Go West!

A Mid-Colonial, A Neo-Western, A Post-Possibility.

A desert. A map. A veterinarian and a dog. A diary, an obituary, a stranger and a promise – you could make this place beautiful.

An absurdist mapping of legacy, sunshine, and fervent hope, Go West! is a hauntingly sharp, time-bending two-hander that drifts between the distant future and the recent past. From a vast desert to the burning sun, and back to the suburbs, characters Bang and Boom reckon with what they’ve inherited, what they’ve destroyed, and what they might still salvage.

This achingly intimate new work blends the surreal with the painfully mundane, using language, space, and repetition to explore grief, memory, and the failure of systems - emotional, societal, ecological. As time collapses and stories repeat, the audience is invited into a space of uncertainty, play, and tenderness. Go West! asks: where are we going?

Created by Irish collective AIMSIR, known for bold, time-sensitive, weather-shifting theatre, the piece continues their interest in ephemerality, temporality, and place. AIMSIR - the Irish word for weather, time, and era - makes theatre that refuses permanence, staging work that dissolves boundaries between past and future, myth and memory, people and landscape.

Written by Aoife Cronin
Directed by Aoife Cronin and Lucy Bracken
Performed by Amy Scollard and Jessie Byrne
Designed by Em Kelleher and Lisa Della Chiesa
Developed at the Scene + Heard Festival of New Work

Reviews of Go West!
★★★★★ "An entertaining and stimulating piece of absurdist theatre, steeped in Americana and dripping with atmosphere." - North West End UK
★★★★ "An absurdist, surreal and warmly human work for anyone who likes their theatre bold, funny, and sharply existential" - Edinburgh Guide

Audience comments Edinburgh Fringe 2025:
"Go West is a clever and hilarious standout show. With brilliant accents, moustaches, and some seriously slick footwork, this performance keeps you laughing while also delivering a few moments that really make you stop and think."
"The wonderful thing about this gem of a show is that I didn’t completely understand it, but I was completely compelled and captivated by it…"
"Hilarious, absurd with incredible performances. And such tight writing!"

Reviews of previous work
★★★★ "Truly accomplished writing." - The University Times ‘.’
★★★★ "A charming dreamlike elegiac meditation."- Fernyhough Arts Review

Duration: approximately 50 minutes (TBC)

Recommended age : 12+

Saturday 12 September 2026 : 2.30pm
Saturday 12 September 2026 : 7.30pm

Tickets : £15.00
Available from https://swallowtheatre.co.uk
or telephone 01988 850368

The Swallow Theatre
Moss Park
Ravenstone
Whithorn
DG8 8DR