The Stage

Panic on the streets of Edinburgh

Published Tuesday 13 July 2010 at 14:03

An amusing story has trickled down to Tabard from north of the border, thanks to The Stage’s Scottish correspondent Thom Dibdin.

Writing on his blog - Annals of the Edinburgh Stage - he recounts a rather amusing run in one Edinburgh company had with the police earlier this month.

We’ll let Thom explain: “The reality of using found spaces for theatre productions came home to Edinburgh’s Random Act theatre company last night during its preview of The Women of Troy at the Metropolitan Bar on Picardy Place.

“Members of the public walking past the bar on Wednesday night were so concerned by the noises emanating from the bar that they called the police and no amount of protestations from cast or director could calm them down.”

Three members of the public called the police and started banging on the fire door to the theatre.

Thom continues: “Having succeeded in opening the fire door, the worst fears of the trio were confirmed when they were confronted with the sight of one the actors being punched. Another actor, concerned that the performance was being deliberately disturbed by interlopers - and oblivious to the concern of the citizenry - pulled the door shut. Whereupon cries of ‘Murder! Murder!’ went up in the street.”

Random Act’s director John Naples-Campbell continues the story: “I ran out to calm them down,” he explains. “Police came with sirens blazing and ran over to see me trying to calm passers-by down who actually didn’t see anything at all. The police then saw the actors, laughed and went home knowing no one was murdered.”