The history of Tramway official starts in 1990, with the Capital of Culture. The connections made in that year led to an ongoing programme of performance that included regular visits from Peter Brook, Robert Lepage, Les Ballets C de la B and Belgium’s Victoria. In the past five years, Tramway has entered a new phase. The addition of a Hidden Garden out the back, the arrival of Scottish Ballet in a purpose built wing and a new emphasis on community engagement – much in the fashion of contemporary art policy – suggest that Tramway is moving in a new, dynamic direction.

There are two “theatres” within Tramway: the majestic T1, dominated by the apparently ancient red wall, built for the Mahabharata; the more intimate T4, a long, versatile space ideal for solo and immersive performance.  The stage in T1 is large enough for an opera house, and has hosted large scale ballet, opera and even orchestras. T4 was, for many years, the home of Into The New, the graduating programme of the Royal Scottish Academy’s contemporary performance degree.

Despite a location away from the city centre, Tramway has a profile that extends beyond the city. Its support of choreography that is more usually found in major venues, such as Sadler’s Wells, has made it something of a cult within the dance community. Aside from the visitors, it has supported local and emerging artists through a series of schemes. This heritage is reflected in the new dance studios, that offer residencies for artists like the goddess Iona Kewney or punk icon Linder.

During the IETM, Cryptic present Orlando – also part of Glasgay!  An appropriate choice, as Cryptic’s artistic director Cathie Boyd was inspired by Tramway during the year of the City of Culture. Her willingness to make large scale theatre, that pulls on opera, technology and elaborate staging echoes the diverse companies that have graced the former tramshed.

Both a fine example of how industrial spaces were occupied by the arts when traditional industries began to disappear, and an ongoing experiment in linking performance, visual art and public space, Tramway is worth a visit for far more than just a show. The Hidden Garden is a small oasis in a very urban city, the use of the cafe by the local community reveals the various creative groups at work. A brief tour unveils art classes and the rehearsals of Junction 25, Scotland’s most experimental youth theatre. A building so idiosyncratic can never be an emblem of Glasgow’s culture, yet it represents the best of the West Coast: individual, lively and constantly surprising.   

Can we tempt you to join our Jam Dating Agency? [Yes, you read that right.]

We’re looking people to pair with one another. Are you:

i) eager to make jam?

ii) looking at a bumper harvest this year?

Here’s the idea – it’s really very simple – let us hook up the makers with the producers.

All you have to do is tell us what you’ve got or what you’re looking for. At the moment we’ve got three young ladies who have jars on the hunt for locally grown produce. Come on people with (soon-to-be-heaving) plum trees and over-enthusiastic fruit patches – start sharing your wares!

Don’t worry if you’re an enthusiastic new-comer and your skills in the art of jam-making are as yet untested. It’s ever so easy, anyone can do it. To help point you in the right direction, here are a few top tips we’ve spotted:

Nigel Slater on the art and pleasure of jam-making.

Jamie Oliver’s strawberry and vanilla concoction.

The River Cottage community’s Gingered Courgette pot of gold.

Once you’ve made your jam, if you live anywhere near Glasgow then we’d like you to bring a pot along to Harvest 2010. On the 28th August at the Hidden Gardens, we’re hosting a mass open-air meal. As part of it we’re building a Jam Wall. A 3D pantone colour chart of jam jars, ranging from [lemon]yellow to black[current]. Bring your concoction with you and add it to our ever-growing communal sculpture.

Coming soon: find out about some of the work we’re commissioning for Glasgow Harvest 2010, including multidisciplinary art collective 85A’s Herbaceous Barbershop and photographer Neil Davidson’s Shed.

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To find out what Tasty twEATS & Harvest 2010, click here.