Tron Theatre
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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The Tron Theatre is located in Glasgow, Scotland.
About
The Tron Theatre is situated in the heart of Glasgow's Merchant City. It aims to entertain, inspire, empower, and culturally enhance the lives of the people of Glasgow, the West of Scotland and beyond, irrespective of age, background or ability.
From its early years as an innovative theatre club the Tron has grown into a thriving multi-faceted venue. Home to the award-winning Tron Theatre Company, it produces outstanding contemporary theatrical work and presents an eclectic visiting programme of theatre, comedy and music from Scotland, the UK and abroad. Its Education and Outreach department offers a range of activities from drama workshops for children and young people, to creative writing for adults and professional development opportunities for theatre students and practitioners.
History
The Tron Theatre Company started life as the Glasgow Theatre Club in 1978, the brainchild of Joe Gerber, Tom Laurie and Tom McGrath. In 1980 the Club took over the almost derelict Tron Kirk, replacing the destroyed Close Theatre, and following hard work and commitment from its members, opened its doors on May 10 1981 with a celebratory party. Two days later the first season of short plays opened with a production of Eine Kleine Nacht Musik, directed by Ida Schuster-Berkeley, in the Victorian Bar.
Artistic legacy
Under the Artistic leadership of Michael Boyd (1986 to 1996), the Tron established itself as a powerhouse of both new writing and dynamic productions of classic texts, making full use of available Scottish talent. Leading artists to emerge from this period include Alan Cumming, Forbes Masson, Peter Mullan, Craig Ferguson and Siobhan Redmond, as well as musician Craig Armstrong (Baz Luhrmann's Romeo and Juliet and Moulin Rouge). Many of these artists still continue an association with the Tron.
From 1996 to 1999 the company was led by Irina Brown and productions included David Greig's award winning The Cosmonaut's Last Message to the Woman He Once Loved in the Former Soviet Union, as well as a dynamic international programme.
During 2000 the Tron Theatre Company presented two world premieres of plays by Scottish writers: Our Bad Magnet by Douglas Maxwell and Further than the Furthest Thing by Zinnie Harris. Further than the Furthest Thing, directed by Irina Brown, was a co-production between the Tron Theatre Company and the Royal National Theatre. The production premiered at the Edinburgh International Fringe Festival 2000 to universal critical acclaim, winning four major awards before a London run at the National Theatre, a subsequent transfer to the Tricycle Theatre, London and a tour of South Africa.
In 2002 Neil Murray was appointed Director of the Tron, serving as Artistic Producer for the Company. Shows produced by the Tron in this period include Iain Heggie's Love Freaks, Possible Worlds by John Mighton (as the centrepiece of the Canadian Six Stages Festival), Forbes Masson's Jack and the Beanstalk and Cinderella and Chris Hannan's Shining Souls in a co-production with v.amp productions which was awarded Best Production in the Critics Awards for Theatre In Scotland in 2003.
The Tron continues to support and premiere the work of both emerging and established Scotland-based playwrights. Previous productions include the world premiere of David Greig's San Diego 2004 EIF, Anthony Neilson's The Wonderful World of Dissocia in 2004, this time in a collaboration with EIF and the Theatre Royal, Plymouth. The Wonderful World of Dissocia subsequently went on to win 5 out of 10 awards in the 2005 Critics' Awards for Theatre in Scotland. The production was also revived in 2007 in conjunction with the National Theatre of Scotland, touring the UK including performances at the Royal Court Theatre, London.
Murray left in 2005, to take up the post of Executive Director of the National Theatre of Scotland, and between May 2005 and May 2006 the post of Director was held by Ali Curran, formerly of the Peacock Theatre at the Abbey Theatre in Dublin. The Tron produced three new works during this time: the premiere of Ubu the King , a co-production with Dundee Repertory Theatre, the Barbican, Old Vic and Bite:05, adapted by David Greig and directed by Dominic Hill; the European premiere of John Mighton's latest work, Half Life, co-produced with Perth Theatre and Canadian based Necessary Angel; and its annual Christmas panto, written by Forbes Masson, Weans in the Wood.
They have recently appointed a new Director Andy Arnold, previously of the Arches Theatre Company. He takes up this position in April 2008.
