Today we speak to Matthew Zajac about the show The Tailor of Inverness. The multi-award winning show heads back to theatres up and down Scotland from this September. Inspired by the life of Matthew’s father, The Tailor of Inverness is a story of journeys, of a boy who grew up on a farm in Galicia (Eastern Poland, now Western Ukraine) and became a tailor in Inverness. I spoke to Matthew to find out all about it.

Hello! Tell us about yourself ? 

Hi, I’m Matthew Zajac, writer and performer of The Tailor of Inverness. I was born and raised in Inverness.  I’ve been an actor for 44 years on stage, screen and radio.  I’m also a writer, theatre director and producer.  

Tell us a bit about The Tailor of Inverness?

The Tailor of Inverness is a play I wrote in 2008, opening that year at the Edinburgh Fringe.  It won several awards and has been touring off and on ever since, visiting 13 different countries.  The play tells the story of my father’s life, with a particular focus on his journey of survival through the Second World War.  There are two characters in the play, me and him, telling his version of his life and my subsequent discoveries following his death.  It’s a story of the impact of war on ordinary people and families, with a live fiddle score.

How are rehearsals going?

We don’t need to rehearse much as we’ve done the show over 300 times!  We’ll have a couple of days’ rehearsal in September just before the first performance.

What can you tell us about the stage set?

The set was designed by Ali Maclaurin.  It’s a representation of a tailor’s workshop with a striking , ghostly backdrop of textured clothing, children’s and adults’ which represents that terrible war’s victims.

Tell us a little bit about the other performers/creatives

There are two performers on stage, me and Jonny Hardie/Gavin Marwick on fiddle.  Gavin will do the first half of the tour, Jonny the second.  They‘re among Scotland’s best traditional players.  Grid Iron’s Ben Harrison directed the show so beautifully we’ve really not changed a thing since the first performances in 2008.  We also still use Ali’s original set!  Kai Fischer designed the lighting and Tim Brinkhurst the sound design.  The audience is aided by Tim Reid’s video work.

What is the most challenging thing about doing the show?

It’s quite physically demanding and I’m not getting any younger!

The best thing about touring the show around Scotland?

This will be the show’s 7^th Scottish tour.  The reason we keep doing it is because we haven’t tired of it and it seems that neither have audiences.  It’s the audiences  that are the best thing about touring the show around Scotland, that keep the show going.

Favourite places to eat on tour?

The Ceilidh Place, Ullapool, Macleod’s chippy Inverness, Mother India Edinburgh

What have been some of the best highlights since doing the show?

There are a lot, every performance has been a highlight! Running the show in New York for 4 weeks in 2015, playing to full houses at Malmo Stadsteater in 2010, touring Ukraine in 2010 and 2013, our Adelaide Fringe run in 2009, the Made in Scotland showcase in Brussels in 2019, our three shows at the Traverse in 2024, and other festival appearances in Sweden, Germany and Poland. Our original Edinburgh run in 2008 is perhaps the biggest highlight as we didn’t know if it would work and it definitely exceeded our expectations!

What is the best reaction you have had from an audience member?

There have been so many wonderful reactions to the show and I’ve received many messages and letters about it.  One that stands out was from a polish woman who saw the show during its original run in 2008.  She told me it was “the story of every Polish family”.

If people want to follow you on social media where can they find you?

You can follow Dogstar Theatre on Facebook and Instagram @dogstartheatre. 

Personally, you can find me on Instagram, Facebook and X(twitter). I don’t use any of them a lot and have kept an X account simply to help keep abreast with developments  in Ukraine. 

Finally in three words why should people come to your show?

40,000 others have

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