Gig-theatre A Giant on the Bridge examines life after prison ahead of Scotland tour

A Giant on the Bridge, a gig-theatre piece by singer-songwriter Jo Mango and theatre-maker Liam Hurley that premiered in 2024, will head out on tour across Scotland next month and plays Cottier’s theatre, Glasgow, on 25-26 February. The show grew from the research project Distant Voices: Coming Home, which Mango says revealed dire statistics for the number of people who leave prison and then return.

"Research showed that the process is often less about the individuals and more about societal and structural issues – whether they can get a job when they come out, whether they have any family left who are there to support them," Mango said. Phil Crockett Thomas, the project’s research associate, says the team worked with roughly 200 people over about 20 intensive sessions in open and closed prisons and community justice settings and that collaborative songwriting gave participants space to explore those issues.

Key Topics

Culture, Jo Mango, Liam Hurley, Distant Voices, Cottier's Theatre, Scotland