Linda McLean talks to us about her play Castle Lennox and the message she wants to send to our audiences.
Castle Lennox comes to The Lyceum: 30 March 2023 to 1 April 2023
By Linda McLean with music by Michael John McCarthy
Directed by Maria Oller
"You said small spaces encourage large thoughts... and then you locked the door."
It's 1969. Annis, a young autistic woman, is sent by her stepmother to live as a patient at Castle Lennox, where the rules of the outside world do not apply. Desperate to escape, she very quickly lands herself in trouble and makes an enemy of the nurse in charge. Feeling lost and alone, she is befriended by fellow residents who show her another Castle Lennox, a world of colour and song, one that is a welcome relief from the monotonous regime of pills and porridge. But Annis can’t help wanting to be free.
Linda McLean (Glory on Earth at The Lyceum) has written a play with songs (by Michael John McCarthy) about the strength, wit and resilience of those who were sent to Lennox Castle during a regime of segregation from the 1930s to the 1990s. This inspiring tale, based on a real institution, is brought to the stage in collaboration with the brilliant Lung Ha Theatre Company (Dr Stirlingshire’s Discovery, co-produced with Grid Iron, RZSS Edinburgh Zoo and Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh and We Are All Just Little Creatures, co-produced with Curious Seed and in collaboration with Lyra).
Please note this performance explores themes that might not be suitable for children, including discussions of eugenics and abuse within medical institutions.
#CastleLennox
A Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh and Lung Ha Theatre Company co-production.
Supported by Margaret Duffy and Peter Williamson.
Book tickets here: lyceum.org.uk/castlelennox
#CastleLennox
29 сен 2024
