EVENT INFORMATION

A celebration of the phenomenal talent that graduates every year from UHI Inverness.

The graduate performances evening features two exceptional pieces of theatre by 2023 graduates from the UHI Drama and Production (BA Hons) degree. These short performances were developed as part of the Autonomous Performer module, and were performed first at the Swansong Showcase in May 2023.

We invited these performers to present their work at ROOTS Festival in response to emerging theatre-makers and students wanting more opportunities to bring their work to the public. We loved watching these very different shows and know that you will too.

5PM - 5.45PM & Now I'm in Therapy

Kelly is a thirty-something Glaswegian self-starter currently residing within a rehab facility.

We meet Kelly during her mandatory weekly 'doctor-ordered' therapy sessions and follow the journey that has led her here as it is unravelled week by week.

Honest and heart-wrenching, through the failed relationship, battle with alcohol, and suicide attempt, we find Kelly at the start of her recovery, but there is hope.

Content warnings: alcohol abuse, suicide references, mental health depictions, sexual references and strong language

5.45PM - 6.30PM The Long Night

Join the scientists of a far-away planet grappling with the impending destruction of their society by a devastating solar event.

The Long Night is a new piece of live theatre in the theme of sci-fi / fantasy. The show is a hybrid of both live performance and film. The Long Night was not first intended for stage; originally written as a film, the performance has been reimagined to bring the characters and story to life through theatre.

Content warnings: contains flashing lights, sexual references and strong language

FESTIVAL INFORMATION

ROOTS Festival

Celebrating Highland art & artists | Forging & deepening creative connections

This event is part of ROOTS Festival 2023, this is Vivid Roots Collective's first ever theatre festival for Highland and emerging theatre-makers. Join us in celebrating the talented artists in the region, learning new skills, and meeting like-minded creatives with talks, workshops, performances and networking!

The festival is fully in-person at the Spectrum Centre in Inverness. The venue has amazing transport links, situated at the bus station and a 2 minute walk from the train station in the city centre. We are taking over all three of Spectrum's main rooms with a quiet room upstairs for attendees who need to take a break.

This year has been programmed in response to our recent report, FUTURES, which evidences the needs of emerging theatre-makers in the Highlands. You can read our report, see our full digital programme, and learn more about our company on our website.

ROOTS is supported in-kind by the Spectrum Centre; funded in part by the National Lottery via Creative Scotland; and funded in part by Start-It! from the Social Entrepreneurs Fund, delivered by First Port

Tickets

We are using a pay-what-you-can system for tickets this year because we know that the cost of living has been affecting everyone. We would, however, like to explain that ticket sales are an important source of income. If you are able, choosing a higher ticket price will help us to pay our artists fairly, and improve the experience for all attendees. For those of you who kindly opt to pay the higher prices for the events, you will also be supporting those who face more financial barriers.

All tickets will allow you to attend the festival networking event for free. The festival networking event will be from 8pm-9.30pm on Saturday the 30th September in the theatre.

Thank you for your generosity and we look forward to having you.

Accessibility

To find out about accessing the venue, see the Spectrum Centre website here.

We will be releasing an access bursary scheme in September to subsidise the costs associated with attending a festival in Inverness. Follow us on social media and check out our website for updates on access bursaries.

We are a small team but we care about your experience with our company and events, if anything here is inaccessible to you, please be in touch and we will do our best to help.