A GROUP of thespians are taking their show on the open road.

Dunbar And District Amateur Drama Association (DADADA) is putting on a five-date tour at venues in East Lothian and the Scottish Borders.

Bondagers, by Sue Glover, tells the story of the women exploited as cheap agricultural labour in the Borders.

Bondagers were 19th-century women farm workers who worked alongside Scottish ploughmen.

They were hired year by year at the annual event of the hiring fair, not knowing where they would end up.

The women formed bonds only with each other and the land, and were powerless against the very men who hired and housed them.

Bondagers follows a year in the life of six such women, from hiring fair to hiring fair.

The curtain goes up at Dunbar’s Harbour Chapel on August 21, before the story moves to Cockburnspath Village Hall on August 23. A performance takes place in West Barns Village Hall on August 25, then East Linton Community Hall on August 27 and Stenton Village Hall on August 30.

Each performance takes place at 7.30pm, with the exception of the performance at West Barns, which is at 2pm.

A DADADA spokesperson said: “By performing in Dunbar, Cockburnspath, West Barns, East Linton and Stenton, DADADA hope to bring a piece of Scottish history to local villages which may well have been the homes of bondagers in the past.

“We would be delighted to see the members of these local communities supporting this performance and being entertained by our fantastic cast, who have worked incredibly hard to put it together.”

Go to trybooking.com/uk/DIIO for tickets, £10.