Kirkcaldy actress set to star with Alan Cumming

Mairi Barclay will star in ‘My Fair Lady’ which begins its run later this month at the Pitlochry Theatre, with Cumming in the lead role as Henry Higgins.

For Mairi (33), who grew up in Markinch, working with Cumming is “a dream come true” and is the latest stop on a journey which began ij the Lang Toun.

“I went to ballet and tap and jazz classes in Kirkcaldy,” she says, “I was only three when I started, but it was apparent quite quickly that it was what I wanted to do.

“And when I was eight that was a bit of a turning point. I remember like taking on more classes and committing more to ballet and tap exams and wanting the best results and getting distinctions, and it was all going really well.

“Then when I was 11 I auditioned for the Adam Smith Panto and got in as one of the dancers, and that was it from there on.

“I knew what I wanted to do.”

Mairi then attended the Dance School of Scotland in Knightswood Secondary School in Glasgow for four years, before completing a degree at ArtsEd drama school in London.

“ArtsEd handed you over into the industry, with like a notebook or contacts that you'd worked with, so it meant that it was easier to get work once it was in it.”

Mairi then decided that a career in musical theatre was the way in which she wanted to go.

“I’m glad I did because actually it's given me longevity. I would say that I was more of an actor now, but learning those other skills you can do so much more.

“I would love like more opportunities to get into more Scottish television things, but I'll only relocated back to Kirkcaldy a couple of years ago, and I've had the privilege of working with Dundee Rep twice and now the Pitlochry Theatre.

“So my dream which was relocating back to Scotland and being part of Scottish work has come to fruition.”

As well as starring as Henry Higgins in the production of My fair Lady, Alan Cumming is also Pitlochry Theatre’s Artistic Director and Mairi says her dream of working with him was something that she knew would eventually happen.

“This job with Alan has been manifesting for a while. Last April, Noisemaker who wrote Oor Wullie that I did at Dundee Rep a couple years ago, wrote a new musical called Ceilidh, which was just on at Pitlochry.

“My friend, Grant McIntyre, and I, who was in Oor Wullie as well, got asked to go out to New York to announce this new musical. So we learned a couple of songs from Ceilidh and then as part of Tartan Week, we performed them at the university club and Alan was the one that introduced the musical, so I first met him then.

“He then asked us to perform at Club Cumming in New York in the east village. So it felt like he was in my aura type of thing. When I was in New York I made the decision that I’m going to work with Alan Cumming, so when this job came in I felt, this is mine, this is the moment, this is meant.

“Alan and I get on really, well, we've got lots of people in common and I really respect him as a person. He's so accomplished and he's so successful, but he's so humble in a really grounded way. He like he still got that essence of, I guess maybe it's just a Scottish thing, of remembering where you've come from.

“He’s just a really beautiful person and a really kind, generous person.”

The entire run of ‘My Fair Lady’ from November 21 up to Hogmanay is already a complete sell out and Mairi says she’s looking forwards to audiences seeing a new take on an old classic.

“Some things are are a little bit different, because you're taking a huge musical trying to put it into like a smaller space at Pitlochry, so we want it to feel like a more intimate thing.

“We're creating this world, so that the audience get to come and join us. And we're kind of reclaiming the story for Eliza Doolittle, because the way it was originally written it can be a little misogonistic, so we’ve taken that out a bit and made it more Eliza’s story.

“In terms of the way rehearsals are going, I mean, I'm just pinching myself that I'm working with some of the best people in the business.”

I mean, this is the first job I've done this year, so acting is unpredictable and it's really hard. You get so many more rejections before you get that “yes”, but then I think it’s a privilege that I can even do the thing that I love to do and call it a job.

“I'm just proud of myself for the resilience that I've had to keep going because you're not guaranteed anything. Two years ago I worked with Sir Ian McKellen, and people were saying this’ll bring you new opportunities, but it’s not like that. You do go back to the bottom again, which is good in a way as well. It's very grounding.

“But to be part of something like this is really like magic. I don't know if I'll ever work with Alan again, so I have to be present in the moment and be thankful whilst I’ve got it.

“It’s interesting, I’m learning things and I’m having the best time.”