Then. Now. Next.

Five days. one room. permission to mess with time.

Date of Activity: June 2026
Location: Aberdeen
Age Range: 18-28

A young person dressed in a bright yellow overshirt and multicoloured beanie, wearing headphones, sits isolated at the side of the stage, perched on a small stool. They sit in front of a microphone and a laptop opened in front of them on a small table. They are highlighted by a bright spotlight, with a screen to the side of them.

Led by Scottish Youth Theatre, Pete Lannon (Superfan) and a host of guest artists, this creative hothouse brought together emerging theatre-makers based in Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire to make brand new devised theatre at breakneck speed. The project invited participants to raid the past, wrestle with the present and imagine (im)possible futures, using memory, legacy and speculation as their creative fuel.

Across an intensive five-day process, the group of young artists experimented with movement, text, digital media and whatever else they could get their hands on, remixing and reimagining past, present and future. What’s kept? What’s cast aside? And what gets passed on anyway?

As a mini ensemble, alongside the help of the creative team, they then shaped their findings into a short performance shared with a public audience at the Lemon Tree Studio, as part of Light the Blue 2026. A glimpse of the future, made in real time…

A performer, dressed in a grey beanie and beige coloured cagoule, holding their arms up pensively, clawing their fingers, with other performers in the background.

“This last week has been the most fun I’ve had in a long time. Thank you for everything you’ve done – I’m so happy to have been a part of this.”
– Then. Now. Next. Participant