Jury Play

Written by Ben Harrison and Dr Jenny Scott.

An immersive theatre co-production between Grid Iron and Traverse Theatre.

2nd – 7th October 2017
Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh

Juror participation is not a feature of our criminal trials. But what if the system could be different?

Inspired by the pioneering work of Dr Jenny Scott, this immersive play transforms Traverse 1 into a courtroom where barriers are deconstructed and jurors take centre stage.

We tune into the thoughts, fears and anxieties of fifteen jurors, selected from the audience, as they struggle to stay focused in a high profile murder trial. What does ‘beyond reasonable doubt’ actually mean? Why is all the evidence presented in an illogical order?

Peter the Judge is disaffected too. For years he has watched as the jurors struggled with understanding the complexities of evidence and cross-examination. Maybe it’s time for a change, for an experiment in democracy.

Grid Iron bring their 21 year-old multi-award winning expertise and audience-centred work to bear on the dynamics of a courtroom; re-imagining the architecture, the subtle oppressions and the failure to deal with prejudice.

Photo credit: Mihaela Bodlovic

What The Press Said:

Grid Iron are a highly inventive theatre company, renowned for their immersive work… Using audience members as part of an intrinsically embedded cast is no mean feat and somehow, in brief interludes backstage, the group are presumably given instructions that result in – relatively, given the scenario – complex ensemble work. It all adds to the realness and edginess of the performance… Jury Play opens the door to dialogue in the legal system with this well thought out, intelligent and relatable piece. You may think a play about jurors is irrelevant, but if/when the day comes where you find yourself reporting to court (for whatever reason), you might just think again.

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The Fountain

Sometimes the power and excitement of a show begin long before you take your seat and remain with you for several days after … it’s worth saying at this point that this is in no way like your standard trip to the theatre… the meat of the piece really comes out as an intelligent, human, and common sense discussion into the way we conduct trials… the fourth wall isn’t so much broken as shattered, with a piece of it distributed to each and every person in the room… Overall this is a fascinating insight into the legal system, what it’s like to be a jury member, and how seemingly unfit for purpose the whole setup is – especially for people like me who have very little knowledge of its intricacies.

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Edinburgh 49 ****

From start to finish the experience is made as close to taking part in a spot of jury service as is possible to get without actually doing it…. Making a piece of theatre as dull as a day in a courtroom while maintaining an audience’s engagement is not easy to pull off. It helps that John Bett, as the Judge, is highly entertaining even when delivering ponderous tediousness, but this intriguing play gets you thinking and raises important questions for which there are, as yet, no answers.

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EdinburghGuide ****

Stepping into another world is not unusual for an audience attending a new piece of theatre by Edinburgh based site-specific auteurs Grid Iron…. a genuine stab at democracy is let loose in the courtroom in the most civil of ways. This is done through an eminently playful set of exchanges… The end result is a fascinatingly drawn out fanfare for the common man and woman that puts the judicial system in the dock and finds it wanting.

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The Herald ****

The show is a prime example of theatre as a driver of social change and a place for popular debate… this is a fascinating and provocative event, not to mention an object lesson in how to handle an immersive audience.

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The Stage ****

An exciting, witty and thrillingly open-ended piece of drama about what we mean by justice, and how we can achieve something closer to it; presented with all the flair, elegance and sense of spectacle that is Grid Iron’s hallmark.

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The Scotsman ****

Cast & Creative Team:

CAST

John Bett  Judge
Mary Gapinski  Ms Kennedy (Defence)
Neil John Gibson  Kenny
Sean Hay  Macer/Policeman/Mr Dancer
Helen Mackay  Janis
Kirstin Murray  Ms Bell (Prosecutor)
Gail Watson  Mrs gray/Macer/G4S Officer

CREATIVE TEAM

FOR GRID IRON

Writer & Director  Ben Harrison
Writer  Dr Jenny Scott
Producer  Judith Doherty
Assistant Director/Transmedia Design  Rob Jones
Set & Costume Design  Emily James
Music & Sound Design  David Paul Jones
Lighting Design  Paul Claydon
Video Design  Lewis den Hertog
Stage Manager  Gemma Turner
Deputy Stage Manager/Clerk to the Court  Lauren Roberts
Costume Supervisor  Sophie Ferguson
Finance & Development Manager  Deborah Crewe
Set built by  Big House Events
Print design by  Emma Quinn

FOR THE TRAVERSE THEATRE

Artistic Director  Orla O’Loughlin
Executive Producer  Linda Crooks
Associate Director (Dramaturgical Support)  Zinnie Harris
Production Manager  Kevin McCallum
Chief Electrician Renny Robertson
Deputy Electrician  Claire Elliot
Lighting and Sound Technician  Tom Saunders
Head of Stage  Gary Staerk
Set Storage  CR Smith

PLACEMENTS

Stage Management  Alison White
Technical  Sophie Wright
Sound Design  Gavin Russell

Supporters:

Past Productions

The shows are listed in chronological order with the most recent first.

Jury Play

Written by Ben Harrison and Dr Jenny Scott.

An immersive theatre co-production between Grid Iron and Traverse Theatre.

2nd – 7th October 2017 Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh

What The Press Said:

Cast & Creative Team:

CAST

CREATIVE TEAM

Supporters:

Past Productions

Strange Tales

The Brunch Club

South Bend

Bingo!

Jury Play

Dr Stirlingshire’s Discovery

Crude

The Devil’s Larder 2015

Light Boxes

Letters Home

Leaving Planet Earth

The Authorised Kate Bane

Barflies (2012)

What Remains

Spring Awakening

Decky Does a Bronco 2010

Huxley’s Lab

Barflies (2009)

Tryst

Yarn

Once Upon A Dragon

Roam

The Devil’s Larder

Naw Nader Men al Houb

Those Eyes That Mouth

Fierce

Those Eyes That Mouth

The Houghmagandie Pack

Variety

Fermentation

Decky Does a Bronco 2000 – 2002

Monumental

Gargantua

The Bloody Chamber

Clearance

2nd – 7th October 2017
Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh