CANCELLED: Mrs Puntila and Her Man Matti

A Citizens Theatre and Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh co-production in association with DOT Theatre, Istanbul

25 Mar 2020 - 11 Apr 2020

CANCELLED: Mrs Puntila and Her Man Matti

In response to the unprecedented situation created by Coronavirus and in line with the latest advice issued by the Scottish and UK Governments, it is with great regret that we must cancel all performances of Mrs Puntila and Her Man Matti at Tramway from 25 March – 11 April. If you have booked, you are entitled to a full refund on your tickets and will be contacted directly via email. See our full statement on Coronavirus.

By Bertolt Brecht. Adapted by Denise Mina.

Dear audience, let me just say in rhymes
That these are awfully ‘interesting’ times.
Roll up, roll up, and come and see
A One-Percenter roaming free!

When Argyll landowner Mrs Puntila is drunk, she’s a generous and kind-hearted boss who convinces everyone they can have a bright future under her wing. When she’s sober, she’s a cruel and greedy tyrant. Behind the scenes, her shrewd chauffeur Matti irons out her drunken mishaps while pursuing a hopeless romance with her already-spoken-for daughter Eva.

Celebrated actress Elaine C Smith brings her comedic genius to the role of Mrs Puntila, with Steven McNicoll playing her put-upon servant.

Scottish writer Denise Mina’s new adaptation of Brecht’s comedy satirises the injustices and absurdities of capitalism. It promises a hilarious and thought-provoking night of theatre that pulls no punches - the perfect antidote to today's gloomy political climate.

Mrs Puntila and Her Man Matti will be presented at Tramway whilst the Citizens Theatre building undergoes an exciting redevelopment. For details on how to get to Tramway click here.

Mrs Puntila and Her Man Matti is supported by Friends of the Citizens

Blogs

Exploring our archives: a look back at Puntila and Matti 1982

Meet Denise Mina

DATES

Date	Time	Information
25 March	7:30pm	Preview
26 March	7:30pm
27 March	7:30pm
28 March	7:30pm
31 March	7:30pm	Post-show Discussion
1 April	7:30pm
2 April	7:30pm
3 April	7:30pm	Signed
4 April	2pm	Audio Described Captioned
4 April	7:30pm
7 April	7:30pm
8 April	7:30pm
9 April	7:30pm
11 April	2pm
11 April	7:30pm

Cast & Creative Team
CAST
Natalie Arle-Toyne
Rebecca Banatvala
Richard Conlon
Oğuz Kaplangi
Liam King (Robertson Trust Citizens Theatre Actor Intern)
Beth Marshall
Joanne McGuinness
Steven McNicoll
Stephanie Payne (Citizens Theatre Actor Intern)
Elaine C. Smith
Chloe-Ann Tylor
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer Denise Mina
Director Murat Daltaban
Designer Tom Piper
LX Designer Katharine Williams
Composer and Sound Designer Oğuz Kaplangi
Associate Designer Max Johns
Assistant Director Louise Shephard
Movement Director Emma Jayne Park
Casting Director Laura Donnelly
Translation and Production Assistant Maya Kurdoglu
Literal Translation Susan Hingley

Reviews

This exhilarating vision is brought to life by Elaine C Smith, actor, feminist and activist.
- Morning Star

Bawdy, brilliant, glorious and gallus.
- Edinburgh Festival

An impressive, often hilarious, new version.
- Sunday Herald

Press

"We want it to be really, really funny. We want people to leave feeling uplifted and angry and motivated to stand up for each other."

Denise Mina chatted to The List and filled them in on what audiences can expect from Mrs Puntila and Her Man Matti.

"comedy really is universal"

Elaine C. Smith caught up with Liam Rudden for Edinburgh News. They spoke about Mrs Puntila, working with Murat Daltaban and her career so far.

"Puntila And Matti is one of his [Brecht’s] funniest plays, and it’s got these strong elements of vaudeville and slapstick that create real belly-laughs."

Denise Mina spoke to Joyce McMillan about adapting Brecht’s 1940 comedy for today.

""One of the main aims of this piece is to illustrate how the 1% in power manipulates the other 99%.”

Denise Mina spoke to The Skinny about the main themes of Mrs Puntila and Her Man Matti.

"“This play talks about rights and also responsibilities. Do we demand that power lives up to its responsibilities?"

Denise mean spoke to The Morning Star about the politics explored in Mrs Puntila and Her Man Matti.

Video

Mrs Puntila and Her Man Matti

Writer Denise Mina on Mrs Puntila

In rehearsals with #MrsPuntila

We dropped in on the photoshoot for Mrs Puntila and Her Man Matti

Elaine C. Smith and Denise Mina on this new adaptation

Photo Galleries

Production photos

View gallery on Flickr

Rehearsal photos

View gallery on Flickr

Return to What's On

Running Time: TBC

At Tramway

Recommended for ages 12+

Infrequent use of strong language.

More on Elaine C. Smith

Elaine C. Smith is one of Scotland’s most loved and well-known performers. With a career spanning more than 30 years in theatre, television and film, her leading roles in BBC sitcoms Two Doors Down (for which she won a Scottish BAFTA for Best Actress), City Lights and Rab C. Nesbitt have become iconic – alongside decades of headline pantomime roles and her hugely successful one-woman show, An Evening with Elaine C Smith. Her theatre career began with political theatre companies 7:84 and Wildcat and has included productions at the Royal Lyceum, and Tron, as well as award-winning UK tours of Calendar Girls and the Susan Boyle musical I, Dreamed a Dream.

More on Denise Mina

Denise Mina is a critically acclaimed writer. Her first book Garnethill won the Crime Writers Association John Creasy Dagger award for Best First Crime Novel. She’s now written 12 novels including The End of the Wasp Season and Gods and Beasts, both of which won the prestigious Theakstons Old Peculiar Crime Novel of the Year Award in consecutive years. In 2014 she was inducted into the Crime Writers’ Association Hall of Fame. Denise also writes short stories, graphic novels and plays. She is a regularly contributor to TV and Radio.