Interview: Mary Queen of Scots Got Her Head Chopped Off

On the opening weekend of the festival Mary Queen of Scots Got Her Head Chopped Off presents a fresh and interesting twist to one of history’s most volatile relationships. We caught up with the team behind the production.

Tell us a little bit about the piece.

Mary Queen of Scots Got Her Head Chopped Off is a play of dichotomies — Scotland and England, Whore and Virgin, Mary and Elizabeth — and it explores the relationship between two of history’s most famous estranged cousins. The plot follows Mary as she returns home from France after her husband’s death, through her relationships with Elisabeth, her country, and her lovers, and ultimately, to her tragic demise. The story is guided by La Corbie, the omniscient trickster prophetess — who also happens to be a Scottish crow. The piece has something for everyone: history, betrayal, manipulation, murder, love, lust, comedy, physicality, songs — and even a tango.

What drew you to Mary Queen of Scots and what was your inspiration behind producing this play? 

When I was 15, for one reason or another I was wanting to talk to the head of my school’s drama department, and I walked in during the middle of someone’s AS Drama monologue. I found a chair somewhere in the darkness and watched as this girl perched on the edge of a chair, up on stage, and evolved into this dark bird weaving a story that we had all heard many times before. I had done Mary Queen of Scots when I was 10 and again at 13 (at a very catholic school who made Mary out to be a saint), but when I was watching this Crow speak like people back home spoke, it went from being history to become a fairy tale, a story – part of an oral tradition that is so important to our cultural identity. I forgot about the play for another three years until I wandered into a book shop and picked up a copy, which lead to all these memories rushing back. In our production we have pushed an idea of play: It isn’t meant to be a historical drama or a period piece. It is anachronistic, vibrant, with a language so vivid that it burns off the page, and we wanted to try and capture some of that magic.

Were there any challenges in bringing the play to life?

There are always challenges when it comes to putting on a show, the greatest one for us being time. Although we had a long time in gestation, once rehearsals started we have just had to throw ourselves head-on into things and hit the ground sprinting. Other than that, the language has been tricky at times, although the strength of our cast has meant that there won’t be a language barrier – if you can sit through Shakespeare, you can definitely understand Scots (Our American producer even jokes that if she can understand it, anyone can).

 So obviously staging the production has been a long and exciting process, what aspect of the event are you most looking forward to?

At the moment I’m most looking forward to the bows on closing night. Our cast have been working so tirelessly, coming back during spring break to put the finishing touches on everything, that I really hope they get the recognition they deserve. We’re just really excited to see everyone’s hard work come together and share our efforts with the audience. On a more selfish level Amanda and I are looking forward to seeing how the audience reacts, but all in all we’ll be ecstatic be great if everyone leaves having had a good time.