Born: 26 March,1936, in Stirling.
Died: 13 June, 2008, in Edinburgh, aged 72.
JOHN Malcolm was a theatrical buccaneer, one of the original founders of the Traverse Theatre in a former brothel in James Court off
Edinburgh's Lawnmarket, known fondly then as Kelly's Paradise or Hell's Kitchen. But with three others Malcolm created a performing space that changed the face of theatre in the capital. The Traverse set out to follow the adventurous path of the Royal Court in London by encouraging new writing and sought to provide a space that commissioned new plays from Scottish writers and took productions to the edge. Malcolm encouraged post-performance discussion between those involved with the play and the audience.
The Scotsman's Joyce McMillan, in her book The Traverse Theatre Story, rightly credits Malcolm as "one the leading forces in the creation of the theatre". She describes him as "a real actor, the least known and in some ways the most important character of all… So it is John Malcolm, in the that Festival of 1962… who hears the talk of a permanent 'Fringe centre', who makes up his mind that it will take the form of a professional theatre and who determines that it will happen then and there, that autumn." That desire to make things happen "now" was characteristic of Malcolm.
By his own admission, Malcolm endured an unhappy childhood and at 16 trained to become a Methodist minister, but after doing his national service in Hong Kong he gained, in 1962, a scholarship to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London. He worked in various venues in small roles until he came to the burgeoning Edinburgh Fringe that summer.
In fact the origins of The Traverse date from 1960, when a group called The Sceptics performed David Hume's rarely seen First Dialogue Concerning Natural Religion in the Paperback Bookshop in Charles Street. In 1961, they performed another Hume play. In 1962 (now called the Curetes), they performed an even lesser-known piece, Ane Tryall of Heretiks by Fionna MacColla. The quartet of actors included John Malcolm.
Malcolm and Terry Lane (then working as stage manager at the Pitlochry Theatre) approached Haynes about founding a permanent theatre company. Malcolm, who was in digs in James Court, suggested the disused brothel on the two floors above him. The owner of the building, Tom Mitchell, was enthusiastic and the four founders of the Traverse Theatre started converting the space. Lane and Malcolm were joint artistic directors and the whole project captured the mood of the city and reflected the dawning of the Sixties in Edinburgh.
The space was tiny: it accommodated only 60 people and the audience sat on either side of the acting area: hence the name "Traverse", as the audience traversed the auditorium. Lane and Malcolm opened in January 1963 (annual membership one guinea) with Huis Clos by Jean-Paul Sartre – a daring but imaginative choice. Malcolm, with his unbounded enthusiasm, had a disagreement with Lane during the rehearsals and left. Nonetheless, had Malcolm not galvanised his three colleagues the Traverse Theatre might never have happened.
As Allen Wright wrote in The Scotsman in 1970: "The Traverse Theatre is the most enduring legacy of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Throughout the year it keeps alive the Fringe's adventurous spirit and when August comes round it functions as a base for the fountain of theatrical work."
Festival veteran Richard Demarco, who also played a significant role in Edinburgh theatre, said: "My abiding memory of John was of him bodily carrying the red plush seats from a cinema on the Royal Mile which was closing and installing them in the empty room of what became the Traverse. He was a generous-hearted Scot who lived to see his dream come true – but at the very last moment was denied the right to guide it in its fledgling year. He participated with enthusiasm in my Fringe programme, and I was happy to see him thoroughly at home in the company of a new generation of Fringe actors.
"John suffered from an instability when under stress – and it was inevitable that he and Terry fell out in spectacular fashion, with John being forced to leave the theatre just days before the first night."
Malcolm returned to acting and in the 1960s was in episodes of Dr Finlay's Casebook and Crossroads. He then joined the Royal Shakespeare Company and while in the Cotswolds founded with his then wife, Tamara, a theatre company at Chipping Norton. He converted a disused Salvation Army citadel and made a charming venue suitable for exhibitions, films and theatre.
In 1977 he and his wife separated and, once again, Malcolm returned to acting, appearing in an important revival of Joe Orton's Loot (directed by Kenneth Williams) in 1980. Malcolm caused a backstage stir when he was attacked on the street three days before the first night. Williams went on and read the part but, typically, Malcolm, with several stitches in his lips, returned thereafter. Malcolm was often cast in character roles and appeared in TV's When The Boat Comes In, The Naked Civil Servant, and Pennies From Heaven.
Malcolm returned to live in Edinburgh a decade ago and despite increasing ill health remained as combative and lively as ever. He is survived by his daughter and son.
ALASDAIR STEVEN
The full article contains 898 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
