Night Waking
★★★☆☆ Atmospheric
Traverse: Wed 1 Oct 2025 (& tour)
Review by Hugh Simpson
Night Waking, a one hander from An Tobar and Mull Theatre, is playing a series of one-nighters across Scotland throughout October, following its opening night at the Traverse.
Shireen Mula’s adaptation of Sarah Moss’s novel, features Anna Bennett, an academic who has moved to Colsay – a (fictional) Hebridean island – with her husband Giles and their two young children. However, its early eerie atmosphere and psychological resonance cannot quite be sustained over its whole length.
Nicola Jo Cully in Night Waking. Pic: Mihaela Bodlovic.
Giles is monitoring the decline in the puffin population while Anna is supposed to be writing a book, but unsurprisingly the burden of caring for their sleep-refusing toddler and death-obsessed older child falls completely on her.
he sleep-deprived Anna’s hold on reality seems already to be slipping even before the older child Raph discovers the remains of a baby while planting a tree.
Although Anna is undoubtedly the centre of the story, and is played thoroughly believably by Nicola Jo Cully, she also plays Giles, Raph, the insomniac Moth and every other character past and present relevant to the story.
It’s a remarkable performance by any standards; the portrayals of the demanding children and the obliviously bumptious Giles, which could present many pitfalls, are extremely impressive. The way that Anna is sometimes presented as potentially extremely unsympathetic in her treatment of her children, is deftly handled in an adaptation that combines psychological realism with dark humour.
resolutely non-linear
Mula’s adaptation makes considerable demands on the performer. Not only does it jump constantly from one character to another, with corresponding changes both vocally and physically, it is resolutely non-linear.
The narrative often makes use of repeated sections whose importance only becomes clear second time around once further context has been given. This gives the play an elusive, shifting texture that cleverly evokes Anna’s fracturing consciousness, but is probably overused.
Nicola Jo Cully in Night Waking. Pic: Mihaela Bodlovic.
Indeed, the whole production is in danger of outstaying its welcome. It is rare now to see a touring show (particularly a one-hander) that has an interval, and the structure of the play does it few favours.
A taut, atmospheric first half is followed by a second half of equal duration, which dissipates the effect considerably, and ends with the audience being told at some length what they have already worked out.
The parallels between colonialism, the treatment of the poor of the Highlands and Islands during the Clearances and the effects of the patriarchy on Anna’s career and sense of self, all of which had been subtly evoked previously, are subsequently hammered home with less elegance.
That the latter stages are less convincing points up how successful Rebecca Atkinson-Lord’s direction has been earlier in maintaining the uneasiness and tension.
ingenious
Hugo Dodsworth’s design is ingenious, with the set being small but versatile. The lighting and video design are also extremely clever, although the video does become distracting at times. Nicolette Macleod’s sound design draws somewhat less attention to itself, and works very well.
The production does lose impetus considerably, but the quality of the performance ensures it retains considerable impact.
Running time: Two hours and 20 minutes (including one interval)
Traverse Theatre, 10 Cambridge St, EH1 2ED
Wednesday 1 October 2025
One performance: 7.30 pm
Run ended, but now tours across Scotland until Friday 31 October
An Tobar and Mull Theatre links
Website: https://www.antobarandmulltheatre.co.uk/
Facebook: @AnTobarAndMullTheatre
Instagram: @antobarandmulltheatre
BlueSky: @atandmt
Night Waking on tour October 2025
Nicola Jo Cully in Night Waking. Pic: Mihaela Bodlovic.
Sun 28/Mon 29 September
(preview) An Tobar and Mull Theatre, Druimfin, Tobermory, Isle of Mull,
PA75 6QB
www.antobarandmulltheatre.co.uk/
Wed 1 October
Traverse, 10 Cambridge Street, Edinburgh, EH1 2ED
www.traverse.co.uk/
Thurs 2 October
Macrobert Arts Centre, University of Stirling, Stirling, FK9 4LA
www.macrobertartscentre.org
Sat 4 October
Beacon Arts Centre, Custom House Quay, Greenock, PA15 1HJ
www.beaconartscentre.co.uk.
Tue 7 October
Lyth Arts Centre, Wick, KW1 4UD
https://lytharts.org.uk/
Wed 8 October
Eden Court, Bishops Road, Inverness, IV3 5SA
https://eden-court.co.uk/
Fri 10 October
The Macphail Centre, Mill Street, Ullapool, IV26 2UN
www.macphailcentre.com/
Sat 11 October
Applecross Community Hall, Applecross, Strathcarron IV54 8AD
www.applecrosshall.co.uk/
Thurs 16 October
CatStrand, High Street, New Galloway, Castle Douglas, DG7 3RN
https://gcat.scot/venue/catstrand/
Fri 17 October
Theatre Royal, 58 – 70 Shakespeare Street, Dumfries, DG1 2JH
www.theatreroyaldumfries.co.uk/
Sun 19 October
Byre Theatre, College Gate, St Andrews, Fife, KY16 9AJ
https://byretheatre.com/
Tue 21 October
Paisley Arts Centre, OneRen, 11 Christie Street, Paisley, PA1 1NB
www.oneren.org/whats-on/
Wed 22 October
Dunoon Burgh Hall, 195 Argyll Street, Dunoon, PA23 7DD
www.dunoonburghhall.org.uk/
Fri 24 October
Craignish Village Hall, Ardfern, Lochgilphead, PA31 8QN
www.craignish.org.uk/cvh/
Sat 25 October
Seil Island Community Hall, 34 B844, Oban, PA34 4RQ
https://seilhall.org.uk/
Sun 26 October
The Rockfield Centre, Rockfield Brae, Oban, PA34 5DQ
www.therockfieldcentre.org.uk/
Wed 29 October
Iona Village Hall, Isle of Iona, PA76 6SJ
https://ionavillagehall.org/
Thurs 30 October
Bunessan Hall, Isle of Mull, PA67 6DA
https://hallbookingonline.com/bunessan/
Fri 31 October
Community Hall, Dervaig, Isle of Mull, PA75 6QN
www.dervaigvillagehall.co.uk/
ENDS
