FringeReview Scotland 2026
The Legend of Davie Mackenzie
A Play, A Pie, A Pint, with Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh
Genre: Fringe Theatre, New Writing
Venue: Òran Mór
Festival: FringeReview Scotland
Low Down
Davie and Sean lived next door to each other growing up. The relationship begins with one asking the other out to play, until eventually the shy Sean and the gallus Davie become firm friends. From that childhood, they become subsumed by the deprivation in the community in which they live, and both are incarcerated whilst also becoming addicted. The addiction is not just to the substances that can be found on the street but also the friendship they share.
Review
We begin with Sean talking from prison. Both have ended up there as Sean tells the tale of how they met, became pals and then addicted. Without ever detailing their descent into the hells of suffering they show us their derring do, the gallus escapades and the scrapes for survival that with another accent, and privileged breeks would qualify as jolly japes.
Sent to prison, when Davie gets out early Sean discovers that the next time, if at all, he is going to see Davie will be at his funeral probably a cooncil one. And so, when Davie’s ghost gets Sean to escape to try and sort a burial rather than a cremation – Davie’s feart of fire – Sean gets out but does not quite manage all he planned.
Linked by a shared love of films – Davie claims at one point he has watched every one from A to Z – the ghost of Davie comes back to demand Sean breaks out, rescues his body and has a fitting funeral because Davie as he truly knows, is a legend.
And so, begins The Caper.
Whilst the comedy, about two friends in a fix, is familiar territory, friendship is at the pure heart of it. It’s about being working class, growing up thegither and having everything stacked against you – except your pals. It’s about living alongside each other, trying your best to get the best out of each other, but also find some way to survive.
Both Sean (Afton Moran) and Davie (Sean Connor) are typical of what, on a daily basis in Scotland, many communities of young people face.
The writing has a very strong sense of itself with both writers, Stephen Christopher and Graham Smith, showing that their experiences outside of the arts shows a level of comprehension and empathy for both characters that really sparkles. It’s not just engaging but we also enjoying the moments they have together, getting a deeper understanding of what holds them together. It does, however, work more on the surface than delve into the depths of their circumstances. This wrings out the comedy, leaving the pathos for another time.
Sean Connor as Davie and Afton Moran as Sean are joined by Ruaraidh Murray who plays a variety of different characters, and they deliver a highly charged ensemble that manages to tonally deliver. High points are met with a great deal of laughter and moments of reflection are set in silences. Davie is the personality that makes him a legend. It should not, however, be ignored that Moran plays Sean with intensive sensitivity. There are moments where the vulnerability shines through which Davie, able to take advantage of, shies away from to allow Sean to inhabit the space between them. Moran and Connor subtly walk that divide with great skill. Oftentimes Davie never feels like he is in total charge and Sean never totally feels like he has to follow. It’s an impressive skill set.
Jake Sleet’s direction is therefore able to allow that relationships to shine and manage the pace to keep it going along.
The set works – A Play, A Pie, A Pint will never rival Scottish Opera for set construction, but a degree of imagination is still required and all credit to Gillian Argo. Lighting played its part and as is always the case in the Òran Mór technical support ensured we get the ideas and the imagery matches the concepts – here it does it very well indeed.
This is not just about an iconic legendary working-class hero but the humanity of people who faced with very little hope find some way to cling on to life. The laughter continued long after people started to raise from their seats and leave, and this is a fitting tribute as a comic tale told of just a couple of lads – and they have a s much right to be up there as any Duke, Prince or Andy.
