Event Awards Small Event of the Year

When wind and snow fill the sky and the fire has grown cold, relight the coals, warm the wine and turn up the wick of the lamp. We enter these tales in the shadows of the night, but hopefully emerge into daylight.

Written in China centuries ago, Pu Songling’s Strange Tales are now adapted for the stage by the acclaimed immersive theatre company Grid Iron in co-production with the Traverse Theatre.

Filled with intrigue, mysticism, magic, sensuality, and a dash of terror, Strange Tales will draw you into a world full of mischievous fox spirits, yearning ghosts and enchanted swords where anything and everything is possible.

But be warned – unless you come to these tales with an open mind and brave heart, you may never be able to escape them…

This thrilling immersive production uses puppetry, movement and cutting edge digital technology to thrust you right into the pages of the tales themselves.

Adapted by Pauline Lockhart and Ben Harrison from a selection of Pu Songling’s original tales, Strange Tales will wrap itself around you and make you shiver in delight and fright on Edinburgh’s dark winter nights.

There were Captioned and Audio Described performances of Strange Tales.

Grid Iron与Traverse剧团联合制作

本剧创意团队由剧作家及导演Pauline Lockhart (Grid Iron)、 Ben Harrison (Grid Iron)、 助理导演Wang Yuyu、社区创意顾问Joy Jin及Zhuoer Lin、服装及道具师Karen Tennent、现场特效师Fergus Dunnet、作曲家Ruth Chan、灯光师James Johnson、音效师Richard Bell及视频指导团队Bright Side (Cristina Spiteri及Susanna Murphy) 组成。

此外,两名就读于爱丁堡灯光音效学校 (Edinburgh Lighting and Sound School) 的学生将通过技术与舞台两类实习项目参与到制作团队中。此类实习项目由Traverse剧团创建,目的在于培养下一代技术人员、舞台管理人员及相关剧院工作人员。

本剧将由Robin Khor Yong Kuan, Luna Dai和Pauline Lockhart倾情出演。

本剧改编自蒲松龄《聊斋志异》系列故事。通过融入现代科技、木偶剧及魔幻元素,《聊斋》将为你带来独一无二的观剧体验。即便创作于数百年前,这些故事仍具有现实意义。穿越时空,它们折射了当代社会的种种现象:贪婪、诱惑、傲慢与希望……你需要带着一颗开明勇敢的心浸入剧中,否则这些故事很可能会一直萦绕在你的脑海……

本剧由苏格兰孔子学院支持构建,隶属皇家莎士比亚剧团 (Royal Shakespeare Company) 中国经典戏剧翻译项目 (Chinese Classics Translation Project),由英格兰艺术委员会 (Arts Council England) 提供资金支持。排演阶段由苏格兰木偶动画创意基金 (Puppet Animation Scotland’s Creative Fund) 提供支持。

For more Chinese translation please download the programme below.

请下载下方的节目单,获取更多中文翻译

Strange Tales - Programme

Production Photography by Tommy Ga-Ken Wan

What The Press Said

“A combination of sleight of hand, magic and some finger puppets captivates the audience… video design from Bright Side spellbindingly ties together the arts of modern technology and ancient storytelling… Strange Tales is a sumptuous stage sorcery which places storytelling above all else and echoes a profound admiration for culture, narrative and theatre… Fusing a Chinese and Malaysian Chinese heritage with a Caledonian tongue, Strange Tales is a welcome addition to the world of folklore, a triumph of bracing theatre.”

“Sadly, translated works comprise only a tiny minority of theatre productions in the UK… Translations of traditional stories and beloved works from other cultures have so much to offer – they open our eyes to other ways of thinking about ourselves, our relationships and the world we live in. They also help us to realise that our own familiar stories are deeply strange when viewed through others’ eyes. Would that there was more support from British theatres and theatre producers for bringing new translations to stage, and would that they were all as beautifully conceived and executed as these Strange Tales.”

“What comes across in Strange Tales is the passion and effort that has gone into it…Sure, it’s the magical strangeness of the stories which draws you in. But the sheer inventiveness of the visual effects and sound design, the excellent use of puppets and the perfectly composed set with give these ethereal tales their weight.”

“There’s a delightful playfulness to this production… the action is cleverly enhanced by puppetry, video and choreographed movement. The sound effects are spectacular, and there’s a little bit of magic or illusion too, with a couple of vanishing acts that genuinely bewilder me. How did they…? Huh?”

“A wintry feast of the uncanny.”

“a dazzling thumb-through of a story-book to savour.”

“real balm for the soul… the final effect is of a beautiful and passionate show…Strange Tales offers us a vital glimpse of a different way of thinking about the relationship between the living and the dead…”

Cast

The Storytellers:

Luna Dai

Pauline Lockhart

Robin Khor Yong Kuan

Production Team

GRID IRON

Writer & Director:
Pauline Lockhart

Director & Writer:
Ben Harrison

Translations:
Ewan Macdonald

Producer:
Judith Doherty

Finance & Development Manager:
Deborah Crewe

Assistant Director:
Yuyu Wang

Set & Costume Designer:
Karen Tennent

Bright Side Studios Video Design:
Susanna Murphy & Cristina Spiteri

Composer:
Ruth Chan

Lighting Designer:
James Johnson

Live Effects Designer:
Fergus Dunnet

Sound Designer:
Richard Bell

Fight Advisor:
Philip Ho

Company Stage Manager:
Gemma Smith

Deputy Stage Manager:
Lauren Desjardins

Assistant Stage Manager:
Bekah Astles

Costume Supervisor:
Sophie Ferguson

Costume Assistant:
Trish Kenny

Video Programmers:
Will Moore & Charlie Willis Osbourne

Cloot & Stori, Scenic Art:
Charlotte Powell

Creative Community Advisor:
Joy Jin

Creative Community Advisor/Calligraphy:
Zhuoer Lin

Publicity Image:
Emillie Chen

Set Build:
JB Scenery

Publicity Image Photography:
Graham Pearson

Production shots:
Tommy Ga-Ken Wan

Programme Design:
Emma Quinn

Programme & Pubicity Translation:
Sui He & Lingwei Wu

Captioning:
Alison Pendlowski

Audio Description:
Jo Barrow

PLACEMENTS

Stage Management:
Jen Aust

Technical:
Rachel Pryde

TRAVERSE THEATRE COMPANY

Senior Chef:
Sabino Acosta

Development Assistant:
Laura Antone

Lighting & Sound Technician:
Dave Bailey

Audience Experience Manager:
Fiona Campbell

Executive Producer & CEO:
Linda Crooks

Lighting & Sound Technician:
Joe Davis

Press & Media Officer:
Anna Docherty

General Manager:
David Drummond

Producer:
Danielle Fentiman

Programme & Office Administrator:
Jenny Gilvear

Development Manager:
Ellen Gledhill

Artistic Director:
Debbie Hannan

Deputy Box Office Manager:
Megan Davies-Varnier

Administration Apprentice:
Mollie Hodkinson

Ticketing & Costumer Service Officer:
Cecil Lane

Front of House Manager:
Kath Lowe

Ticketing & Costumer Service Officer:
Tanya Macdonald

Head of Production:
Kevin McCallum

Senior Producer:
Ruth McEwan

Marketing & Media Assistant:
Lauren McLay

Bar Café Manager:
Suzanne Murray

Head of Brand & Audience:
Victoria Murray

Artistic Director:
Gareth Nicholls

Finance & Administration Assistant:
Alice Pelan

Head of Finance & Operations:
Julie Pigott

Payroll & HR Manager:
Pauleen Rafferty

Creative Producer:
Sunniva Ramsay

Ticketing & Customer Service Officer:
Anna Richardson

Chief Electrician:
Renny Robertson

Creative Development Director:
Lesley Anne Rose

Bar Café Senior Supervisor:
Jonathan Rowett

Head of Stage:
Gary Staerck

Marketing & Campaigns Officer:
Kyriakos Vogiatzis

Literary Assistant:
Eleanor White

Associate Artists:
Emma Callander, Rob Drummond, Gary McNair, Morna Pearson, Tim Price, Stef Smith

Supporters

The production was kindly supported by the following…

Creative Scotland - logo
Traverse Theatre - logo
Confucious Institute - logo
Puppet Animation Scotland - logo
Port Of Leith Distillery - logo

Part of the Royal Shakespeare Company’s Chinese Classics Translation Project, funded by Arts Council England. Development process supported by Puppet Animation Scotland’s Creative Fund.

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