Machinal

Machinal runs from Tuesday 27 October to Friday 30 October at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, on Renfrew Street. It's Sophie Treadwell's 1928 play, directed by Becky Hope-Palmer, and it's a production coming out of the Conservatoire itself.

If the title doesn't ring a bell, the story is based on the true-crime case of Ruth Snyder, a convicted murderer whose life was turned into a press sensation in the 1920s. Treadwell's version follows Helen Jones, a woman lonely in her marriage and motherhood, who feels overwhelmed by society and the machinery of life. She commits a crime to escape it, and that choice leads to her downfall. At its heart, it's one woman's struggle to be heard amidst the noise of a capitalist society — a theme that hasn't lost its edge since the play was written.

It's worth remembering where this is coming from. The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland is a world-leading performing arts institution, established in 1847 and ranked among the top ten for music and performing arts education in the QS World Rankings 2026. This is a student production, so you're seeing the next generation of theatre makers at work.

Tickets run from £5 to £20, and the show plays Tuesday through Friday, so you've got a few nights to choose from. If you need it, the 7pm performance on Friday 30 October will be captioned.