Dundee mum Jade Anderson is almost as ingrained in the Rep as Michael Marra himself.
The 36-year-old playwright grew up in Dundee, but first stepped through the doors of the Dundee Rep Theatre just 15 years ago.
“The first play I ever saw was here,” she says, recalling a 2010 run of Equus.
“It was quite an intense first theatrical experience. Not long after that, I decided this was something I wanted to do with my life.”
At age 23, Jade joined the community theatre group as they were putting on their show She Town.
And after years of battling mental health issues alone, during which time she had fallen into debt and turned to substances for relief, something clicked.
Theatre proved to be a “lifeline” for Jade and her young child, who joined the community theatre along with mum at age three.
Jade found career – and husband – at Rep
Since then, Jade has thrived at the theatre, going from community performer to workshop facilitator.
She has worked with the Loadsaweeminsingin’ choir, youth theatre groups, and the senior Beautiful People group.
And her child Phoenix is still involved at age 16.
“The people at the Rep just really care,” she explains. “If someone sees a wee spark in you, they encourage you to follow it. That’s what they did for me.”
After leaving to study acting in Glasgow, she returned and worked as an usher at the Rep for a spell, during which she met now-husband Daniel.
“We were both ushers,” Jade recalls with a smile. “After 10 years together, we got married on the Rep stage last year.
“It was really special, because the production team set the whole stage in this really beautiful way.
“The two ushers that Daniel and I had worked with when we met were actual ushers at the wedding. And our invitations were Rep theatre tickets!”
Brand new Michael Marra jukebox musical
Now, Jade has reached yet another milestone with the theatre – she’s written the sold-out upcoming Michael Marra jukebox musical, All Will Be Well.
“It’s wild to say I’m a playwright,” Jade beams, confessing: “It took me a really long time to finish the play. I’m pretty sure the tickets had gone on sale before I even had a first act, though I’m assured that’s quite common!”
The play follows “a motley crew of musicians and fans” who “find themselves stranded—literally in the middle of nowhere – after an illicit music festival in a Perthshire berry field”.
The journey home takes them through time, space, and the late Michael Marra’s back catalogue.
For Jade, the creative team’s decision to base a play around Michael Marra songs seems a no-brainer.
“Michael Marra was so embedded in the Rep,” she observes. “He was passionate about the community and supported people wherever he could.
“I was very fortunate that I got to see one of his plays, St Catherine’s Day, an actually got to see him on stage playing his keyboard on his little ironing board at the Rep.
“From that moment on, I’ve met so many people who loved him.”
What makes Marra’s music so special?
The reason for that, Jade reckons, is that Marra managed to tap through to a real Dundonian sensibility in his works.
“He didn’t seem to take himself too seriously,” she observes. “And I think because of that, everybody feels welcome to enjoy the music.
“With some artists, they make you feel like you’re too stupid or too common or not cool enough for their music, but there’s just no pretentiousness to Michael Marra.
“He did whatever he wanted. That was his style.”
Working with Michael’s daughter Alice Marra, and Engage interim associate director Mick Duke, Jade put together a script which she hope does justice to the legendary songwriter.
And though she keeps her lips sealed about exactly which Michael Marra songs will make their way on to the stage – other than All Will Be Well, of course – Jade happily reveals her personal favourite of the Dundee bard’s tunes.
“Here Come The Weak is definitely my top Michael Marra song,” she says. “It’s not just a beautiful song, but if you’re at a point in life where you just feel a bit hopeless, it’s a song that can really empower people.”
140+ strong cast spans generations
The upcoming production of All Will Be Well will see more than 140 community players taking to the Rep stage, ranging from primary school pupils to actors in their 70s and 80s.
For Jade, it’s the music which helps this production connect across generations.
But it’s the way the cast “looks after one another” which is the real magic at the heart off the play.
“The most special part for me is how welcoming the community cast groups have been with each other,” she says. “I think we need more of that, as a society.
“The younger people are learning from the older ones, and vice versa. They have so much fun together.
“And the way they behave all together!” she laughs. “You’d think they were a’ bairns.”
All Will Be Well is at the Dundee Rep Theatre from June 24-28 2025.
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