The most exciting thing about the Edinburgh Fringe is discovering hitherto little known gems. Dangerous pieces of theatre that astound in their imaginative process and collaborative nature, yet often dazzle brightly but briefly before existing only in the memory, where they live on ever more vividly. Occasionally, of course, a well deserved existence post-Fringe awaits, as in the case of Revelations of Rob McVie.
Revelations of Rab McVie, a collaboration between Edinburgh alternative rock band The Filthy Tongues, artist Maria Rud and Leith actor Tam Dean Burn, premiered at Edinburgh’s Traverse Theatre on 24 February, 2023, playing just two nights. It was remounted at the Pleasance Theatre for that year’s Fringe, where it reached a far wider audience at The Pleasance Grand.
Described as an immersive journey through a psychedelic dreamscape of live painting, live music, spoken word and theatre, the production is being revived once again in March, and once again it’s for two nights only, this time at Dundee Rep.
Darkly atmospheric alt-rock music from The Filthy Tongues, led by Martin Metcalfe, with musicians including Fin Wilson and Derek Kelly from Goodbye Mr Mackenzie/Angelfish, fantastically evocative, ever evolving, projected painting by artist Maria Rud of The Animotion Show fame and a spellbinding performance by National Theatre of Scotland and River City actor Tam Dean Burn are woven together as we join everyman Rab McVie, travelling through richly textured landscapes of bloodshed and war. It’s a story of light in darkness, and of hope in a torn world and is arguably more relevant today than when out was first performed.
To give you a taste of what you have to look forward to, here is MustSeeTheatre.com’s review, originally published via Substack and now on the website for the first time, of the opening Edinburgh Fringe performance; five stars, this mesmerising production, live and evolving with every telling of Rab’s tale, is the very definition of ‘Must See Theatre’.
REVELATIONS OF RAB MCVIE | PLEASANCE GRAND, EDINBURGH FRINGE 2023
★★★★★
‘Tam Dean Burns’ performance is electric‘
Combining the menacing excellence of Scottish rock icons the Filthy Tongues, a visceral performance from acclaimed actor Tam Dean Burn and the mesmeric live painting of Maria Rud, Revelations of Rab McVie is a theatrical wonderland like no other, a nightmarish dreamworld where hope languishes as despair grows.
Revelations of Rab McVie is a rare thing, an all enveloping work that assaults each of the senses while simultaneously delighting them with such stimulation that it’s hard to know where to look first.
Created by Martin Metcalfe and Rud, in collaboration with award-winning director Maria Pattinson, Revelations of Rab McVie is one of the most unusual, wildly immersive things you will see on stage. The story is that of Rab, a lost soul trapped in the House of Houses, opening windows for a glimpse of the world outside, a world brought to life with frenetic energy by painter Maria Rud, a force of nature creating striking images on a light box, which are simultaneously projected to provide the backdrop for the action on stage.
Waking in his dream, Rab finds himself confined to ‘a maze of concrete and bricks held in the grip of steel ribs’. Opening the windows one by one, he reveals fish, cattle and slaughter in a world of conquerors, the conquered and a lone jester. Tam Dean Burns’ performance as Rab is electric. Overtly physical, it’s beautifully nuanced in places while happily howling at the moon in others.
Using a palette dominated by the deepest black, bloodiest red and enlightening golden hues, with just the occasional richest of blues thrown in for effect, Rud creates an ever changing picture book of Rab’s discoveries that is breathtaking. Delivering songs selected from their various albums with his signature growl, Filthy Tongues’ frontman Martin Metcalfe doesn’t so much sing tracks like ‘The Ghost of Rab McVie’ and ‘In These Dark Places’ as live and breath them, mirroring Tam Dean Burns’ angular and insect-like Rab.
Dedicated to ‘The Torn World’, Revelations of Rab McVie speaks directly to the destruction and desolation around us today, a powerful indictment of a failing planet. With the painting, songs and performance all linked by Derek Kelly’s beguiling soundscape, this is a mammoth exercise in the collaborative nature of performance art, directed with precision and pace by Maria Pattinson.
Revelations of Rab McVie is also the most exciting thing you will see on the Fringe this year; a powerhouse of Scottish creativity. Let’s just hope it isn’t our last encounter with the man from the House of Houses. We need another tryst.
Reviewed 25 August, 2023
See Revelations of Rab McVie at Dundee Rep 20 + 21 March. Tickets here.
