Three pairs of local grandfathers and grandsons are to take the stage at Dundee Rep in a moving look at love and relationships between these generations. Just don’t call these novice actors amateurs.
That is the message from the creators of Old Boy, a touring production with a difference.
A trio of granddads
Rather than arriving in the city with its cast having learned their lines, the play’s two directors recruited a trio of granddads from the surrounding area, each with male grandkids of differing ages: a toddler, 10-year old child and young adult in his early twenties.
Most senior of the group, Dundonian Malcolm Gracie turns 80 three days after this run ends.
The play explores how these pairs show their affection through activities they do together, from building model planes to camping, showing the transitions between the different stages of life.
This concept, based around the same set and structure, as devised by Jess Thorpe and Tashi Gore, means Old Boy brings a local slant to its universal themes of the evolution of masculinity over the years and how family relations change with age.
A well-travelled show
Since its 2015 debut in Glasgow, the show has been produced in Edinburgh, Paisley, Gateshead in north-east England, and even Washington DC.
Working in Dundee since January, Old Boy’s creative team first selected their homegrown cast via an open call-out using local media, email and social media.
Through interviews and workshops, stories emerged that allow its six-strong cast give the show a distinctive voice, co-director Jess explains.
As the grandfathers talk about themselves and their own forefathers, they reminisce on shipyard culture, armed conflicts and emigration to the United States.
The passage of time
“We look at how Dundee has changed, as when industries fell aways, especially how different generations compare and contrast their lives,” the co-director says.
“When Malcolm was 21 he was married, had a home and an apprenticeship, but his grandson is, like, I’m never getting married.
“We explore the impact of those events and experiences on the lives of real men and their legacy that’s passed down through the generations. You’ll hear Dundee place names, Dundee accents and that’s very important to us.”
While the actors are unpaid volunteers, Jess insists people should not refer to Old Boy as an am-dram production.
“We don’t talk in those terms,” she says. “They’re professional in terms of being themselves, experts in everyday life. We wanted real granddads and grandsons for the show. All the stories come from their life experiences and relationships.”
Old Boy follows the success of Hand Me Down, a show about the lives of and made by 10 women from one Port Glasgow family that toured Scotland.
Jill says: “People were enthused by it, but they were also asking if the next one was going to be about men.
“At the time, we were becoming parents ourselves and thinking about how the relationship with grandparents is very special, so we wanted to get men talking about their feelings and emotions.
“It’s an oral history, but it’s also a love letter to their relatives.”
Dundee Rep, March 30 to April 1.
Conversation