@ Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, Thursday 26 November 2015

Book Week Scotland is an annual celebration of literature and reading organised by the Scottish Book Trust. Events are taking place all over Scotland from Monday 23 November until Sunday 29 November, with readings, activities and happenings for all ages and interests. Tonight the Scottish Book Trust has teamed up with the excellent Edinburgh based live literature organisation Illicit Ink to present an evening of performance and readings from a selection of Scotland’s best new writers.

The cafe/bar area of the Traverse Theatre is the location of Left Unsaid and it is the perfect relaxed venue to stage an evening of words and theatre. The title of the event alludes to the theme of missing and unwritten words and is the starting point for the stories that are presented. The event is hosted by actor Pab Roberts and begins with a short surreal and farcical theatrical performance that sets the tone for the following two hours. Roberts is joined onstage by Andrew Blair and Josephine Dennehy to perform the short piece of new writing.

The first reader on stage is novelist and poet Tracey Rosenberg. She eloquently delivers a science fiction short story and tackles the theme of tonight’s show with a comedic and analytical perspective on time travel and how it can have a profound effect on morality. Tracey is a regular performer on the live literature and spoken word scene in Scotland and she is a previous winner of a New Writers Award from the Scottish Book Trust. Her ability as a writer and the ease in which she tells an intriguing and mind bending story is evident in her reading.

Lucy Ribchester is currently celebrating the success of her novel The Hourglass Factory and reads a short story entitled The Glassblower’s Daughter, which was shortlisted for the Costa Short Story Award. She presents extracts either side of the intermission and keeps the audience guessing on what the dramatic conclusion to tale will be. Lucy has also won a Scottish Book Trust New Writers Award and the quality in her storytelling on the page is reflected on the stage this evening.

Lynsey May is another New Writers Award winner and the audience has the pleasure of hearing two short stories from this reader. She is a frequent performer with Illicit Ink and begins with a story titled Purple Water, which is swiftly followed up by Things I Have Found in the Junction Street Post Box. The latter story strikes a chord with the audience who are left hanging on every word and laugh in delight.

Mark Hannah is a young playwright and actor and brings some comedy to the stage. He reads from a self penned short play that has a sense of humour and blunt Scottish dialect that isn’t too far from John Byrne or even Irvine Welsh at their sharpest. All the readers brought their own unique voices to the programme and helped showcase the top quality writing talent that Scotland has to offer.

Book Week Scotland occurs every November in various venues around the country,  meanwhile Illicit Ink regularly host events in Edinburgh all year round. After the delight of Left Unsaid hopefully the two organisations will be collaborating again in the near future.