An Tobar and Mull Theatre has unveiled an ambitious new three-year artistic vision, launched through its dynamic 2026 programme.We Know Where We’re Going, inspired by the iconic Powell and Pressburger film set on Mull, is a sweeping, multi-year creative initiative shaped by the urgency and ambition of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), a global blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and planet.
Each year, the organisation will bring one SDG theme into sharp creative focus, using the arts to spark new ways of thinking, feeling and engaging with the world around us. In 2026, the focus is Life on Land (Goal 15) with a season driven by artists responding to landscape, biodiversity and our shared responsibility for the fragile ecosystems that sustain life.
Through theatre, music, visual art and community participation, the programme explores the interconnectedness of climate, culture, equity and imagination. As the only producing theatre and multi-artform creative hub in the Hebrides, An Tobar and Mull Theatre demonstrate how culture can lead from the front in shaping a more hopeful and sustainable future.
Goal 15 speaks of protecting, restoring and promoting sustainability; reflecting this and central to the visual arts programme is Dundee-based artist Calum Wallis’s exhibitionThe Ground Shakes (until 26th June). Supported by Creative Scotland and The Geological Society, the exhibition traces a geological journey across Scotland, following the Highland Boundary and Great Glen fault lines through a landscape in constant transformation. Through large-scale drawings, etchings, stone lithographs and film, Wallis reflects on the immense forces shaping the land and our fleeting place within deep geological time.
Further exploring humanity’s relationship with the natural world,Invasive Species – launching later this year – is an immersive outdoor audio walk set within the breathtaking landscapes of Aros Park. Created by Fast Familiar, this unique experience blends storytelling, sculpture and sound to examine themes of belonging, environmental change and human impact.
The 2026 programme also highlights major partnerships and collaborations aligned with Goal 12: Responsible Consumption and Production. Marking the Royal Scottish Academy’s 200th anniversary, An Tobar and Mull Theatre will present a specially curated film programme by painter and filmmaker Ronald Forbes RSA, bringing the work of leading artists to audiences in the Hebrides. These films explore themes of movement, time, space and perception. Collaboration continues through an artist exchange and residency programme connecting Scotland and Cornwall, extending creative dialogue across geographical boundaries and strengthening artistic networks.
In summer, Scottish artist Eve Campbell (from 11th July) presents a vibrant exhibition of exuberant wall hangings, accompanied by hands-on workshops in screen printing, ceramics and textiles inspired by the natural world in the highlands.
The theatre programme delivers powerful storytelling that reflects the urgency and relevance of the SDGs. Stand and Deliver: The Lee Jeans Sit-In (30th May) tells the extraordinary true story of the 1981 occupation of a Greenock factory, where women workers fought for their rights – a compelling reflection of Goal 5: Gender Equality. Developed in collaboration with women involved in the strike, the production brings this pivotal moment in Scottish history vividly to life. Award-winning actor and producer Scott Kyle presentsIt’s Not Where You Start (16th July), a moving and often humorous autobiographical performance blending theatre and animation. Tracing his journey from foster child to foster carer, school dropout to university graduate, and Glasgow streets to Hollywood sets, the work reflects themes aligned with Goal 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth, highlighting resilience, opportunity and transformation.
For younger audiences,A Home for Hamish (1st July) explores Goal 4: Quality Education through a colourful, immersive adventure for children aged 4–7 and their families. Combining dance and British Sign Language in an interactive sensory world, the production celebrates collaboration, creativity and learning.
Themes of wellbeing, inclusivity, and sustainable communities, central to Goals 3 and 11, run throughout the music and comedy programme. Acclaimed YouTuber Bruce Fummey brings humour and history together inScotland Made the World (30th April), delivering sharp insights alongside laugh-out-loud storytelling, while experimental folk duo Amulet (23rd April) create evocative soundscapes using looped guitar, analogue synthesis, and field recordings, exploring the landscape and history of granite quarrying and its continuing impact on the island. The programme also embraces community celebration, with the annual Pride event taking place on Sunday 21st June, inviting audiences to Tobermory beach for face painting, glitter, and music.
Highlands-based songwriter Iona Lane (9th – 10th July) draws on ecology, conservation and island life, weaving poetic songs rooted in place and landscape. While Cuban guitarist Ahmed Dickinson Cárdenas (25th June) takes audiences on a rich musical journey through the traditions and contemporary sounds of Cuba.
Rebecca Atkinson Lord comments,From our edge-of-the-Atlantic home on Mull, We Know Where We’re Going is our way of setting a creative compass for the years ahead. Through this programme we are inviting artists and audiences to reimagine our place in a better future for us all. This year’s focus on Life on Land (Goal 15) grows directly from the landscapes that hold our stories — the paths we walk, the weather we endure, the fragile beauty we depend upon for spiritual and economic sustenance. Yet the season also speaks to the wider ambitions of the Sustainable Development Goals, recognising that the future of culture, community and the natural world are inseparable. We believe that powerful ideas can take root in remote places and travel far. By nurturing bold artistic voices here on Mull, we are contributing to a national and global conversation about how creativity can help us imagine, and build, more hopeful futures.
From its island base, An Tobar and Mull Theatre is creating work that resonates far beyond Mull’s shores, positioning itself as a vital space where artists and audiences come together to test ideas, spark dialogue and imagine new futures.
This post was last modified on April 1, 2026 4:43 pm