Joni 1971:

This is a digital working book for Joni 1971.

This project is being developed with the support of Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity and a pilot route through festivals, and not for profit venues.

It is shared for private evaluation only. Please do not forward.

Rights Request

A fifteen minute documentary capturing the work created during the Banff residency in February 2026, featuring interviews with the creators and producers of the project, alongside short extracts that demonstrate the form, the headphone experience, and Lisa’s performance. It is intended for private evaluation by invited presenters and the rights holders. Not for public release or onward sharing

About Joni 1971

The experience

Studio C, 1971

Set and Staging

The show is staged on a 16 foot square deck, 400mm high, with the audience on three sides.a full size projection screen to the rear showing live stream close ups. Objects on the deck include: upright piano shell with concealed electric piano, acoustic guitars, dulcimer, microphones and baffles, music stands, cables and cases, standard lamps, a reel to reel, and a vintage mixing desk shelling modern control.In a proscenium venue, the audience sits on stage around an apron extending into the auditorium.

Key facts
Deck: 16 foot square, 400mm high
Primary configuration: three sides
Proscenium version: on stage audience around apron

Sound and Headphones

Headphones are the primary delivery method. The mix is curated live.Songs aim for album clarity and period feel, using close mic technique and controlled reverb.

Spoken passages have more flexibility in mic perspective and distance.

All audio is created for this production. No master recordings are used. Any additional sound material, if used, is newly created and delivered within the live performance.

Headphone failure plan

FOH holds charged spares and swaps individual headsets at the next natural break.A backup transmitter feed can be switched in immediately if the primary feed drops.If there is a wider system failure, the show continues using in room acoustic sound and a simple house PA mix while the headset system stabilises.If stability cannot be restored quickly, the session is paused, the audience are informed, and the show resumes once a reliable listening method is restored.

Key facts
Mix: stereo, one feed for all
Operation: onstage mixer with FOH monitoring
Audio: live only, no masters

Script

The script is a rehearsal draft developed at Banff Centre in February 2026.It is written as a studio session in A and M Studio C, Los Angeles, 1971. The action stays inside the room. The piece runs in real time and is structured in four reels.

The text is written by Graham McLaren. It is based on research across long form interviews, documentaries, and biographies.

It uses Joni Mitchell’s words as source material, but the spoken text is re phrased and shaped for the stage, rather than presented as verbatim quotation.The draft combines three kinds of material:

Live performance of songs
Studio talk and working process, including talkback and session notes
Interior passages, marked through sound treatment rather than changes of location

songs

The song list has been refined since we bagan working. The current working list is below. The final list will be confirmed for rights clearance.

Full performances at this stage.
Spoken layering is under exploration.
Lyrics are not altered.

Both Sides Now
Cactus Tree
I Had a King
Chelsea Morning
Big Yellow Taxi
Woodstock
For Free
Conversation
Little Green
All I Want
My Old Man
Blue
California
This Flight Tonight
A Case of You
River

The current draft includes a short piano underscore moment labelled “Whilst Piano plays The Last Time I Saw Richard” during an onstage writing action. This will be clarified as underscore only, or replaced with non specific piano underscore language in the next draft.

Key facts
Songs: 16
Performance: live

Team

Graham Mclaren

Writer/Director/Designer

Graham McLaren is an internationally acclaimed Scottish theatre maker with more than 30 years’ experience creating award winning work across four continents. He has led two national theatres as Artistic Director of the Abbey Theatre, Ireland’s National Theatre, and as Associate Director of the National Theatre of Scotland, and founded the internationally acclaimed, Theatre Babel. He has served as Artistic Director of Perth Theatre, Scotland and as Associate Director for Necessary Angel, Canada. His productions include large scale international tours, festival commissions, and innovative re imaginings of classic and contemporary texts. Graham’s work has been presented at leading venues and festivals worldwide, including Edinburgh International Festival, Sydney Opera House, and Luminato Festival Toronto.

Nick Sagar

Sound Designer

Nick Sagar is an internationally recognised sound designer and composer for theatre and live arts. He is a long standing collaborator of the late Robert Wilson, with sound design credits including Letter to a Man, Jungle Book, Mary Said What She Said, and I Was Sitting on My Patio This Guy Appeared I Thought I Was Hallucinating. His work has been presented by leading institutions including Théâtre de la Ville Paris and Manchester International Festival.

Lisa Lambe

Lead Perfomer

Lisa Lambe is one of Ireland’s most acclaimed actors, singers, and folklorists. She was central to the international success of Celtic Woman, earning Emmy and Grammy nominations and six consecutive Billboard World Artist of the Year awards. On stage, she has played leading roles at the Abbey Theatre and The Gate Theatre in Dublin, in works by Paul Muldoon, Edna O’Brien, and Brian Friel, and won recent acclaim in the leading role for London’s National Theatre. Internationally, she has performed at Radio City Music Hall New York, Red Rocks Colorado, Glastonbury, and Irish Arts Centres in New York, Paris, and London. The Irish Times describes her as “the finest singer and actor of her generation.”

Next phase

A six week creation period is planned once the rights are fully secured .