Details

The World Premiere of The World According to Bertie, first serialised in The Scotsman, promises an unforgettable evening in the company of young Bertie as he struggles to escape his yoga lessons and pink bedroom, his perfectionist and overbearing mum Irene, raffish painter Angus whose dog Cyril is under threat, and McCall Smith's many other colourful characters. Bertie dreams of fried Mars Bars and having a dog while his mother insists on psychoanalysis. Everyone is seeking peace of mind and, above all, love. The play is very true to the novel, telling the stories of the major characters exactly as McCall Smith has them in his book. Linking the various stories, including Bertie's, are the themes of friendship and love. Under its bright and sparkling surface, the play raises deep moral issues. Most central of these is how best to raise one's children in a very demanding and confusing world. And where can deep friendship, enduring love, and some degree of happiness, be found in the complex world of bustle and conflicting relations we live in. The deep humanism in McCall's Smith's story is based on the belief that life is at one and the same time ordinary and precious, and that these two truths are intimately connected.

Creatives/Company

Book by: Alexander McCall Smith
Adapted by(s): Lydia Bruce, Sandy Burns
Producer: Andy Jordan Productions
Director: Warren Hooper