Edinburgh Festival 2024 Series - Ep 216: Mary: A Gig Theatre Show

Persistent and Nasty

Today Elaine chats with Scottish based artist Katie Slater and Rona Johnston about their new show Mary: A GIG Theatre Show. They talk about finding other creatives you click with, their passion for music and theatre and their joy at discovering the marrying of the two in Gig Theatre. We also talk the inspiration for the show and there is a little unmixed snippet at the end of the episode of one of their original songs. Mary: A Gig Theatre Show - theSpace - Symposium Hall - Annex Dates: 12th-17th August @ 10:25 pm Tickets available here: https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/mary-a-gig-theatre-show MARY: A Gig Theatre Show Blending rich spoken word with haunting original music, Mary: A Gig Theatre Show retells the story of Mary Queen of Scots. Performed by a live band of actor-musicians, the show searingly questions the treatment and portrayal of women historically and today. Writer/lead performer Rona Johnston and director Katie Slater began creating Mary in 2022, before developing it for Gateway Festival in November 2023, and now Bedfest! The 5 actor-musicians of Mary devised the band arrangements in rehearsal, so are also integral to the making of the show. All are Edinburgh-based emerging theatre makers with musical backgrounds. They are Hester Irving (Fiddle/Bass), Laura Coull (Drums/Bass), Alli von Hirschberg (Guitar), Izzie Atkinson (Singer) and Jodie Kirkwood (Singer). Katie Slater Katie is an early-career director and musician (drummer) from Dalkeith, with a BA Hons Drama degree from QMU. She is passionate about making theatre where music is central to the storytelling, Her recent assistant directing projects include The Girls of Slender Means (Royal Lyceum Theatre), Pushin' Thirty (A Play, A Pie and a Pint) and The Winter's Tale (Theatre in the Garden). Her recent directing projects include Mary: A Gig Theatre Show (Knot Tied Theatre),Bohemia (Edinburgh Footlights) and Pilgrimage (Veto Theatre). She is also a member of the 2024/25 Wonder Fools Youth Board. Alongside working on theEdinburgh Fringe run of Mary: A Gig Theatre Show she is assistant director on The Events at Cumbernauld Theatre, supported by an FST bursary. Rona Johnston Rona is an Edinburgh-based singer/songwriter with an interest in female and queer led stories and productions. Recent credits as an actor: Pilgrimage (Veto Theatre with Paradok), Bohemia (Footlights Show Choir), Oliver (Captivate Theatre) Recent gigs as a musician: Solo sets at Sneaky Pete’s, The Caves, Three Sisters. Rona often plays at local open-mics and fundraising events, you can find out what she’s up to on her music Instagram page @ronarobertsmusic EDINBURGH FESTIVAL FRINGE 2024 LIVE PODCAST REQUEST https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1YVQ1q1cVkPmqqQ_q6VP24-r44dfr7CZkonoxpRZHa88/edit EDINBURGH FESTIVAL FRINGE 2024 SCOTTISH BASED ARTITS PODCAST & BLOG REQUEST FORM https://forms.gle/6obqxzCCWyY9aVSS6 Please Note: podcast slots are not assigned on a "first come, first serve" basis. We select podcast guests based on relevance to our listenership. HIPA GUIDES: HIPA GUIDES OUR WEBSITE - www.persistentandnasty.co.uk Persistent Pal & Nasty Hero - Pals and Hero Membership Email – [e-mail] Instagram - @persistentandnasty Twitter - @PersistentNasty Coffee Morning Eventbrite - Coffee Morning Tickets LINKTREE - LINKTR.EE Resources Samaritans - Rape Crisis Scotland - Rape Crisis UK ArtsMinds - BAPAM Freelancers Make Theatre Work Stonewall UK - Trevor Project - Mermaids UK Switchboard LGBT+ - GATE PLANNED PARENTHOOD DONATE - DONATE ABORTION SUPPORT NETWORK UK - ASN.COM- DONATE