Earlier this year, National Theatre of Scotland issued a call out for artists to support Push The Boat Out and the germination of three new poetry-led performance pieces.

Three artist duos, David McNeish and Ruxy Cantir, Tim Tim Cheng and Alexandra Shrinivas, and Raymond Wilson and Ross Somerville will perform newly devised pieces at Edinburgh’s International Poetry Festival, at the Scottish Storytelling Centre. Push The Boat Out runs from 22-24 November 2024.

Developed on the theme of ‘living water’ - with inspiration drawn from Nan Shepherd’s poem The Hill Burns - these three performances will explicitly explore poetry in conversation with other artistic disciplines, showcasing inventive cross-disciplinary work ranging from clowning to electronica.

In Deep is a new collaboration between poet and playwright David McNeish and physical theatre maker and clown Ruxy Cantir. Set on the fictional island of Galva, the rising tide of the climate crisis causes chaos for our clown, Mar, and their trousers.

Raymond Wilson and musician Ross Somerville present The Starlight Narcissist, a comedic conversation between live electronic music and theatrical spoken word. Exploring both the toxicity of men and polluted bodies of water, a headstrong young man takes The Electric Lake - who is, of course, sentient - out on a date.

I, Too, Overflow is a creative response to flooding, tying together the work of poet Tim Tim Cheng and musician Alexandra Shrinivas. This multidisciplinary piece seeks to not only understand what flooding means culturally and environmentally, but to also explore how water can seep into language itself.

These performances will take place on Sunday 24 November, 7.30pm at the Scottish Storytelling Centre, Edinburgh.

Push the Boat Out, is an annual festival, blending poetry, performance and art in a vibrant celebration of words and creativity across 54 events involving more than 130 artists.

More information and booking here.