Revival! by Mairi Campbell and David Francis, the duo also known as 'The Cast', is a new companion piece to their previous Fringe outing The Red Earth.
Campbell and Francis, who have emerged as an important part of the traditional music and dance scene in Edinburgh, explore the tensions between art and religion in Scotland through words and music. Revival! tells the story of Duncan Campbell, the Highland preacher who was a leader of the Lewis Revival. We are told that the tale is poignant because Mairi is the granddaughter of Campbell. The story follows his progress through two world wars to the post-war religious upheaval on the Isle of Lewis.
Francis paints a vivid picture of Tom, a 14-year-old, who discovers Campbell, wearing an otter bonnet with birch twigs, a loin cloth, dog collar and a well-thumbed Bible as he carries out his Gaelic chanting. The storytelling is rich and combined with Mairi Campbell’s haunting singing this makes for a wonderfully inviting story.
The mood changes as Duncan Campbell ventures into Falkirk, described as ‘stony ground for evangelism’. An interesting comparison is made between the industrial wartime factory town and the rural Highlands which Campbell had been accustomed to.
Whilst the strong storytelling element is intriguing they could do so much more with this piece by changing the way it is delivered. The audience was seated in rows with them on a slightly raised staged. It would have been better if it had been done by candlelight, with us sat in a semi circle or in cabaret style. It would have been much more alluring.
This a popular show, especially with Scots of course. It has a pleasing end too – with Mairi singing and on piano for the first time in the performance.
