The Burns Project review – Scotland’s national poet in all his glory and contradictions

The Georgian House, EdinburghDrawing on private letters and contemporary criticism, Cora Bissett’s imaginative production offers a rounded picture of a complicated man with a colourful love lifeWe are sitting around a table in the sedate surroundings of the Georgian House, the Robert Adam-designed townhouse run by the National Trust for Scotland. James Clements, playing the part of Robert Burns, says something about the weather, and suddenly a streak of lightning cuts down the length of the table top. It has a gash down the middle for that very purpose.It is a sign of the attention to detail in Cora Bissett’s excellent production. What could have been a by-the-numbers tribute to Scotland’s national poet is altogether more subtle, imaginative and contentious. The long, undulating table, designed by Jenny Booth and cleverly lit by Elle Taylor, continues to play an unexpected part: Clements appears from beneath a domed plate cover in a scene of hungover contrition, while a cutlery boat sets sail under its own steam towards the West Indies. Continue reading...

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