Scottish singer-songwriter KT Tunstall’s new musical theatre project The Singer opens a sold-out Glasgow run at the Citizens Theatre tonight (Tuesday 15 September).
The production, which features original music and lyrics by the Suddenly I See and Black Horse and the Cherry Tree singer, will be performed in the Citizens Theatre’s Studio Theatre until Saturday.
Written and directed by Cora Bissett, The Singer tells the story of Joe, a deaf artist who experiences music physically and “sings” with his hands, and Andy, a struggling musician searching for a comeback.
Their unlikely songwriting partnership forms the centre of a story exploring music, ambition and the barriers faced by deaf performers in the music industry.
The production is performed in spoken English and British Sign Language, with integrated BSL and creative captioning at every performance.
Tunstall has revealed that her own family experience helped inspire her contribution to the project.
Her brother Dan is deaf and received a cochlear implant as an adult. Tunstall has recalled an emotional moment when the pair were in an Edinburgh supermarket and Black Horse and the Cherry Tree came on the radio.
Dan, who had only recently been able to hear following the implant, recognised his sister’s voice and asked whether the song playing was her.
Tunstall has described her relationship with her brother as the “bedrock” of her work on The Singer.
The show stars deaf actor Jamie Rea as Joe alongside Dylan Wood as Andy, with Petre Dobre and Hannah Jarrett-Scott completing the cast.
The Singer grew out of a short film created by Bissett and Rea and has been developed into a full gig-theatre production by Dundee Rep Theatre and Glasgow-based Solar Bear in collaboration with Aberdeen Performing Arts.
It received its world premiere at the Traverse Theatre during the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in August before beginning a Scottish tour.
The production played Aberdeen’s Lemon Tree last week and arrives in Glasgow tonight for seven performances between 15 and 19 September.
Every performance at the Citizens Theatre has now sold out.
Following its Glasgow run, The Singer will travel to Dundee Rep for performances from 23 to 26 September.