Alan Cumming: 'I'm the Pied Piper of Pitlochry'
2025-01-22
Category: entertainment

He's best known for TV shows like the Traitors US, The Good Wife or Schmigadoon.But it was another show entirely which brought actor Alan Cumming back to his roots in Highland Perthshire, to begin a brand new chapter in his life - running Pitlochry festival theatre."I was filming an episode of Channel 4's All Aboard Scotland's Poshest trains, and we came to the theatre and spoke to Elizabeth Newman about the work they were doing and afterwards, she asked if I'd ever thought about running a theatre," he recalls.In 2024, filming for the Traitors and two film projects meant even more time in Scotland so when Elizabeth Newman resigned in July,  he quietly applied for the job.
Although Alan grew up a few miles away in Aberfeldy, his work on Broadway and in film and television had long ago taken him to New York, where he lives with his husband Grant Schaffer.In the last decade, he's been here more and more, thanks to TV work such as hosting the Traitors American version and shows like Burn, Macbeth and The Bacchae with the National Theatre of Scotland."I have been living partly here for years and in recent years trying to split my time more evenly between Scotland and New York", he says."I was very honest with the recruitment people about what I could offer. I have other things going on, but I can do a lot remotely."What really excited me was the theatre's mantra to "share Pitlochry with the world and the world with Pitlochry". "I thought I can do that. I'm from here. I can go out into the world and bring the world back here."
The news came as a huge surprise and Cumming insisted the announcement should be made ahead of the Emmy awards, for which he and the rest of the team involved with the Traitors won Outstanding Reality Competition Programme.Wrapped in his trademark tartan plaid, he was able to bring the world's attention to Pitlochry, something he hopes his appointment will continue to do."I know I have experience, I'm quite talented, and I know a lot of people but being well known is also important. This helps raise profile, and it'll help with fundraising."Like the appointment of Nicola Benedetti as director of the Edinburgh International Festival, it also gives the theatre, and the wider theatrical community a stronger voice when it comes to lobbying for support. Like Benedetti, he plans to appear on his own stage, as well as continuing with his own projects.His first season won't be announced until later this year, but he's already in discussions, and says he hopes to "be in, or direct shows in every season".
The three day Winter Words festival which he has programmed from 21 February gives a sense of what might be to come in 2026. Liz Lochhead, Douglas Stuart and Andrew O'Hagan are among those taking part, in a line-up which combines known and unknown."It's got some big bold names and newer and more diverse and slightly outside the box things going on as well. It's my ethos for the first season in microcosm."Theatre is entertaining but it's also about being challenging and provoking. We will have musicals, but they might be ones you don't know. We might also have Shakespeare and classics."It's exciting for me as I want to do things I like but also bring new people in. I'm kind of like the Pied Piper of Pitlochry."
Having made the leap from Highland Perthshire to Broadway himself, he's confident he can do the same with the shows they create."One of the things I was asked was what I hoped people would think of my tenure here.  "I hoped they had fun and enjoyed the experience of being there but I also hope they think wasn't it amazing that we saw that show at Pitlochry and then it went to Broadway. And why not?"His "to do" list since he started the job officially last week includes getting to know the staff and consulting with the community. He is keen the town and the wider community in Highland Perthshire make better use of the theatre – and not just for plays.Cumming uses the example of the Tron Theatre in Glasgow, where he and Forbes Masson regularly performed as drama students."We've lost that sense of theatres being a community centre, where people can talk, and drink and gather."Sitting in the theatre café, looking out on Ben-y-Vrackie, there's no need for the digital presentation he's prepared for curious Americans - but he's ready to spread the word."People are so excited about coming here," he enthuses."A huge part of Pitlochry's allure is the setting. "It's a magical bubble which I want to share with the world."