WayWORD's spring programme leads a month shaped by women's stories and collective action
Oh, hey you!
We're still picking metaphorical paint out of our hair and nursing actual sore legs from a weekend spent chasing murals across the city, but Nuart Aberdeen 2026 was worth every step. The sunshine helped. So did the company. It's always so lovely to meet folk out and about on their travels. Now, with the warmer days finally sticking around and the evenings stretching out, we're turning our attention to May.
Our main focus this month is WayWORD. Their Spring Programme runs through May and moves between poetry, ecology, sound art and live research, with events spread across campus and community venues. The headline draw is Booker Prize-winner Douglas Stuart launching his third novel at Cowdray Hall on 17 May, but the programme around him is where the festival's character really comes through. More on all of that in the listings below.
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Elsewhere, one thing that struck us looking across the month is how many women's stories run through it. Stand & Deliver at Aberdeen Arts Centre tells the story of the 240 women who occupied the Lee Jeans factory in Greenock in 1981 and held on for seven months. It's a National Theatre of Scotland co-production, with Frances Poet's script drawn from years of conversations with the women who were there. Dr Monica Germanà gives a talk at the Lemon Tree tracing how cultures have imagined women through mermaids and sea spirits, from ancient Mesopotamia to contemporary queer reimaginings. The Light House is a love story told through the reality of caring for someone in mental health crisis. And Kate Butch hands her entire show over to the audience at Aberdeen Arts Centre and lets them decide what happens next.
There's a thread of community running through the month too. War of the Thistles turns 20 at Transition Extreme, with all door money going directly to the host skateparks. The May Music Extravaganza puts over 160 local voices on the Music Hall stage for a charity concert. Kenmure Street at the Lemon Tree reconstructs the day hundreds of Glasgow residents surrounded an immigration enforcement van and held an eight-hour stand-off until two men were released. And Making Waves: Amazing Machines opens at Aberdeen Art Gallery on 16 May, a hands-on collection of contemporary automata with all their cogs and cranks left visible. That one's for all ages, and it runs through to October.
Plenty more in the listings below. Have a great May.
Chris + Kevin
What’s on in May
The Ruckus + Atomic Mother
1 May | Cafe Drummond
A Fat Hippy Records double bill pairing two Aberdeen hard rock acts. The Ruckus are a five-piece rooted in the classic rock tradition who have spent nearly two decades building their own catalogue of originals alongside the covers.
Support comes from Atomic Mother, a riff-driven hard rock band formed in 2018 with a reputation built on high-energy live performances and what they describe as the loudest sound in Aberdeen.
Danza Catartica: Pre May Day Edition
2 May | D2
Cornetta closes Danza Catartica's first season with a four-hour all-vinyl set spanning breaks, IDM, experimental bass and tribal, drawing on the full range of genres the series has moved through since it began.
A deliberately different option to the May Day weekend: darker, heavier and more intimate than most of what's on around it.
Loud Poets
2 May | The Lemon Tree
Scotland's leading spoken word night comes to Aberdeen, bringing together poets from across the UK for an evening of performance with live musical accompaniment. Six open mic slots are available to sign up for on the door.
New for 2026, the touring format pairs top-tier UK poets alongside local voices. Pay what you can entry, with a masterclass running in the city the same weekend.
War of the Thistles
2 May | Transition Extreme
The longest-running event in the UK skate calendar turns 20 at Transition Extreme. Cash for tricks during the main event, with the Shralper trophy going to whoever rips the most across street, mini and bowl jams.
Separate jams run for under-16s and women skaters. No advance registration: turn up, pay entry and skate. All funds go directly to the skateparks.
Kate Butch: Choose Your Own Cabaret
3 May | Aberdeen Arts Centre
RuPaul's Drag Race UK's Kate Butch hands control of the show to the audience, who vote on each song, each joke and possibly what she wears, with live accompaniment from Jordan Paul Clarke of Showstopper! The Improvised Musical.
The result is one of at least 8,000 possible versions of the same evening. Sharp, camp live performance that only works in a room full of people making decisions together.
Pushing Out the Boat: Tides in Time Anthology Launch
3 May | Cowdray Hall
Aberdeen literary magazine Pushing Out the Boat marks its 25th anniversary with the launch of Tides in Time, an anthology drawing on art, poetry and prose from 100 contributors published across the magazine's history since 2000.
Writer and former Scots Scriever Shane Strachan joins as guest speaker, with live readings from contributors spanning that full period and visual art on display alongside.
2:22 A Ghost Story
5–9 May | His Majesty's Theatre
Danny Robins' West End thriller puts two couples at a dinner party where the argument about whether the house is haunted refuses to die down. The evening ends with a decision to stay awake until 2:22am to settle it.
The production has been seen by over 1.1 million people across 17 countries. The Aberdeen run features James Bye, Natalie Casey, Grant Kilburn and Shvorne Marks.
All Shook Up
6–9 May | Tivoli Theatre
Aberdeen Junior Youth Music Theatre takes on this Elvis Presley jukebox musical, loosely based on Shakespeare's Twelfth Night. A young rebel arrives in a repressive small town, setting off a chain of mistaken identities, unexpected romances and considerable disruption.
Classic hits including Jailhouse Rock, Heartbreak Hotel and All Shook Up run through the show, performed by a young local cast across four performances.
Climate Action Workshop: What Is Music in a Changing World?
7 May | Music Hall Big Sky Studio
We Are Nature Collective returns to the Music Hall Big Sky Studio for an immersive three-and-a-half-hour session exploring how sound is shaped by climate, migration and memory, through film, collective making and a walk into the city's natural soundscape.
No musical experience required. Participants are invited to bring a song, an instrument or simply their presence. Free to attend with the option to donate.
Brodie Barclay
8 May | Tunnels
Brodie Barclay writes songs that sit somewhere between comedy and genuine emotional weight, and his live shows lean into both. He has built his following almost entirely through live performance.
The Tunnels show is part of a run of UK dates for a songwriter whose audience keeps growing.
Speakin' Weird
11 May | Gaelic Lane Cafe
A monthly spoken word night with an open mic open to poetry, prose, comedy, rap, stories and rants, alongside a headline act. This month's headliner is local rapper Jackill.
Five minutes on the mic is available to anyone who wants it. Sign up on the night, or just come along to listen.
Mean Girls
12–16 May | His Majesty's Theatre
Tina Fey's stage adaptation arrives direct from the West End, winner of Best New Musical at the WhatsOnStage Awards. Emily Lane plays Cady Heron, Vivian Panka plays Regina George, and Faye Tozer of Steps takes on Ms Norbury.
Home-schooled Cady's plan to dismantle the social order of North Shore High goes predictably sideways. Fey's satirical edge carries across from screen to stage with the writing largely intact.
Seed Talks: The History of Mermaids, Sea Spirits and Women
12 May | The Lemon Tree
Dr Monica Germanà traces the history of mermaids and sea spirits across cultures and centuries, from fish-tailed goddesses of ancient Mesopotamia through medieval Melusine, selkies, rusalki and West Africa's Mami Wata, to contemporary queer and postcolonial reimaginings.
The talk explores what these figures reveal about how societies have imagined women, nature and the limits of control. Dr Germanà is Reader in Gothic and Contemporary Studies at the University of Westminster. Followed by Q&A.
Stand & Deliver: The Lee Jeans Sit-In
12–13 May | Aberdeen Arts Centre
In 1981, 240 women at the Lee Jeans factory in Greenock were told their jobs were going. They locked themselves in and barricaded the doors, held on for seven months, and won. This is the first theatrical work based on that occupation.
Writer Frances Poet spent years talking to the women who were there. A National Theatre of Scotland and Tron Theatre co-production, with humour running alongside solidarity and a live 1980s soundtrack throughout.
WayWORD Presents: Publishing in Scotland Today
12 May | Sir Duncan Rice Library
Poetry publisher Duncan Lockerbie of Tapsalteerie and editor and writer Sarah Stewart of the Lighthouse Literary Consultancy share career stories and insights into the publishing process, followed by Q&A.
Lockerbie founded Tapsalteerie, an independent poetry press in Tarland focused on new writing, translations and Scots language. Stewart has worked across children's publishing and fiction, and is also a published poet.
The Light House
14 May | The Lemon Tree
A real story of falling in love and staying in love when the person you love is in mental health crisis, told through dance, music and live performance. Tender and funny by turns, it charts the kitchen dancing and street singing that kept both of them going.
The show takes seriously the loneliness of caring for someone whose lights have gone out, and what it takes to help them find their way back.
Tom Stade: Naughty by Nature
15 May | The Lemon Tree
Canadian stand-up Tom Stade has spent years on the UK circuit building a following on a delivery that is simultaneously laid-back and pointed. Naughty by Nature is his latest hour, fresh from a run at the Edinburgh Festival.
The show follows his established approach of mischievous observation and uncompromising comedy that resists easy categorisation. Stade is one of those acts whose reputation tends to arrive ahead of him.
UNF + The Velvet Room + The Algiers feat. Terry McDermott
15 May | Cafe Drummond
UNF are one of those Aberdeen bands whose reputation has been built entirely through live performance, developing a following on the strength of sets that hit considerably harder than the recording circuit tends to suggest.
The Velvet Room + The Algiers featuring guitarist Terry McDermott complete a strong three-act local bill. Free entry.
Cabaret Fantastico 2
16 May | Cheerz
Hosted by Sid Ozalid, Cabaret Fantastico returns for a second edition with a lineup of performers spanning multiple styles. Acts include The Creative Martyrs, Lucy Beth, Martin Bearne, Lisette The Duchess, Eoin Smith and a mystery guest.
A night built around performance that doesn't follow a predictable format, from a promoter with a track record of putting interesting bills together.
Making Waves: Amazing Machines
16 May – 25 Oct | Aberdeen Art Gallery
Cabaret Mechanical Theatre brings a collection of contemporary automata to Aberdeen Art Gallery for the summer. Unlike their 18th-century predecessors, these makers leave the inner workings fully visible, inviting you to follow the cogs, cranks and cables alongside whatever action they produce.
The works range from a kissing couple and a wiggling figure to sheep shearing and swimming demonstrations. All are hands-on.
Paul Black: Cash Cow
16 May | Tivoli Theatre
Glasgow comedian Paul Black returns to stand-up with a new hour following his sell-out sketch show All Sorts, delivering sharp observations, character work and impressions. He received Sir Billy Connolly Spirit of Glasgow Award nominations in both 2023 and 2025.
The show draws on the relaxed Glaswegian storytelling style that has made him one of the more talked-about names on the Scottish comedy circuit.
WayWORD Presents: Douglas Stuart: John of John Book Launch
17 May | Cowdray Hall
Booker Prize-winning author Douglas Stuart launches his third novel at a WayWORD event. John of John follows John-Calum Macleod, a young man returning home to the island of Harris with little money and little to show for his art school education.
The event includes a book signing. Ticket holders receive a discount off the RRP of John of John, subject to availability.
WayWORD Presents: Women in Nature
17 May | Cowdray Hall
Nature writer Karen Lloyd joins We Are Nature Collective to share work around ecology, climate and land justice. Lloyd discusses her latest book Earthworks: Land and Nature in Uncertain Times, which explores the hidden life of habitats and their relationship to human activity.
We Are Nature Collective shares poetry from their first artefact publication alongside new work developed from walks in North East Scotland. Chaired by writer Mae Diansangu.
A Play, A Pie and A Pint: Kenmure Street
19–23 May | The Lemon Tree
On 13 May 2021, two men were taken from their home in Glasgow's Kenmure Street in a dawn immigration raid. Hundreds of residents surrounded the van and held an eight-hour stand-off until the men were released. This verbatim drama reconstructs those events.
Drawn from interviews, news reports and eyewitness footage, the play marks five years since the day and sits in a longer tradition of community-rooted Scottish theatre.
Ruts DC
21 May | Cafe Drummond
Ruts DC formed following singer Malcolm Owen's death in 1980, with guitarist Paul Fox and bassist Segs Jennings continuing under the DC suffix across more than four decades of touring and recording.
Their sound sits at the intersection of punk and reggae, and their back catalogue includes some of the most distinctive records to come out of the late-70s British punk scene.
WayWORD and Peacock Presents: Geothermal Soundwalk
22 May | Science Teaching Hub
Artist Maja Zećo leads a soundwalk exploring sound above and below ground, in response to the Aberdeen Geothermal Feasibility Pilot. The listening exercises mirror the way the pilot uses seismic nodes and a borehole drilled to over 500 metres to read the city from beneath.
Following the walk, researchers behind the pilot discuss findings that could point toward low-carbon heating for Aberdeen. Peacock & the worm Curator Rachel Grant joins to discuss the related Sensing Energy Transition exhibition.
May Music Extravaganza
23 May | Music Hall
Eight local choirs, school ensembles, the Brass Monkeys Quintet and pianist Joseph Long perform a charity concert directed by Morag Simpson, covering pop, musical theatre, jazz, Latin American rhythms and choral works by Fauré, Orff, Bruckner and Rossini. Over 160 voices in total.
Proceeds go to Charlie House, Grampian Heart & Health and Aberdeen Performing Arts, making this one of the more substantial local fundraising concerts of the year.
Tyrannus + Sacred Noose + Gype + Maryth + Acid Attax
23 May | Krakatoa
A five-band bill spanning black thrashing death metal, black/death/doom, D-beat hardcore, noise and punk. Tyrannus headline, with Sacred Noose + Gype + Maryth + Acid Attax in support.
All door charges go directly to the bands. Neon Lounge closes out the night.
Allegra
26–30 May | His Majesty's Theatre
Dame Maureen Lipman takes the title role in Peter Quilter's new comedy with music, playing a woman who bursts into song at home, in the street and in local shops, accompanied sometimes by an orchestra only she can hear.
Lipman's first UK tour in twenty years, the show asks how far you can protect someone you love without dimming the thing that makes them who they are.
BrettFest Goth Party 2026
29 May | Krakatoa
A four-act night of gothic synthpop and industrial headlined by Attrition, the classic UK darkwave act formed in Coventry in 1980. Support comes from Sl!ce + Heart of Hecate + ElvinaX.
Aberdeen's Sl!ce brings dystopian gothic; Glasgow duo Heart of Hecate deal in occult synthpop; and Aberdeen's ElvinaX rounds out the bill with dark electropop.
Until next time...
That's it for another month folks. As always, we'll let you know about many more events throughout May on our What's On page and through or social channels.
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K+C xx
