A Cut, A Scratch, A Score, is an opera project developed through close collaboration with artists David Barnett and Bruce McLean. The project was inititated by Cooper Gallery, Dundee who asked us to respond to Dundee as well as expanded notions of performance and collaboration. The project went on to widen its pool of authors to include the internationally renowned opera singer Lore Lixenberg and the artist-dancer Adeline Bourret as well as the public and the city itself.

Developed at three venues; a (botanic) Garden, a (city) Square and a (Cooper) Gallery, this 'Comic' Opera plays with notions of seriousness and comedy from within the rich histories of the industries of Dundee; jute, jam and journalism. Through adopting the other popular and locally significant industry of the comic book with its archetypical characters; the mischief-maker, the friendly giant and the ever-present gang of problem makers and solvers, the plot follows the fortunes of a very rich woman with a large dress who falls in love with a large and obese man, who is dressed as a cowboy and wears a strap-on chin. Delving into obesity, gluttony, avarice, consumerism, deportment, immigration, anarchy and conformity, the story line charts the ups and downs of our very modern relationships.

A Cut, A Scratch, A Score was comissioned by Cooper Gallery, Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art & Design, Dundee, in collaboration with Creative Scotland and The Elephant Trust.
Performances across Dundee: 17-21 October 2011, Exhibition: 22 October - 5 November 2011