The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo’s new Creative Director says bringing the music to ‘life’ and putting the ‘skip’ into the performances are the key aims of his new role as he works towards the 2025 Show – The Heroes Who Made Us.
Taking over the role following the completion of Michael Braithwaite’s three-Show run as the Tattoo’s Creative Director, Alan Lane will be at the helm as the brand celebrates its 75th anniversary next year.
Having spent 20 years working across a variety of outdoor spectaculars and running his own theatre company, Slung Low, Alan has been working closely with the Tattoo team since June in preparation for next year’s performances and wider celebrations.
Speaking of his role and plans for the creative direction of the Tattoo on the latest episode of the Tattoo’s podcast Piping Up, Alan said: “We’re an unbelievable machine, with people doing amazing logistical organisation with real craft and skill. But you can’t make art like that. If you put art into a spreadsheet, you’ll drive yourself mad.
“Picking the song for the bagpipes is not the hard part of the job, it’s more about creating the right environment to do things creatively. Thinking about the folk musicians I’ve been speaking to, they were talking about how a lot of the music we perform was generated by the waulking and the working, so these songs really lived.
“And, like nearly all folk music, they were all passed on by people singing to each other, leading to many beautiful variations. And by knowing this, we have an incredible understanding of what our Show is based on. And the Army codified that music, those bagpipes. Securing it. Forever. But in codifying you lose the skip, so that’s the Show’s job, my job, return the skip. Bring it to life while honouring the tradition.”
Alan grew up with both his father and grandfather in the military and inspired by them became an Army Reservist in 2015. Alan’s experience in the Army Reserve and as creative consultant for the Army Expo 2022 and 2023, will help take Tattoo performances to new dynamic and immersive levels.
He was also co-director of The Awakening in 2023, the opening ceremony of LEEDS 2023 – a year of culture, with the show performed in Headingley Stadium featuring an eclectic mix of dancers, music, and a variety of performances to celebrate the city’s culture.
On plans for next year’s 75th and the Show The Heroes Who Made Us, Alan said: “I got lucky, taking over and having the 75th anniversary. I’ve inherited a really good idea for the performance which is a celebration of all the heroes who made those 75 years possible. That’s not just the performers but also the audience.
“If you take on something as established and loved as the Tattoo, if the first thing you do is honour its roots, I think that will be quite a popular thing to do.
“In this role, you honour and stand on the shoulders of the people who’ve done it before. I didn’t get here because I’m special, I got here because for 75 years beforehand, those people have been brilliant.
“We’re a living, breathing piece of art and of course there’s things a Tattoo performance has to do, but it’s different every year and needs to speak to the moment. It feels like the 75th anniversary is a great point to look at how we got here and reframe our greatest hits.
“People come to see certain things but how do we reframe them? So we have one foot completely understanding its roots and another looking at what it does next, which is when things are at their most thrilling. If you just ask people what they want, you will just have fish and chips every day because you do not know that fajitas exist. Exploring and coming up with things the audience didn’t even know to ask for is why this job exists.”
Alan Lane was speaking on the Tattoo’s Piping Up Podcast, which provides an ‘access all areas’ pass into the creativity and dedication that powers the brand. Listen here.
Tickets for The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo’s 75th anniversary Show, The Heroes Who Made Us are now on sale and can be purchased at edintattoo.co.uk/tickets or on the phone, 0131 225 1188.
The Show will run from 1-23 August 2025.
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