Lieutenant Colonel Stephanie Jackson opens the show by spelling out exactly what's going to happen: 'Jamie, aged 16 goes on a journey of self-discovery to the world piping championships in Glasgow and meets two friends on the way. The scenes have an underlying theme, the values and standards of the army, the 'super six': courage; discipline; respect for others; integrity; loyalty and commitment. See if you can spot these as you watch the play.' Which raises the question as to whether it's worth staying to watch the actual performance.

Sure enough, after a real piper and drummer have very impressively done their thing, the story unfolds as prologued. Jamie - I'm going to be the greatest piper the world's ever known' - sets out on his journey to the championships. He meets Morag the Goth, and Robert - who becomes his mentor - and together they face character challenges. Salient lines signpost the moral backbone of the tale: 'You were disrespectful'; 'It takes discipline to learn the pipes'; and more.

There are several group scenes: a ferry, a celidh in a pub, the singing of (unofficial national anthem of Scotland) Flower of Scotland (Flùr na h-Alba) with audience participation, a confrontation in a drug den. There's a tear-jerking scene by a war memorial complete with a recital of The Soldier's Return by the Scottish poet Robert Burns (1759-1796). It's a great shame that a scene with real resonance loses some of its impact by being over-written.

It's all fairly preachy stuff with a large dose of sentimentality. The bright spot is that Bryan Lacey's direction is tight and focused, and he draws good performances from all the actors. Gary Morrisons Jamie is well-rounded and convincing. Julie Anna Castro's is Morag sympathetic and credible. The ensemble are versatile and energetic. To an extent it overcomes the disadvantage of being structured in episodes. The technical side is very competent and the set well-designed and adaptable.

But the writing is bad, full of exposition, sugary. The themes themselves - even the storyline - aren't bad; but the (uncredited) writer should give audiences more credit for their intelligence, and give the actors a lot more to play with. To ram the point home, the six lessons are repeated at the end of the play. When they bring the pipers and the dancers on to round things up, there may be some gladness that they've reached the end of the trail.

Cast Credits: (alpha order): Gordon Campbell - Ensemble. Julie-Anna Castro - Morag. Peter F Gardiner - Robert. Jason Harvey - Ensemble. Ashley Hope-Allen - Ensemble. Avril Mieduniecki - Ensemble. Gary Morrison - Jamie. Doyle Richards - Ensemble. Gary Standen - Ensemble. Piper - uncredited. Drummer - uncredited. Introduction by - Lieutenant Colonel Stephanie Jackson.

Company Credits: Writer - uncredited. Director - Bryan Lacey. Stage Manager - Dave Taylor. Tour Manager - Chris Lacey. Designer - uncredited. Technical Operator - uncredited. Producer - uncredited. Company - The Army in Scotland in association With ImpAct Universal (Scotland)

END

(c) Ruth Stanley 2008

reviewed Sunday 17 August 2008 at 11:00 performance / George Square Theatre (George 4).

Fringe Report (c) Fringe Report 2002-2012

www.fringereport.com