Scottish Theatre Highlights: April 2024

Edinburgh's Royal Lyceum Theatre continues its run of This is Memorial Device this month. The production first ran at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2022, where it won a Fringe First Award. The play follows fictional post-punk band Memorial Device against the backdrop of the lively Airdrie music scene of the 1980s. (Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, 3-6 Apr; Aberdeen Performing Arts, 18-20 Apr; Riverside Studios, London, 23 Apr-11 May)

A Play, A Pie, and A Pint begins the month with Tamám Shud (1-6 Apr), a dark comedy inspired by the real-life murder of the 'Somerton Man'. In collaboration with Sanctuary Queer Arts, new playwright Hannah McGregor debuts their queer, heartfelt comedy, Ness (8-13 Apr). The following week, lunchtime theatregoers can catch Who Pays the Piper (15-20 Apr), a tragicomedy by Jen McGregor. 

Later this month, the Traditional Dance Forum of Scotland will run its third Pomegranates Festival in Edinburgh. The festival celebrates Scottish traditional dance, as well as cultural dance forms from migrant communities in Scotland. In addition to performances, the festival offers ceilidhs, workshops, and other opportunities for festival goers to get involved on a free or pay-what-you-can basis (25-30 Apr).

This month, National Theatre of Scotland opens a call to South Asian artists for a short film. The £12,000 commission will go to an artist or team for a diverse range of narrative-driven short film ideas, including scripted, non-verbal, movement, creative documentary, animation, immersive, experimental or abstract. The deadline is listed as 9am on 29 April 2024.