I’m over an hour early. Why? Because I have a date with Alan Cummings – but I’m not the only one.
His daring one-man performance of Macbeth at the Tramway is one of the hottest tickets in town and as I join the growing queue I feel my early arrival is justified. It’s unreserved seating and I’m determined to get a good spot for an optimum view.
Inside the place is already buzzing – but we manage to nab the last table in the café bar and settle in for a bit of food before the show. While I’m enjoying my haggis, neeps and tatties the small queue I’d left behind transforms into a writhing snake winding its way round the tables – even though there’s over 40 minutes till the show.
On you mark, get set, go – to the good seats
The doors to the auditorium open a few minutes later and the murmur around the crowd spreads, ‘it’s already full downstairs’. That’s all I need to hear to send me bolting up the stairs with my friend in tow to nab the best of the balcony seats – middle, a few rows back.
Mental and mindblowing
Set in a mental institution the set’s eerie and bleak and uses every last inch of the vast space. And you can’t help but drink in every detail as the tension stirs of an eagerly awaiting audience.
Don’t worry – no spoiler alert needed for any of you lucky people who have managed to get tickets to see the remaining shows. But you are definitely in for a treat – an amazing performance that will take you on a tense, absorbing, moving journey. And the standing ovation for Alan Cummings is well-deserved.
Tickets are now down to returns but the Tramway is keeping people updated via their blog – keep an eye out, it’s worth the £20 ticket. The play runs until Saturday 30 June and then jets off to New York but the Tramway remains with exhibitions, performances and a Hidden Garden.
Missed Macbeth? Tramway still worth a visit
The Tramway started its life in 1893 as the Coplawhill tram shed and now houses art exhibitions and performances inside its exposed brick walls and ceilings as high as a circus top.
Even if you don’t get to see Alan, it’s still worth checking out their diverse programme of events and visiting this fantastic space.
– B
About a City 
We’re so chuffed that you enjoyed our production of Macbeth. This is a great post to read, it’s really exciting to get a feel for the buzz in the foyer! Thanks for coming to check us out.
Thanks – we’re really thrilled that you enjoyed our blog. And of course we’re looking forward to future shows.