Restless Natives: The Musical
★★★☆☆ Mixed bag
Leith Theatre: Sat 7 – Sat 21 Jun 2025
Review by Hugh Simpson
Perth Theatre’s Restless Natives: The Musical, arriving at Leith Theatre as part of its Scottish tour, is decidedly mixed and often meandering. There is much to enjoy about a production that has considerable joy to it, but there are also long stretches that are far less convincing.
The first version of this story, of course, was a 1985 movie about two disaffected Edinburgh youths who take to the roads of the Highlands on a motorbike, wearing clown and Wolfman masks, holding up rich American tourists with toy guns.
Finlay McKillop and Kyle Gardiner. Pic: Mihaela Bodlovic
At the time, the film found little success outside Scotland, but now certainly qualifies as a cult, and as such has followed the well-trodden path to stage musical adaptation (presented with Sympathetic Ink, Wild Yak and StudioCanal). The book is by Ninian Dunnett, Michael Hoffman and Michael Paterson – the original film’s writer, director and producer respectively.
The movie had music by Big Country, and an obvious route (full-blown Big Country jukebox musical) has been avoided. There are some of that band’s songs, but most of the numbers are newly composed, with lyrics by Dunnett and music by Tim Sutton.
The end result is somewhat messy. Some of it follows the film very closely; other sequences are more in thrall to traditional musical theatre. One problem is that the original’s pawky humour is too gently expressed to lend itself to big production numbers. Some of the more expansive moments, such as those at the start of the second half, appear to have wandered in from another production entirely.
sideshow
The end result is overlong, with too many unmemorable songs and too little character development. The political and social points end up as a sideshow rather than the main event, and it all straddles the divide between the 1980s and now with a degree of awkwardness.
Finlay McKillop and Kirsty MacLaren with the Restless Natives company. Pic: Mihaela Bodlovic
This is carried over into the oddly unconvincing staging; Becky Minto’s design, with its pile-up of road signs, does not really cohere, and adds a claustrophobic element. The film’s Highland vistas and motorbike rides are obviously missing, but the hold-up sequences have a flat feel as a result.
Hoffman’s direction supplies plenty of energy elsewhere, however. Kyle Gardiner and Finlay McKillop supply huge amounts of vitality as the two modern-day highwaymen Ronnie and Will. There is just the right combination of swagger and naivete to them, and they handle their songs with aplomb. Kirsty MacLaren is tremendous as Margot, the tour guide who becomes Will’s love interest, with her featured numbers being a particular highlight.
notables
The rest of the cast – featuring such notables as Alan McHugh, Harry Ward, Sarah Galbraith and Caroline Deyga – supply versatility, commitment and humour. The chorus numbers have considerable drive to them.
There is also real liveliness to the five-piece live band under musical director Hilary Brooks, whose keyboard sounds are as authentically 80s as the fashions on stage.
Enough crowd-pleasing moments surface to suggest that this has a future, but some reworking is certainly required.
Running time: Two hours and 30 minutes (including one interval)
Leith Theatre, 28-30 Ferry Rd, EH6 4AE
Saturday 7 – Saturday 21 June 2025
Thurs – Sat: 7.30pm; Matinees: Sun 8: 2pm; Thurs 12, Sat 14, Sat 21: 2.30 pm
Further details and tickets: Book here.
Glasgow King’s, 297 Bath St, Glasgow G2 4JN
Tue 24 – Sat 28 June 2025
Evening: 7.30pm; Thurs, Sat: 2.30pm
Tickets and details: Book here.
The Restless Natives company. Pic: Mihaela Bodlovic.
ENDS
