Burns on the Solway is a one act poetic drama by award winning Scottish playwright, Catherine Czerkawska. It imagines the last few weeks in the life of Scottish poet Robert Burns, down on the Solway Coast in beautiful Dumfries and Galloway. It is an exploration of the enduring relationship between Rab and his wife Jean, a play about love and friendship, about sensuality and violence, about betrayal and - perhaps most of all - a play about endings.It was first produced in February 2006, at Glasgow's Oran Mor, as part of the spring A Play, A Pie and a Pint lunchtime drama season of that year, and played to packed houses. It was directed by Michael Emans, with Donald Pirie as an uncannily authentic Robert, Clare Waugh as a wonderful, passionate Jean Armour and Celine Donoghue as the musician, playing a variety of instruments including folk fiddle. The play inspired Czerkawska's novel, The Jewel (Saraband) about the life and times of Jean Armour. 'Michael Emans's bright, lively production makes the most of Czerkawska's poetic text. Donald Pirie is a mercurial and unhinged Burns, all puppydog eyes and impulsive gestures. Clare Waugh, meanwhile, invests Jean with feistiness and passion, her face aflame with devotion as Rab is led by his crotch to other women's beds. If you wonder why she puts up with such treatment, it's a question many women hooked on charm and charisma are still asking today. 'Neil Cooper, The Herald, February 2006

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