Spotlight on Dundee REP & Scottish Dance Theatre
Dundee Rep and Scottish Dance Theatre bring together theatre and contemporary dance in Dundee, creating bold, acclaimed work that resonates locally and internationally. Guided by the belief that creative experiences are essential to life, their work is shaped by people including artists, creatives, staff, participants and audiences. From award-winning productions and new work to the Engage programme, they create opportunities to connect, learn and take part, building meaningful relationships through creativity.
They work with a range with a range of costume designers across their productions, with Head of Costume Sophie Ferguson working with designers to create costumes for each performance. Sophie said:
For nine decades, Dundee Rep Theatre has created work shaped by people and their experiences, with a focus on connection through the arts and an approach grounded in collaboration and learning. In 2026 Scottish Dance Theatre marks its 40th anniversary, celebrating four decades of dance at home in Dundee and around the world. This milestone brings together past, present and future, recognising the people and work that have shaped the company while continuing to build new connections with audiences.
Based in the cultural heart of Dundee, the organisation creates and presents work for local, national and international audiences, with learning and participation at its core. Collaborations with artists from around the world see work shared in settings ranging from village halls in the Scottish Highlands to international venues, as well as in local schools, prisons and community spaces.
Support from Dundee Rep and Scottish Dance Theatre has helped to make the Curtain Call exhibition possible, with costumes from their productions on display. This section highlights four designers who have worked in or have been inspired by Dundee.
Alison Brown
Brown is a Costume Designer for live performance, working primarily within the theatre and dance sectors. A graduate of Edinburgh College or Art where she is now a part time lecturer, her costumes have been shown in numerous contexts and many parts of the world, including New York, Munich, London, Vancouver, Bern, Shanghai, Dublin, Bogota and Dundee Rep and Scottish Dance Theatre with Looping: Scotland Overdub.
Kenneth McLeod
McLeod grew up in the Scottish Highlands and went on to train at The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and at the California Institute of The Arts, Los Angeles.
McLeod has designed sets and costumes on many productions in Scotland and further afield including 2019’s production of Oor Wullie, The Musical. He designed both the set and the costume for this much-loved production.
Emily James
James trained at Edinburgh College of Art and Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. A finalist for the 1997 Linbury Prize for Stage Design, she was also awarded a one-year Design Bursary at the Royal Exchange Theatre.
James has worked across the UK as a set and costume designer for the National Theatre of Scotland, Grid Iron, Bristol Old Vic, the Traverse Theatre, Plymouth Theatre Royal, Hampstead Theatre, Birmingham Rep and the Royal Exchange Theatre.
Her work from the Glass Menagerie and Tay Bridge is represented in the Curtain Call Exhibition.
Jessica Worrall
Worral is a theatre designer and digital collage artist. Her credits include; Small Acts of Love (Citizens Theatre, costume only), The Girls of Slender Means (Lyceum, Edinburgh), Beautiful, the Carole King Musical, Group Portrait in a Summer Landscape (Pitlochry Festival Theatre) and many more.
Her work represented in the Curtain Call Exhibition comes from Doubt: A Parable (Dundee Rep).
What do we have on display?
- Wullie, Oor Wullie, The Musical worn by Kyle Gardiner, Monochrome and Colour (2024)
- Basher in Oor Wullie, The Musical worn by Mhari Barclay, Monochrome and colour (2024)
- Tay Bridge dress and Undergarments, Tay Bridge worn by Emily Winter (2019)
- Looping: Scotland Overdub (2019)
- Sister Aloysius, Sisters of Charity habit, Doubt: A Parable worn by Annie Louise Ross (2025)
- Amanda Wingfield, Yellow Dress, Glass Menagerie worn by Sara Stewart (2025)
“The costumes on display from Dundee Rep and Scottish Dance Theatre reflect the incredible breadth of contemporary design talent connected to Dundee. Each piece tells a story of performance, place and people.”
Gareth Jackson-Hunt
Museum Services Manager
“These pieces exemplify the teamwork, talent, and skill, that goes into visual storytelling. The costume team of makers bring digital or paper designs to life using real world materials and we construct them to withstand the rigours of live performance night after night. We balance the vision of the Designer and Director with the practicalities of how fabrics move and respond to stage lighting, alongside the comfort of the Performers.”
Sophie Ferguson
Head of Costume, Dundee Rep and Scottish Dance Theatre
