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| Some of the cast downstairs during the first act |
The first act, written by Carole Tricker, took the audience
behind the scenes in the old Byre Theatre of the 1960s. Missing actors and
costumes threaten to cancel the show, but the players and fretting Director
come up with a plan – the show must go on!
The audience were called to their seats, and the show was
underway. The second and third acts were edited versions of the local
classic, “The Open” written by Byre Theatre founder Alex. B. Paterson. This
play was performed at the Byre Theatre every year the Open Golf Tournament came
to St Andrews and so most of the audience were familiar with the play. As the
cast were short of a few players, 'Sandy', played by Sandra Skeldon, excitedly steps in during the first act and volunteers to play the part of feisty sixteen year
old, Mary the Maid, much to the amusement of the audience.
With a maximum audience capacity of 20, there were concerns
that the audience would be too small. Yet, it turns out that this intimate
venue was perfect – the cast enjoyed having the audience so close to them,
and the audience felt like they were part of the action. One member of the
audience even commented, “it was like being back in the first Theatre again”.
4 out of the 5 nights sold out and the plays raised over
£700. The funds raised have been split between the Museum and the Friends of
the Byre Theatre. This, coupled with the fantastic response we had from
attendees have made this venture so worthwhile and we hope to have more performances in the Museum in the near future.
Photographs by Hannah Burt.
