Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE USE
Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh presents
A Number
in partnership with Edinburgh International Science Festival
By Caryl Churchill
Directed by Zinnie Harris
Designed by Fred Meller
Dates: 6 – 15 April 2017
Press night: Saturday 8 April, 8:30pm
Photo credit: Aly Wight

Zinnie Harris (This Restless House, Citizens Theatre; How To Hold Your Breath, Royal Court;
The Message and On The Watch, Tricycle Theatre; The Wheel, National Theatre of Scotland)
will be making her directorial debut at The Lyceum with A Number. Zinnie will be working
on three productions across three venues in Edinburgh, during this year’s International
Festival, including a new adaptation of Rhinoceros, directed by Dot Theatre Istanbul’s
Murat Daltaban.

Starring Brian Ferguson (Oil, Almeida Theatre; Anything That Gives Off Light, National
Theatre of Scotland, Edinburgh International Festival and The TEAM; The Broken Heart, The
Changeling, The Globe; Hamlet, Citizens Theatre; Adler & Gibb, The Royal Court) and Peter
Forbes (The James Plays, National Theatre of Scotland, National Theatre of Great Britain,
Edinburgh International Festival; Our Country’s Good, National Theatre; Way Upstream,
Chichester Festival Theatre; How To Hold Your Breath, Royal Court Theatre; Endeavour III,
ITV)

The Lyceum are also to host a strand of conversations in the Science Festival programme
called Who Do You Think You Are? Emmy and BAFTA Award-winning BBC presenter and
social psychologist Aleks Krotoski will discuss Online Identity with writer and musician Pat
Kane; Poet and novelist James Robertson will discuss Scottish Identity with award-winning
journalist Lesley Riddoch (the Scotsman, the Sunday Post, Radio 4); scientist and author
Steve Jones discusses whether it’s Nature, Nurture or Neither? with biologist, writer, science
communicator, comedian and TV presenter Simon Watt, founder of science communication
company Ready Steady Science; award-winning crime author Christopher Brookmyre and
Jenny Lindsay will discuss the topic of Me, Myself and I; and A Number director Zinnie Harris
will share her fascination with the themes of the play, and her thoughts on science, in Think
of A Number, with David Greig.
As part of the Edinburgh International Science Festival, The Lyceum is delighted to present the
Scottish premiere of A Number, written by acclaimed contemporary playwright Caryl Churchill (Love
and Information, The Skriker, Top Girls, and Escaped Alone, which won Best Play at Writers’ Guild
Awards, this year), and directed by award-winning playwright, screenwriter, and director Zinnie
Harris.
Showcasing Caryl Churchill’s consummate skill in creating brilliantly compelling drama bristling with
daring ideas, A Number premiered in 2002 at The Royal Court where it won the Evening Standard
Award for Best Play.
Combining compelling fiction with powerful debate, the play is a dynamic two-hander that explores
the boundaries and ethics of science.
“I think I’d like to meet one. It’s an adventure, isn’t it, and you’re part of science. I wouldn’t be
frightened to meet any number...”
Bernard has spent 35 years believing he’s an only child, one of a kind, until he learns the chilling
truth. He’s one of ‘a number’ of clones resulting from a nefarious genetic experiment. When he
confronts his father, Salter, questions of identity and morality result in an explosive exchange with
terrible consequences...
Zinnie Harris, director of A Number said: “The play is overtly about genetics and cloning, but it’s also
about parenting and what happens to the bond between a father and son when it goes wrong. It’s a
rare gem of a play, and is surprising and utterly unique, taking the audience down avenues of
thought that they won’t predict. Cast members Peter Forbes and Brian Ferguson are an electric
combination, and I think their performances will be something quite special.”
Now in its 29th year, the Edinburgh International Science Festival seeks to educate and inspire with a
large-scale international programme of work over a two week period. A Number will be the
centrepiece of a programme of work at The Lyceum as part of the Festival.
Throughout the production’s run, the Festival will host Who Do You Think You Are?; a series of
conversations, during which renowned creative and academic figures will be brought together to
discuss subjects inspired by the challenging moral inquiry of A Number.
On Saturday 8 April, Emmy and BAFTA Award-winning BBC presenter and social psychologist Aleks
Krotoski will discuss Online Identity, including how technology is influencing how we present
ourselves, authenticity versus artifice, and how sharing information online could hamper freedom,
with author and musician Pat Kane (Hue and Cry), who was an activist for Scottish self-government
in the 1980s and 90s.
On Tuesday 11 April, Stirlingshire-born poet and novelist James Robertson, whose novels include
The Testament of Gideon Mack, And the Land Lay Still, Joseph Knight, and The Fantatic, will question
what it means to be and/or feel Scottish, what contributes to our sense of national identity, and
what science has to say about national identity. He will be joined by award-winning journalist Lesley
Riddoch.
On Wednesday 12 April, scientist and author Steve Jones FRS, previously Head of the Department of
Genetics, Evolution and Environment at University College London discusses whether identity can
really be split into inherited factors and environment in a fascinating conversation entitled Nature,
Nurture or Neither? with biologist, writer, science communicator, comedian and TV presenter Simon
Watt, founder of science communication company Ready Steady Science.
On Thursday 13 April, award-winning crime novelist Christopher Brookmyre, whose work includes
Scottish Crime Book of the Year Black Widow, and Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize-winner A
Snowball in Hell, will discuss what makes us who we are, and how the concepts of selfhood and
otherness impact our lives and attitudes, with Flint & Pitch’s Director and spoken word performer
(previously of Rally & Broad) Jenny Lindsay in Me, Myself and I.
The final talk, held on Saturday 15 April, will fittingly be led by A Number director Zinnie Harris and
The Lyceum’s Artistic Director David Greig, who will discuss the powerful and provocative questions
posed by the play, their fascination with the themes it tackles, and their thoughts on and its place on
the stage.
Amanda Tyndall, Creative Director of Edinburgh International Science Festival, said: “Edinburgh
International Science Festival has long championed the value of linking science with the arts. Our
Science in the Spotlight project brings together science and theatre to engage audiences with the big
questions and debates of contemporary science, so we are delighted to be partnering with The
Lyceum for the first time in 2017 to further develop this strand of our work.”
Ends
For further media information, please contact Harriet Mould on [email protected]
0131 2484 822 / 0745 481 6116
Full Listings information
A Number
By Caryl Churchill
Directed by Zinnie Harris
Designed by Fred Meller
LX designed by Ben Ormerod
Address: Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh, Grindlay Street, EH3 9AX
Box Office: 0131 248 4848
Website: lyceum.org.uk
Performance Dates: 6 – 15 April 2017
Opening performance: Saturday 8 April 2017, 7pm for talk and production, 8:30pm for production
alone
Times: evenings, 8:30pm, matinees, 2pm
Prices: £20.00 - £10.00
BSL Interpreted: Wednesday 12 April, 8:30pm
Captioned: Saturday 15 April, 8:30pm
Online Identity
Saturday 8 April, 7pm
£8.50/£6.50
including A Number - £25
Scottish Identity
Tuesday 11 April, 7pm
£8.50/£6.50
including A Number - £25
Nature, Nurture, or Neither?
Wednesday 12 April, 7pm
£8.50/£6.50
including A Number - £25
Me, Myself and I
Thursday 13 April, 7pm
£8.50/£6.50
including A Number - £25
Think of a Number
Saturday 15 April, 7pm
£8.50/£6.50
including A Number - £25
Join the conversation: #ANumber
Notes to Editor
Having recently celebrated its 50th anniversary, the Royal Lyceum Theatre Company is a crucible of Scottish
talent, developing Scotland’s considerable indigenous artists and presenting the best of international drama
from its home in a magnificent, intimate Victorian building in Edinburgh’s West End.
Internationally celebrated playwright David Greig became the 8th Artistic Director of The Lyceum in 2016,
following Mark Thomson’s superb 13 year reign. As part of his premiere 2016/17 season, the company is
producing ten full productions, making it one of the biggest producing companies in the United Kingdom.
In recent years, The Lyceum has staged co-productions with Theatre Royal, Bath; The Bush Theatre, London;
Nottingham Playhouse Theatre Company; National Theatre of Scotland; Citizens Theatre; Dundee Rep;
Liverpool Everyman & Playhouse; Chichester Festival Theatre and the Lyric Hammersmith.
In addition, The Lyceum also runs an award-winning, ambitious and acclaimed Creative Learning programme
which engages with over 16,000 young people across Scotland annually.
For more information, please visit lyceum.org.uk
The Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh is a registered charity. Our charity number is SC010509.
Edinburgh International Science Festival, founded in 1989, is an educational charity that aims to inspire
people of all ages and backgrounds to discover the world around them. We are best known for organising
Edinburgh’s annual Science Festival: the world’s first public celebration of science and technology and still one
of Europe’s largest.
The two-week festival gives audiences amazing experiences through a diverse programme of innovative
events. Alongside the annual festival in Edinburgh, the organisation has a strong focus on education and runs a
touring programme that visits schools around Scotland throughout the year.
Edinburgh International Science Festival also operates a large-scale international programme of work. It
regularly presents events overseas and is currently the Major Programming Partner of the annual Abu Dhabi
Science Festival, helping to curate, produce and deliver the event. For international partners, the team at
Edinburgh International Science Festival provides engaging content, curatorial advice on programming and
business planning support, along with expert staff and training for local science communicators.