The Brooklyn Scotsman is an autobiographical
tale based on a Scottish teenager leaving home to pursue his dreams across the
Atlantic in New York City. With elements of music, storytelling and acting, it
combines to give 60 minutes of interesting theatre. Stevie Creed stands proud
and speaks directly to the audience throughout sharing his own story. His own
personal goal isn’t really made clear - rather than given information, he leads
the room in his own footsteps. Reminiscing and exploring his journey, we follow
with him in spoken word separated with comedy and music.
Joined on stage by backing band and
incredible soulful singer Jamei-Lee Lister, the show explodes into life when
the beat starts. Stevie’s self-assured, simple structure to lyrics adds a rock-type
feel to his hip-hop, speaking his words with power and clarity to cut straight to
our ears. In complimenting this, Jamei-Lee’s soft yet sharp vocals partner and
add a layer of magic to the songs. A real gem in the Edinburgh music scene
herself, she excels on stage and captivates the audience with her beautiful
voice and movement. With the strings of the guitar being plucked by the
talented Stuart (also of local band Sea bass Kid) alongside her, they take
charge of one half of the stage themselves with their own chemistry. Reflected
opposite with soft drums is Simon Drummond, these different elements combine into something simple, yet special.
Other than the music, the highlight of
this show is the incredible acting Stevie has towards the end. While the story
is semi-captivating in itself, the ending bleeds emotion and we are left with a
genuine feeling that while Stevie Creed has travelled and found part of himself
- There’s still a lot more to uncover. There are various characters and
personalities within our music and hip-hop scenes, in this case he is certainly
unique. Stevie has a passion and vision to his work, he doesn’t aim to make a
name in the underground circles of the hip-hop scene, and instead he pushes for
something beyond. Whatever his aim, if he keeps up this work-rate and energy
he’ll go a long way with his creative outlets.
