Review: Tristan & Yseult, Emma Rice Company, UK Tour - Glasgow Citizens Theatre | Wow!
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Emma Rice's critically acclaimed Tristan & Yseult plays at the Citizens Theatre in Glasgow this week before heading to the Lyceum in Edinburgh as part of a UK tour. Read my review of this outstanding piece of theatre below.
Tristan & Yseult ★★★★★
Review: 30 September 2026 | Citizens Theatre, Glasgow
It's difficult to think of a current theatre production that has a better reputation than Emma Rice's Tristan & Yseult. Widely beloved by critics and audiences alike, the celebrated show arrives in Glasgow this week on a wave of rave reviews and word-of-mouth buzz.
Last seen on stage in 2017, the original Kneehigh / Emma Rice production of Tristan & Yseult began life in 2003 as a piece of open-air theatre performed in majestic venues such as Restormel Castle and the Minack Theatre in Cornwall before it was reimagined as an indoor production for the National Theatre in 2005. Now remastered for the 2026 UK Tour, the production returns to the stage for the first time in ten years, and I encourage you to run to buy tickets if it's coming anywhere near you.
Not only is the show an exhilarating mix of powerful drama, blistering comedy, infectious music and spellbinding dance, but it may just have been one of my favourite audience experiences in a theatre ever. More on that later!
Emma Rice, who has adapted the story and directs the stage show, tells the ancient Cornish tale of Tristan - a young French knight - who escorts the Irish Princess Isolde (Yseult in this adaptation) to Cornwall so that she can marry Tristan's uncle, King Mark. However, during the long voyage to Cornwall, Tristan and Yseult accidentally drink a love potion and fall helplessly in love. Thus begins a messy medieval love triangle cloaked in Celtic folklore and revenge.
The club of the Unloved
Perhaps the most famous telling of the Tristan and Isolde myth is Richard Wagner's three-act opera. And while Rice's production does use snippets of his iconic operatic score, the overall tone and structure of Rice's playful show could not be further removed from Wagner's five-hour solemn opera.
Emma Rice's Tristan & Yseult, written along with Anna Maria Murphy and Carl Grose, tells the tale through the perspective of "the Unloved." The play is set in a nightclub called "The Club of the Unloved", with the fabulous ensemble company playing "Love Spotters" - a chorus of nerdy, anorak-wearing onlookers who comment on the central story and represent the heartbreak of those left on the sidelines of love. It is so beautifully perceptive and a whole heap of fun.
The Club of the Unloved has a superb in-house band who are onstage at all times and who provide the show with its soundtrack (composed by Stu Barker) that blends Wagner's classical operatic score with pop, and even heavy metal. I urge you to take your seats a little early for this show and again during the interval, as the audience is treated to live versions of iconic love-themed pop songs from the band and the gorgeous voices of the entire company. This is a company that knows how to work a crowd and knows how to entertain! The songs they perform just before Act II are unmissable and create a spine-tingling, euphoric buzz in the auditorium. Go get your drinks and head back in!
The exuberant atmosphere lingers through Act II, and when the show does reach its tragic, powerful climax, it is met with rapturous applause and a thoroughly deserved standing ovation. I don't remember ever having experienced such a universally strong reaction in a theatre, and it was glorious. I may have cried a little at the emotion of it all.
Fresh, accessible, and wildly entertaining
Although the music is a highlight of Tristan & Yseult, there is so much more to enjoy with Emma Rice's imaginative production. In a touch of creative genius, this medieval tragedy is presented to us with the help of energetic dance - with choreography from none other than Matthew Bourne's brilliant Etta Murfitt - with moments of impressive circus-like aerials and a comedic vibe. The cast frequently break the fourth wall with some really fun audience interactions peppered throughout too. This is no formal, laborious opera. This production of Tristan & Yseult is fresh, accessible and wildly entertaining.
With polished production values, modern lighting (Malcolm Rippeth) and immaculate sound design (Simon Baker), Tristan & Yseult deserves all the hype that surrounds it.
Emma Rice masterfully directs her excellent cast to deliver a fast-paced, absorbing and surprisingly witty 130 minutes (with interval). The whole company are superb, multi-talented and flawless, with John Leader's Tristan and Nandi Bhebhe's Yseult magnetic in the lead roles. Edward Rowe's King Mark, Stephanie Hockley's Whitehands and Matthew Churcher's Frocin all impress with impactful performances.
The glorious Tom Fox is the heartbeat of the show as Morholt, Brangian and others, in one of the best pieces of comedy acting I've ever seen on stage. He effortlessly cycles between characters and finds the exact comedic pulse of every line and every scene with uncanny precision. By the time Act II rolls around, Fox only needs to walk on stage for the audience to erupt in fits of laughter. What a gem.
But Tristan & Yseult is a masterclass in ensemble acting where every performer, including those in the band, perfectly balances and supports one another.
Tristan & Yseult is currently the talk of the town in Glasgow theatreland. I'll be surprised if I see a better piece of crowd-pleasing theatre this year. ★★★★★
Tristan & Yseult is at The Citizens Theatre Glasgow until Saturday 3 October and at The Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh from 20 - 24 October 2026.
MORE: Read the Tristan & Yseult full cast announcement here
MORE: Find the full Tristan & Yseult 2026 / 2027 tour dates here
MORE: Find more Scottish theatre news and reviews from Lisa in the Theatre here
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