THE VILLAGE AND THE ROAD Comes to Scottish Storytelling Centre

The Village and The Road is a collaboration of words from celebrated writer Tom Pow with music from The Galloway Agreement, a quartet of well-known traditional musicians. Tom Pow draws on his travels for this emotive journey exploring abandonment of the countryside, refugee crises and the 'great thinning' of the natural world. The Galloway Agreement respond sonically with their wide experiences of the musical traditions of Europe, adding drama and poignancy to the narrative.

The Village and The Road is an invitation to experience a world of great beauty, but also one that carries contemporary imprints of separation, emigration and rootlessness. The play is inspired by 'the great thinning', a term coined by environmental journalist Michael McCarthy, to describe the loss of so many birds and other species which once delighted visitors to the British countryside.

The Village and The Road is in turn a response to another 'great thinning': for the first time in human history there are more people living in cities than in the countryside. Many, especially the young, are taking the road out of their villages, often facing hardship and danger as they do so. The show is a portrait of the tensions that exist between the village and the road at this time of crucial change; a time 'when the village girls have no eyes/for the village boys'.

Writer and performer Tom Pow said: "It feels to me that the developments which first sparked my interest in dying villages throughout Europe - depopulation and abandonment - have intensified since. The Village and The Road shows a world in which both inward migration and cross border migration reflect fragility and violence. It is also a world in which crucial and heart wrenching decisions are made. The play has resonances for our times and for any one of us who has had to leave home."

Performer Ruth Morris said:"The world of The Village and The Road offers a fluid, tangible space for us to inhabit, illusory and yet sometimes starkly realistic, journeying through a broad sweep of geography and time. It is richly atmospheric, and allows great connectivity, giving depth and resonance to the music and the musical performances within it."

The Village and The Road gratefully acknowledges the support of Creative Scotland (Made in Scotland), Scotbelge Charitable Trust, Dame Barbara Kelly, DG Arts Festival, DG Regional Arts Fund, Pete Renwick, and Theatre Royal Dumfries.

Company Information

Writer and performer/narrator Tom Pow

Live music The Galloway Agreement: Wendy Stewart (clarsach), Ruth Morris (nyckelharpa), Gavin Marwick (fiddle) and Stuart Macpherson (double bass).

Original script Tom Pow.
Original live score The Galloway Agreement

Director Matthew Zajac
Lighting Design and photos Andrew Wilson
Sound Design Stuart Macpherson
Producers Ruth Morris and Ed Littlewood with support from Peter Renwick
Digital assets Emma Dove

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