Brave
2002
By Gerry Mulgrew
A co-production with Sounds of Progress company
A monumental piece played on site in The Old Fruitmarket space in Glasgow. About the Cherokee Indians and their Trail of Tears, the name they gave to the forced removal of the people from their homelands in Georgia/ Tennessee to Oklahoma. Forced to walk and travel on boats for a thousand miles, almost a quarter of the tribe perished on the way. They were led by John Ross, the chief of the tribe and a man who was half Indian and half Scot. Despite his orchestrating many years of delays and struggles through the courts, the Cherokee were finally evicted in 1838. Brave is a fragmented, impressionistic attempt to convey their story, and through them, the tragic story of the betrayal of the North American Indian.
Reviews
Some of the staging ideas are dazzling, others look a little fringey and tired. But for visual and musical inventiveness, sheer seriousness of purpose, and a rare combination of the spectacular and the morally disturbing, this is a show magnificently worth seeing. It’s an event rooted deep in the truth – if you’ve ever doubted it, while watching the displaced and the dying on television – that, next time, it could be you
THE SCOTSMAN April 2002
It’s at its best when Mulgrew plays to his great strength – a movement – based theatre of great simplicity and eloquence. He saves his best for the final sequence, a searing reminder of vintage Communicado at its best
SCOTLAND ON SUNDAY April 2002
The overall effect may be more of a pageant than a drama, but at times it is extraordinarily powerful. This is Mulgrew’s first show for a number of years….we have missed his brand of visually thrilling theatre. Welcome back.
THE TIMES April 2002
Tour
Cast:
Fletcher Mathers
Jimmy Harrison
Philippa Vafadari
Gerry Mulgrew
Jonothan Campbell
Beth Marshall
Keith MacPherson
The Sounds of Progress Band
Directed by Gordon Dougall
Production:
Director Gerry Mulgrew
Composer / MD Gordon Dougall
Designer/ Visual Artist Jacqui Gunn
Video Design Rosie Gibson
Aerial Choreography Jonothan Campbell
Researcher Alan Tormaid Campbell