Respected by ancient cultures but the archetypal villain in European fairy tales, wolves were hunted to extinction in Scotland by the 18th century. Ancient myth, mesmeric imagery and dreamlike soundscapes open a liminal space where Norse gods, Irish shapeshifters and Siberian wolf-children traverse Scottish moors and Transylvanian mountains. Live music stirs the soul.
Shadow puppetry and animation portray terror and playfulness. Stories about our oldest ally ask: in the absence of the wolf, what is lost?
Performed by Dougie Mackay and Jemima Thewes. Originally commissioned by the Scottish International Storytelling Festival 2024.
Dougie Mackay is one of Scotland’s leading storytellers, fusing mythology, folk culture and relationship with the wild. Jemima Thewes transports listeners through mesmeric melodies, song, animation and shadow puppetry. Together, they combine human-fragile elemental tension that softly bewitches, and at times disconcerts, in time-altering depth and chilling folk-story beauty.
Dougie MacKay
Jemima Thewes
@Jemimathewes
Poster credit: Olivia Mater