Blanche and Butch Dramaturgy: Robert Softley Gale @ BOP

Award-winning theatre company Birds of Paradise team up with Tron Theatre to present dazzling new drag show, Blanche & Butch.

Birds of Paradise and Tron Theatre present brand new co-production, Blanche & Butch; a dazzling new drag show that tells the witty and poignant story of three disabled drag queens.

As a trio, they used to be part of the sensational Heelz n Wheelz. Now there's not much sensation left. The glitz, glamour and sparkles have faded and, instead, they find themselves backstage at a down at heel production of Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?

Inspired by Noel Greig's original production Heelz n Wheelz, Blanche & Butch pulls back the curtain and tells the deeply touching story of three men and their lives, loves and losses.

Written by Robert Softley Gale, who will star alongside Garry Robson and Kinny Gardner, Blanche & Butch is an outrageous new show that challenges the boundaries of PC, through high quality camp and original storytelling.

What was the inspiration for this performance?
There was a show that Garry - my fellow AD at BOP - and I were in around twelve years ago called Heels and Wheels. It was about disabled drag queens and written by Noel Greig, who was part of Gay Sweatshop in the 1970s. 

Heels was a dark and macabre piece - Blanche & Butch takes some of the same

characters and shows them now, as they're touring a production of the iconic film/play 'Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?'. This play is more in the style of Torch Song Trilogy or Priscilla, Queen of the Dessert.


Is performance still a good space for

the public discussion of ideas?
I really hope so - otherwise I'm in the wrong field! Theatre allows us to put ideas out in to the world without necessarily giving answers or conclusions, which makes it unlike a lot of other forms. I still hold on to the idea that theatre allows us to present a version of the world that we want to live in.



How did you become interested in making performance?
In my childhood and teens I'd been involved in amateur theatre, but only ever backstage - designing lights or directing. The idea of a physically disabled person in stage in that context would've been very strange. 

When I was at university - business management - I was approached by a company in Edinburgh that had a troupe of resident disabled actors. I thought my chances of getting the job were very slim but I did - and now 15 years on I'm still going!



Is there any particular approach to the making of the show?
The main job so far has been pulling together the best possible team - director/designer Kenny Miller is renowned in the UK for his 'camp aesthetic', dramaturg Philip Osment was a friend of Noel's and brings a wealth of knowledge. 

We've got the best possible performers for the show (but I would say that as I'm in it!) and every other member of the team are the perfect people to be making the show that I've been imagining for many years.



Does the show fit with your usual productions?
It probably does, in that we're again pushing at boundaries while making a show that will be very entertaining. This is the first play with music that I've helped create for BOP, so in that we're going in new directions. But we're still embedding access - audio description, BSL and captions - in interesting ways and telling new and engaging stories.



What do you hope that the audience will experience?
They're going to laugh - a lot. We're pushing things with Blanche & Butch in terms of what we're allowed to say on stage so I imagine some people will be pretty shocked by the way these characters talk to one another but the audience are also going to be touched by the glimpse they get in to their lives.



What strategies did you consider towards shaping this audience experience?
We're using some familiar forms in this show - it's a backstage show with three actors bitching to one another and telling their stories. Some of the songs will be very familiar. So it making a show that'll really challenge the audience we also want to give them an experience that feels friendly and welcoming.

Directed and designed by Kenny Miller, Blanche & Butch will include original songs by Akintayo Akinbode, with live music played by Amelia Cavallo.

Talking about Blanche & Butch, Writer Robert Softley Gale said:

'As a disabled, queer man I look to different camps to work out where I fit in to the world. Drag queens have always intrigued me.

Blanche & Butch is a personal and political production that surrounds three disabled drag queens. It has taken over a decade to write and looks to explore gender, identity, equality and disability through cabaret, camp songs and frocks.'

Commenting on the co-production Andy Arnold, Artistic Director of Tron Theatre, said:

‘We’re delighted to be co-producing Blanche & Butch with Birds of Paradise this autumn and to be associated with a team whose track record in producing original, challenging and hilarious new work is second to none’.

Blanche & Butch Company

Written by:        Robert Softley Gale
Directed & Designed by:  Kenny Miller
Dramaturgy by:        Philip Osmond
Lighting Design by:   Grant Anderson
Live Music by:        Amelia Cavallo
Music Directed by:    Akintayo Akinbode
Starring:        Robert Softley Gale, Garry Robson and Kinny Gardner

Writer Robert Softley Gale is an

established figure in the Scottish arts scenes with over sixteen years of experience as a writer, director, actor, performer and advocate. 

He is Artistic Director of Birds of Paradise Theatre Company and alongside writing, has directed smash-hit sex comedy ‘Wendy Hoose’ and ‘Purposeless Movements’, for which he was nominated for Best Director at the CATS awards. 

Director and Designer Kenny Miller works as a freelance director and designer, after undertaking the roles of Associate Director and Head of Design at the Citizens’ Theatre, Glasgow. 

He has worked in Theatre and Opera both nationally and internationally, in designing and directing, and has won three Critics' Awards for Theatre in Scotland (CATS) for his work.



Blanche & Butch Tour Dates

14 – 16 Sept, 7.45pm: Tron Theatre, Glasgow    

19 Sept, 7.30pm: Beacon Arts Centre, Greenock 

21 Sept, 7.30pm: Lochgelly Centre, Lochgelly  

23 Sept, 7.30pm: Macrobert, Stirling 

27 Sept, 7.30pm: The Byre, St Andrews     

28 Sept, 7.30pm: Woodend Barn, Banchory 

2 Oct, 7.30pm:  Eden Court, Inverness

4 Oct, 7.30pm:  Dundee Rep, Dundee

5 Oct, 7.00pm:  Platform, Glasgow

7 Oct, 7.30pm:  Eastwood Park Theatre

10 Oct, 8.00pm: The Gaiety, Ayr 

11 Oct, 7.30pm: Cat Strand, Castle Douglas
13 – 14 Oct: Summerhall, Edinburgh
Closing as part of Luminate with International Cabaret to end tour.

About Birds of Paradise Theatre Company

Birds of Paradise Theatre is a Scottish-based touring theatre company. It employs disabled and non-disabled actors and theatre professionals, commissions new work, and works in partnership with other organisations to create positive images of inclusion, and encourage participation in the arts.

About Tron Theatre Company

The Tron Theatre Company is currently under the artistic leadership of Andy Arnold, who took up the position of Artistic Director and Chief Executive in 2008. The Tron Theatre presents the people of Glasgow and the West of Scotland with outstanding professional productions of the finest new writing, with an emphasis on world, UK and Scottish premieres. 

Further Information

Birds of Paradise Theatre Company is a Regularly Funded Organisation (RFO), is awarded Projects and Programmes funding from Creative Scotland, and is supported by Glasgow City Council.

The House of Dramaturgy: Johnny McKnight @ Edfringe 2015

The Fringe
What inspired this production: did you begin with an idea or a script or an object?

I began with things coming together - first of all Robert asked me to collaborate with BoP - we both agreed that we wanted to do something that put disability on stage as opposed to not mentioned. I’d always had an idea I wanted to do something about on-line ap/hook up dating as its become so huge (and I also knew that I didn't want to do another Little Johnny show). Thirdly I’d met Amy when she was a student and on placement with NTS (she came in and watched rehearsals of Wicker Man). I thought she was really funny and beautiful but wondered if she’s ever get cast as sexy… All those things sort of came together when I sat down to write…

Wendy Hoose hits the Assembly Rooms, Ballroom (Venue 20) 17-30 Aug

Time 3.30pm : Tickets £15/£13  : Box office 0844 693 3008 

Getting your leg over has never been so hard!

The creative forces of Birds of Paradise & Random Accomplice are back by popular demand with the frank and hilarious sex comedy - Wendy Hoose. 

After two sell out tours in 2014, this ‘gorgeous, cheeky and outspoken’ (Scotsman) production is back and taking on the Fringe!

The acclaimed smash hit comedy follows the story of Laura and Jake. Who just want sex. Late Friday night drunken sex. Nothing more. No strings attached. But getting your leg over is sometimes more difficult than you think. Containing strong language and scenes of a sexual nature, Wendy Hooseis the story of two twenty year olds searching for love in all the wrong places! Especially when those places involve the fickle and flirty world of dating apps.

Wendy Hoose, directed by Robert Softley Gale and Johnny McKnight, joins Jake (James Young – The Incredible Adventures of See Thru Sam, Slick, Outlander) on his quest for some late night fun with Laura (Amy Conahan – Skeleton Wumman, Let’s Talk About Sex) via a mobile phone dating app. All is going well thanks to some sexting, but things take a twist when it comes down to the nitty gritty, and the course of true love, or in this case sex, does not run smoothly.

Johnny McKnight, Co-artistic Director, Random Accomplice added: “We wanted to make a comedy about the nightmare that is dating today. Trying to negotiate dating and drinking on a Friday night is hard enough - throw a Tindr or Grindr into the mix and there's potential for a story that you're going to share for months to come. Wendy Hoose is one possible story.”

Why bring your work to Edinburgh?

Honestly, we love the show and its always a joy to do it. Also I’d love for it to have a further life again, we really feel we've made something different and unique and funny with a brilliant creative team. It should find an audience as wide as possible.

What can the audience expect to see and feel - or even think - of your production?

Laugh. that’s the priority. and also think - what are we really looking for on those aps? Is it love but we’re distracted by sex. 

The Dramaturgy Questions

How would you explain the relevance - or otherwise - of dramaturgy within your work?

That’s quite a difficult question. I guess I'm in a lucky position because a lot of the time I direct my own writing so there’s a constant flow of writer/dramaturg/director. I'm really easy about being fluid between those roles - happy to cut stuff when I know it doesn't work on stage - happy to rewrite stuff when I dont like it in the room. I guess I dramaturg myself a lot...

What particular traditions and influences would you acknowledge on your work - have any particular artists, or genres inspired you and do you see yourself within their tradition?
I think I'm influenced by soooo much popular culture - from panto/vaudeville to live art confessional theatre. I think I'm really aware of the audience and I create most things with them in mind. Sometimes I find it difficult to find a genre that I fit - mainly because I don't know if I sit comfortably anywhere in life in general.

Do you have a particular process of making that you could describe - where it begins, how you develop it, and whether there is any collaboration in the process?

I don't actually have a fixed process - it always starts with terror and then moves forward - sometimes it can grow from an image (See Thru Sam was absolutely built in visuals alongside me testing out various pieces of script). Our most successful processes have seemed to be when we work closely with the a writer - then spend a week in development with actors reading (and the writer furiously redrafting) as we try to find as simple and clean a way to tell the story. Collaboration is always the key - as it should be.


What do you feel the role of the audience is, in terms of making the meaning of your work?
I think the audience is THE reason the work is on the stage. I know some people think you have to not look or think about the audience but I come at work from a very different place. I constantly think about how I want the audience to feel, to react, whether the story is told in an interesting and clear way, whether I am deliberately confusing or alienating the audience (and why I am). 

 I always feel I've worked on a successful piece when the audience want to be in the world that’s been created on stage. That’s the aim.

Are there any questions that you feel I have missed out that would help me to understand how dramaturgy works for you?

Not really - though there’s a bigger discussion/conversation about WHAT is dramaturgy. I've heard and seen people use it in so many different contexts that I genuinely still ask what it is. It still feels, to me, to be a sort of job that’s up there in the ether. I dont know if I could clearly define it because I think so many different theatre makers have a different definition for it. 

Wendy Hoose

Photograph by Eamonn McGoldrick

The creative forces of Birds of Paradise & Random Accomplice are back by popular demand with the frank and hilarious sex comedy - Wendy Hoose.


After two sell out tours in 2014, this ‘gorgeous, cheeky and outspoken’ (Scotsman) production is back and taking on the Fringe!


The acclaimed smash hit comedy follows the story of Laura and Jake. 

Who just want sex. 

Late Friday night drunken sex. 

Nothing more. No strings attached. 

But getting your leg over is sometimes more difficult than you think. 

Containing strong language and scenes of a sexual nature, Wendy Hoose is the story of two twenty year-olds searching for love in all the wrong places! 

Especially when those places involve the fickle and flirty world of dating apps.


Wendy Hoose, directed by Robert Softley Gale and Johnny McKnight, joins Jake (James Young – The Incredible Adventures of See Thru Sam, Slick, Outlander) on his quest for some late night fun with Laura (Amy Conahan – Skeleton Wumman, Let’s Talk About Sex) via a mobile phone dating app. All is going well thanks to some sexting, but things take a twist when it comes down to the nitty gritty, and the course of true love, or in this case sex, does not run smoothly.


Johnny McKnight, Co-artistic Director, Random Accomplice added: “We wanted to make a comedy about the nightmare that is dating today. Trying to negotiate dating and drinking on a Friday night is hard enough - throw a Tindr or Grindr into the mix and there's potential for a story that you're going to share for months to come. Wendy Hoose is one possible story.”


All performances include audio description, BSL & animated surtitles in the comedic style of the show.





Wendy Hoose is part of the Made in Scotland Showcase.

Wendy Hoose was nominated for a Critics Award for Theatre in Scotland 2014 in the Best Technical Presentation category.

Talent Search!

Date: Wednesday, 10th June
Time: Opening presentation 10am to 11am
Open auditions 11.15am to 1pm
Where: Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh
Birds of Paradise are on a nationwide search to find new deaf and disabled talent.

They want to find a new generation of artists and performers to work with them in 2015 to create a new show written by leading Scottish playwright David Greig.

If you identify yourself as being disabled and are interested in the arts come along and have a go. You could be just the person they're looking for.

If you’d like to be involved in the auditions contact l4t@birdsofparadisetheatre.co.uk or fill in their online booking form at the link below. 

If you don't wish to audition you can just come along to the first part of the day and hear about the exciting developments that are taking place in deaf and disabled performance nationally and worldwide.

Birds of Paradise, Scotland’s leading disability-led theatre company, create world class projects and performances that place disabled artists centre stage.

http://www.birdsofparadisetheatre.co.uk/looking-4-talent-booking-form/

Birds of Paradise – In An Alien Landscape/ Clutter Keeps Company

Fluttering to the Scottish stage in February

PREVIEW BY ERIC KAROULLA AND GARETH K VILE.

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE SKINNY 16 JANUARY 2013

In An Alien Landscape is a co-production between Birds of Paradise theatre company and The Beacon. It emerges from playwright Danny Start's residency with BOP, supported by the Playwright's Studio. Telling the story of Albie, who comes out of a coma to find himself compelled to paint, it discusses how art can be created to make sense of life. 

Founded in 1990 by a group of disabled activists as part of the Glasgow City of Culture, BOP has always sought to encourage more inclusion of disabled people in the arts. Their efforts have contributed to wider accessibility to colleges, training, and career development for disabled artists, while their own productions have become adventurous in finding new work and serious content.

In An Alien Landscape, says playwright Danny Start, "is based on true life experience. The Protagonist, Albie, is based upon a friend of mine who struggled with a super-abundance of creativity after experiencing a double brain haemorrhage. For Start, the play reflects his own struggles.  "My epilepsy has given me a particular outlook on life, where timelines cross and weave so close to the surface of everyday reality. I saw, in Albie and my friend, my own experience writ large and out of control – and this is what fascinates me."

BOP's reputation has been built on solid scripts and a faith in the potential of disabled artists to make work that does not need to be patronised. In An Alien Landscape allows a new voice to speak of their experience. [Eric Karoulla and Gareth K Vile]

Uncluttered and Companionable

EVENT REVIEW BY GARETH K VILE.

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE SKINNY 18 FEBRUARY 2010

Clutter Keeps Company has a brilliant lighting design. All nuance and subtle movement, it brings the simple set to life as a pop-up book, clear and coherent. It fits the story – a young boy deals with the absence of his father, the struggles of his mother and the romance of his sister. In a brief aside, his neighbour notes that he has Asperger’s syndrome: the production ddoesn't make a meal of it, but softly notes the awkward interactions and fantasies that stem from the condition.

There might be a great deal of creative, and funny, swearing in Clutter, but it has the tone of a story for mature audiences of eleven and older. There’s a flash of underage drinking, the hint of sex and country and western karaoke. With an ongoing narration, and simple central characters, the plot never gets flustered and the melancholic redemption of the conclusion ties together all of the strands, and no-one is left abandoned or worried. The content never really clashes with the style, never opens up complex ideas or goes beyond a simple moral. It is consistently well-performed. It nods to inclusion. It’s good entertainment.

It leaves behind questions. As a company, Birds of Paradise are all about being “agents of change”. Davey Anderson notes that this involves becoming a standard bearer for good practice. In their rather lovely promotional booklet, Angela Hogg, Senior Drama Officer of the Scottish Arts Council claims that BoP’s debut was “probably the first time many Scottish audiences had viewed work that challenged the aesthetics of theatre-making while at the same time challenging their own prejudices and perceptions of how the human story can present itself.”

Clutter Keeps Company is a solid tale, well told. Anderson does some nice script work, and the characters are believable. It has a happy ending: it is a feelgood drama. It emphasises that just because someone is a little different, it doesn’t make them weird – unless they are Mormons, like the hero’s neighbours.

However, the inclusiveness of Clutter does lean heavily on some fairly major able-bodied performers.  Certainly, they are not challenging ideas about aesthetics. That’s okay – Clutter is satisfying, with its traditional narration and straight-forward structure.

Ultimately, Clutter is conservative: Indepen-Dance are far more radical in their presentation and inclusion, and the day when Scottish companies are as confident as Belgians in casting inclusiveness will take the pressure from Birds of Paradise. Clutter is a gentle step towards understanding difference, a reasonable statement with impeccable liberal credentials. There’s an exciting debate around inclusion in theatre, and although BoP have a history of allowing access, this production hints they could do with taking greater risks.