PRESS RELEASE
The National Theatre of Scotland, the Edinburgh International Festival and the National
Theatre of Great Britain
present
THE JAMES PLAYS
Three new plays about James I, II and III of Scotland,
by Rona Munro, directed by Laurie Sansom
James I: The Key Will Keep The Lock, James II: Day of the Innocents, and James III: The
True Mirror
Ensemble cast: Cameron Barnes, Daniel Cahill, Ali Craig, Blythe Duff, Nicky Elliot, Peter Forbes,
Andrew Fraser, Sofie Gråbøl, Sarah Higgins, Stepanie Hyam, Gordon Kennedy, James McArdle,
Alasdair Macrae, David Mara, Beth Marshall, Rona Morison, Andrew Rothney, Mark Rowley, Jamie
Sives, and Fiona Wood.
At the Festival Theatre Edinburgh, Edinburgh International Festival from 10 to 22 August 2014
And at the Olivier Theatre, National Theatre, London from 10 September to 29 October 2014
Supported by the Scottish Government‘s Edinburgh Festivals Expo Fund
Creative Team: Designed by Jon Bausor; Lighting Designed by Philip Gladwell; Sound Designed by
Christopher Shutt; Movement Director, Neil Bettles; Puppet Director, Mervyn Millar; Associate
Director, Amanda Gaughan.
James I, James II and James III – are a new cycle of history plays by award-winning playwright Rona
Munro and directed by Laurie Sansom, Artistic Director of the National Theatre of Scotland, which
are to be presented in an unprecedented co-production by the National Theatre of Scotland,
Edinburgh International Festival and the National Theatre of Great Britain, during the Edinburgh
International Festival in August and at the National Theatre in London from September to October.
This vividly-imagined trilogy brings to life three generations of Stewart Kings who ruled Scotland in
the tumultuous fifteenth century. Each play stands alone as a unique vision of a country tussling with
its past and future, with its own distinct theatrical atmosphere. Viewed together they create a
complex and compelling narrative on Scottish culture and nationhood.
The James Plays promise to be historical drama for a contemporary audience, served up with a
refreshing modern directness.
Audiences are invited to join a cast of extraordinary characters in the Festival Theatre Edinburgh and
the Olivier Theatre at the National Theatre in these fast paced stories that bring to life Scotland’s
past through the gripping stories of the men, women and children who once ruled it.
An ensemble of 20 actors will take the audience through a rarely-explored period of history with
playful wit and boisterous theatricality, and should prove a landmark of Scottish drama in a
remarkable year.
'it all comes round, it all comes round again whatever you do' James III
Some events and characters have been invented; others have been altered or simplified to clarify
the narrative but, as far as possible, historical record has been used.
________________________________________________________
James I (1394 to 1437), married to Joan Beaufort
James II (1430 to 1460), married to Mary of Gueldres
James III (1452 to 1488), married to Margaret of Denmark
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Rona Munro, writer of the James Plays, says,
“I wrote these plays because I adore medieval history. We do not have many accessible, popular
culture versions of our medieval history in Scotland and most people have very little knowledge of
these events. I want people to experience them as I imagine them, not as something remote
happening to people in odd costumes talking in inaccessible 'history speak' but as visceral, epic
stories of people who thought and felt as we do. These loves, deaths, friendships and betrayals
inform our present. My greatest ambition is that audiences will come out with at least some of the
same fevered enthusiasm for our history that I have, and with these stories lodged in their heads.”
________________________________________________________________
ABOUT THE PLAYS
James I: The Key Will Keep The Lock
By Rona Munro, directed by Laurie Sansom
Bold and irreverent storytelling explores the complex character of this colourful Stewart king – a
poet, a lover, a law-maker but also the product of a harsh political system.
James I of Scotland was captured when he was only 13 and became King of Scots in an English
prison. 18 years later he's finally delivered back home with a ransom on his head and a new English
bride. He's returning to a poor nation, the royal coffers are empty and his nobles are a pack of
wolves ready to tear him apart at the first sign of weakness. But James has his own ideas about how
to be a king and, after 18 years, he finally has the chance to realise them. James is determined to
bring the rule of law to a land riven by warring families, but that struggle will force him to make
terrible choices if he is to save himself, his Queen and the crown.
Cast includes: James McArdle (James I), Blythe Duff (Isabella), Peter Forbes (Balvenie), Gordon
Kennedy (Murdac) , Andrew Rothney (Walter Stewart), Mark Rowley (Alisdair Stewart), Cameron
Barnes, (Big James), Jamie Sives (Henry V) , Sarah Higgins (Meg), Stephanie Hyam (Joan), Daniel
Cahill (Earl of Douglas), Ali Craig, Nicky Elliot, Andrew Fraser, Alasdair Macrae, David Mara,
Beth Marshall, Rona Morison and Fiona Wood.
James McArdle is a young popular actor with extensive roles in theatre, TV and film. In 2013 James
appeared on television in New Worlds, (Channel 4); Salting the Battlefield and Turks & Caicos (BBC/
NBC/Heyday Films), 37 Days (BBC), Love and Marriage (ITV), Theatre includes: Chariots of Fire
(Hampstead West End/Gielgud Theatre); The Heart of Robin Hood (Royal Shakespeare Company); A
Month in the Country (Chichester Festival Theatre); Spur of the Moment, (Royal Court); Macbeth,
(The Globe Theatre). Films include: Private Peaceful and 71 (Warp Films/Film 4). Work for the
National Theatre includes: Emperor and Galilean.
Blythe Duff returns to the National Theatre of Scotland following roles in Beautiful Burnout (coproduced with Frantic Assembly); Be Near Me (co-produced with the Donmar Warehouse). Her
recent theatre roles include the title role in David Harrower’s one woman show, Ciara and Iron, for
which she won a Best Actress Award at the Critics Awards for Theatre in Scotland, 2013. She is
widely known for her TV role as Jackie Reid in Taggart.
James II: Day of the Innocents
By Rona Munro, directed by Laurie Sansom
In the second of Rona Munro’s dynastical trilogy, innocent games merge with murderous intent in a
violent royal playground of shifting realities and paranoia.
An eight year old boy is crowned King of Scots. Soon James II is the prize in a vicious game between
the country’s most powerful families, for whoever has the person of the boy king, controls the state.
Seen through a child's eyes, the Scottish court is a world of monsters with sharp teeth and long
knives.
Growing up alone, abandoned by his mother and separated from his sisters, James II is little better
than a puppet. There is only one relationship he can trust, his growing friendship with another lonely
boy, William, the future Earl of Douglas. The two boys cling together as they try to survive the
murder and mayhem that surrounds them.
But the independence and power of young adulthood brings James into an even more threatening
world. He has to fight the feuding nobles who still want to control him, he has to make brutal
choices about the people he loves best, he has to struggle to keep his tenuous grip on the security of
the crown and on his sanity....while the nightmares and demons of his childhood rise up again with
new and murderous intent.
Cast includes: Andrew Rothney (James II), Mark Rowley (William), Blythe Duff (Isabella),
Peter Forbes (Balvenie), Gordon Kennedy (Livingston), Ali Craig (Crichton), Cameron Barnes,
(Bullheaded Man), Rona Morison (Annabella), Sarah Higgins (Meg), Stephanie Hyam (Joan and
Mary), Daniel Cahill, Nicky Eliot, Andrew Fraser, Alasdair Macrae, David Mara, Beth Marshall, and
Fiona Wood.
__________________________________________________________________________________
James III: The True Mirror
By Rona Munro, directed by Laurie Sansom
Like James III himself, the final instalment of Rona Munro’s extraordinary trilogy is colourful, brash
and unpredictable. It turns its eye on the women of the royal court, both lowly and high born, who
prove to be its beating heart. Queen Margaret, married to James III is played by Sofie Gråbøl, most
known to audiences as Sarah Lund in the Danish TV series, The Killing.
James III of Scotland. A man who's irresistible, charismatic, a man of fashion and culture. A man with
big dreams ...and no budget to realise any of them.
Obsessed with grandiose schemes that his nation can ill-afford and his restless nobles will no longer
tolerate, James is loved and loathed in dangerously unstable proportions. But Scotland's future will
be decided by the woman who loves him best of all, his resourceful and resilient wife, Queen
Margaret of Denmark.
As dreams battle brutal realities and the nation thunders dangerously close to regicide and civil war,
her true love and clear vision offer the only protection that can save a fragile monarchy and rescue a
struggling people. But the cost for Margaret herself may be too high.
Sofie Gråbøl is an award-winning Danish actor with extensive film and TV credits. She gained
international fame for her role as Detective Inspector Sarah Lund in three series of The Killing (BBC
4). She is also an experienced stage actor who has appeared on stage many times with the National
Theatre of Denmark, including most recently in a stage version of Ingmar Bergman’s Fanny &
Alexander.
Cast includes: Jamie Sives (James III), Sofie Gråbøl (Queen Margaret), Blythe Duff (Annabella),
Gordon Kennedy (John) , Andrew Rothney (Cochran), Mark Rowley (Ramsay), Ali Craig (Sandy), ,
Sarah Higgins (Meg’s ghost), Stephanie Hyam (Joan’s ghost), Daniel Cahill, (Jamie), Fiona Wood
(Daisy), David Mara (Bishop), Rona Morison (Phemy), Cameron Barnes, Nicky Elliot, Andrew Fraser,
Alasdair Macrae, and Beth Marshall.
BIOG INFORMATION FOR LAURIE SANSOM AND RONA MUNRO
Laurie Sansom is the Artistic Director and Chief Executive of the National Theatre of Scotland.
Previously, he was Artistic Director of the Royal & Derngate Theatre, Northampton, from 2006 and
Associate Director to Alan Ayckbourn at the Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough from 2002 to
2006. Laurie’s productions at the Royal & Derngate include The Bacchae, Blood Wedding and Hedda
Gabler, which were presented as The Festival of Chaos, as part of London2012 Festival. Other recent
productions include Spring Storm and Beyond the Horizon which transferred to the National Theatre,
London, and for which he received the 2010 TMA Award for Best Director, Frankenstein (with Frantic
Assembly), The Duchess of Malfi and Follies. In 2009, the Royal & Derngate’s production of The Prime
of Miss Jean Brodie was presented at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, winning Anna Francolini the TMA
Award for Best Performance in a Play. He has directed for theatres around the UK including the
Traverse, Birmingham Rep, Salisbury Playhouse, Lyric Hammersmith, New Vic, Stoke, West Yorkshire
Playhouse and the National Theatre, London, where he recently directed The Holy Rosenbergs.
Rona Munro’s recent theatre writing credits include Donny’s Brain (Hampstead Downstairs), The
Astronaut’s Chair (for the Drum Theatre Plymouth), Pandas (for the Traverse Theatre), Little Eagles
(for the Royal Shakespeare Company), a contemporary adaptation of The House Of Bernarda Alba
for the National Theatre of Scotland), The Last Witch (for the Edinburgh International Festival), Long
Time Dead (co-production with Paines Plough and the Drum Theatre Plymouth), Iron (for the
Traverse Theatre -winner of the John Whiting award), and Mary Barton (for the Royal Exchange
Theatre). Television work includes the BAFTA nominated Bumping The Odds and Rehab (both for the
BBC). Film work includes Ladybird Ladybird directed by Ken Loach and Oranges And Sunshine
directed by Jim Loach. Radio work includes multiple episodes of The Stanley Baxter Playhouse. She is
the writing half of Scotland’s award winning women’s theatre company The Misfits.
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This is the National Theatre of Scotland's fifth co-production with the Edinburgh International
Festival. Previous productions include: Realism (2006); The Bacchae (2007); 365 (2008) and
Caledonia (2010). This is the first co-production between the National Theatre of Scotland and the
National Theatre of Great Britain.
The National Theatre of Great Britain has been presented at the Festival on a number of occasions
over the last thirty years, with productions including Watch on the Rhine, The Passion, On the Razzle
and Fuente Ovejuna.
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Booking information:
Booking: Edinburgh International Festival
0131 473 2000
www.eif.co.uk
Performances from 10 to 22 August 2014
Opening Performances on 10 August at 12pm, 4pm & 8.15pm
Booking: National Theatre of Great Britain 020 7452 3000 www.nationaltheatre.org.uk
Performances from 10 September to 29 October 2014
Opening Performances on 25 September at 12 midday, 4pm and 8.15pm.
Presented as part of the National Theatre of Great Britain’s Travelex £15 Tickets season
Public Booking opens for the James Plays on 17 April 2014
www.nationaltheatrescotland.com
www.eif.co.uk
www.nationaltheatre.org.uk
Join the conversation: #jamesplays
For further information please contact:
Emma Schad – Press Manager at the National Theatre of Scotland
Tel: +44(0)141 227 9016
Email: emma.schad@nationaltheatrescotland.com
Susie Burnet – Head of Communications at the Edinburgh International Festival
Tel: +44(0)131 473 2020
Email: Susie.burnet@eif.co.uk
Martin Shippen – Press Manager at the National Theatre of Great Britain
Tel: +44(0) 20 7452 3233
Email: mshippen@nationaltheatre.org.uk
NOTES TO EDITORS
1. The National Theatre of Scotland is supported by the Scottish Government. Since its launch
in February 2006, the National Theatre of Scotland has been involved in creating over 200
productions in 174 different locations. With no building of its own, the Company takes
theatre all over Scotland and beyond, working with existing and new venues and companies
to create and tour theatre of the highest quality. It takes place in the great buildings of
Scotland, but also in site-specific locations, airports and tower blocks, community halls and
drill halls, ferries and forests. The Company has performed to over 1, 000,000 people across
four continents. www.nationaltheatrescotland.com
2. The National Theatre of Great Britain is dedicated to the constant revitalisation of the great
traditions of the British stage and to expanding the horizons of audiences and artists alike.
Founded in 1963, in its three theatres on London’s South Bank it presents an eclectic mix of
new plays and classics from the world repertoire with seven or eight productions in
repertory at any one time. The National Theatre aspires to reflect in its repertoire the
diversity of the nation's culture.
With a commitment to openness, wide-reaching engagement and access for everyone, the
National shares its resources, energy and creativity with audiences and theatre-makers
around the globe; using its Studio for research and development of new work, offering
extensive learning and public engagement programmes, touring and broadcasting in the UK
and internationally, and creating innovative digital content.
The National’s production of War Horse visits Edinburgh Festival Theatre from 22 January – 15
February; One Man, Two Guvnors begins a new UK tour later this year, visiting King’s Theatre,
Glasgow (30 June – 5 July) and His Majesty’s Theatre, Aberdeen (13 – 18 October), with further
dates to be announced. Forthcoming National Theatre Live broadcasts include the Donmar
Warehouse production of Coriolanus (30 January); War Horse (27 February) and King Lear (1
May).
3. Every August, the Edinburgh International Festival transforms one of the world's most
beautiful cities, presenting three exhilarating weeks of the finest creators and performers
from the worlds of classical music, theatre, opera, dance and visual art from around the
globe to an audience from around 70 nations.
Founded in 1947, the Festival grew out of the rubble of the Second World War with the aim
of providing 'a platform for the flowering of the human spirit'. This belief in the power of
the arts to nurture and transform remains at the heart of the Festival's mission today.
All artists and companies appear in the Festival at the invitation of the Festival Director,
currently Jonathan Mills. The Festival's invitation to an artist covers all the administration
and costs associated with their performance in Edinburgh. As a not-for-profit organisation
and a registered charity, its budget is a carefully balanced mix of income raised from ticket
sales, fundraising and sponsorship, along with public sector grants. The Festival also has a
year-round programme of education and outreach work.
The full programme for Edinburgh International Festival 2014 will be announced on Tuesday
18 March
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ENDS
Scottish Government: the £2.25 million announced today includes £250,000 which is
directly awarded to Festivals Edinburgh.
The Scottish Government’s Edinburgh Festivals Expo Fund has provided £12 million from
2008-09 to 2013-14, supporting the costs of new productions, events or exhibitions which
involve Scottish-based participants and are premiered at any of the 12 Edinburgh Festivals.
The Fund was established in 2007 to help maintain the global competitive edge of the
festivals, to increase funding available to Scottish-based artists and practitioners and to
encourage creative partnerships.
It is aimed at supporting touring within or outwith Scotland of works premiered at the
festivals, work by Scottish-based artists and arts companies, and collaborative work with
international artists.
The funding enables ambitious and innovative projects for audiences in Scotland and
overseas, including collaborations between the festivals, international artists and creators.
The assessment process and funding is administered by Creative Scotland.