7 THINGS YOU HAVE TO DO THIS WEEK

Sunday Herald, The, Mar 26, 2006

1THERE are few events where you would find whistling, armwrestling and genetic engineering on the same bill, but the Sheffield International Documentary Festival On Tour prides itself on the diversity of its programme. Films on this year's tour include The Armwrestler From Solitude, about a tiny Swedish village whose 16 residents are obsessed with the sport; Last Men Standing, following the Welsh miners who bought their own pit after the closures; Frozen Angels, looking at America's fertility industry and the current fashion for blonde, blue-eyed Californian babies; and The 3 Rooms Of Melancholia, about the effect the Chechnyan conflict had on the region's children. Full programme: www. sidf. co. uk. Dates and times vary, Filmhouse, Edinburgh (0131 228 6382); Glasgow Film Theatre (0141 332 8128); MacRobert Arts Centre, Stirling (01786 466666); Robert Burns Centre, Dumfries (01387 264808) BOOK EARLY: U- ROY THE reggae legend has worked with everyone, from Lee "Scratch" Perry to King Tubby. Although he's revered in his native Jamaica as one of the most important artists of the past 40 years thanks to hits like Wake The Town and Rule The Nation, he's also found many fans in the UK. U-Roy's visit to Triptych . . . playing Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Glasgow . . . promises to be one of the highlights of the festival. For full details, visit www. triptychfestival. com.

2 CINDERELLA was the most extravagant production in the company's history and now Scottish Ballet are back with their spring season Triple Bill. The repertoire features George Balanchine's rarely performed Episodes, the risqu MiddleSexGorge, set to music by punk rockers Wire, and William Forsyth's Suite From Artifact, revised two years ago for Scottish Ballet to mark the work's 20th anniversary.

Thursday-Saturday, 7.30pm, Edinburgh Festival Theatre (0131 529 6000); next Wednesday-Saturday, 7.30pm, Theatre Royal, Glasgow (0141 332 9000)

3 NEARING the end of their last tour before they lose their core funding from the Scottish Arts Council, political theatre company 7:84 are performing Free-Fall, Christopher Deans's drama about a family reuniting in their home for the final time. John and Cathy took advantage of Thatcher's rightto-buy scheme and bought their Lanarkshire council house. Two decades later, unable to pay their mortgage, they are being evicted and the house repossessed. Their grown-up children return to help them pack up their lives. Tuesday- Wednesday, 7.30pm, Citizens' Theatre, Glasgow (0141 429 5561); Thursday-Saturday, 7.45pm, plus Saturday 2.30pm, Dundee Rep Theatre (01382 223530)

4 SOULFUL Leeds singer and radio darling Corinne Bailey Rae, right, is at the Queen's Hall tomorrow, the latest lady to take part in their Vox Femina season. Bailey Rae obviously took a leaf out of KT Tunstall's book on how to go from bar singer to chart star . . . she made a last-minute appearance on Later With Jools Holland, got a couple of DJs to put her radio-friendly singles on a constant loop and before you can say Put Your Records On, she's this year's next big thing. Monday, 7.30pm, Queen's Hall, Edinburgh (0131 668 2019)

5 FORMED in Dallas in 2000, intense three-piece Secret Machines make an addictive, groove-based racket that sounds a little like Black Rebel Motorcyle Club but with more electronic effects. They're on the road to support their forthcoming new album Ten Silver Drops . . . a kind of prog rock, but not as we know it. Tuesday, 7pm, Liquid Room, Edinburgh (0131 225 2564); Wednesday, 7pm, The Garage, Glasgow (0141 332 1120)

6 THE Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford, below, are gearing up to present the Bard's complete works over the next year, but for now the company's touring arm are turning their attentions to Chaucer. In their last Scottish dates before they head for a three- week residency in Washington, they're performing The Canterbury Tales. Part 1 includes the Knight's, Miller's and Nun's Priest's Tales, Part 2 the Pardoner's, Wife of Bath's and Franklin's Tales. Tuesday-Saturday, 7.30pm, plus Wednesday and Friday 1.30pm, Barrhead Sports Centre, Glasgow (0141 557 4970)

7 SCOTLAND'S flagship Composer Laureate For Schools project winds up with a special gala concert by the Scottish Chamber Orchestra. Accompanied by the Edinburgh Secondary Schools Orchestra, they're premiering Rory Boyle's final commission for Edinburgh, Six Shades Of Blue. There's also a chance to hear music from the budding composers of tomorrow, with a selection of scores written by local pupils. Thursday, 7.30pm, Usher Hall, Edinburgh (0131 228 1155)