Written by Martin McDonagh
Directed by Chris Sonnex
LIVERPOOL EVERYMAN
☆☆☆☆
Director Chris Sonnex unleashes the mad and the bad in this blistering tale of revenge for the death of Wee Thomas the cat. Martin McDonagh’s macabre snapshot of life on a remote Irish island during the burgeoning peace process in the Nineties is rich in gallows humour and is a wicked take on Irish sentimentalism and fervent religious and political fundamentalism. Celebrating the absurd in the tradition of Beckett, Sonnex ramps up the bizarre and comedic elements with a torture scene in a nightclub and members of the splinter terrorist group, the INLA, strutting on stage in balaclavas like a psychotic boy band stage singing the Village People’s Go West as they head from Northern Ireland to this remote Western island in Eire. The deceptively simple set design by Ellie Light and lighting by Laura Howard gives a great sense of the remoteness of this cottage on The Aran Isles while also allowing for high impact scenes in the nightclub on the mainland.
In a neat touch the whole cast are Irish and Northern Irish actors with several making their stage debut and some being graduates of The Lir Academy in Dublin where Gemma Bodinetz, previously at The Everyman, is now Artistic Director. The cast clearly relish their roles in a production where the comic book violence permits OTT performances and McDonagh’s quickfire dialogue of quips and barbs is always hi-energy and perfectly paced. Alan Turkington and Taylor McClaine are great foils for each other as the unfortunate father Donny and his hapless young neighbour Davey. Together they wreak havoc as they try to cover up the death of Wee Thomas with the aid of an orange tomcat and an old tin of shoe polish. The ensuing results have echoes of an episode of Father Ted but with gallons of blood and poteen instead of whisky and tea.
The Lieutenant in question is Padraic, a fervent republican and ardent cat lover who is deemed too mad for the IRA and who is now planning his own splinter group in a break away from the INLA. Julian Moore-Cook imbues Padraic with an utterly believable dichotomy of perspectives. At home with Tarantinoesque violence, he thoughtfully offers a menu of torture options to his hostage and won’t hesitate to bomb and butcher yet can wail like an anguished child over his beloved pet. Mairead is the 16 year old Irish beauty who can sing an Irish ballad like a celtic angel while cooly polishing her sniper skills by blinding the local cows. Katherine Devlin is excellent as the republican ingénue who is ultimately more terrifying than the combined force of the INLA.
Liverpool Everyman celebrates its 60th anniversary as a theatre that enjoys a reputation of being bold and innovative. This provocative production continues that proud tradition. McDonagh can divide opinion as a writer of Irish descent born in England yet writing so vividly on still sensitive issues in Ireland. Coming from Ireland myself and growing up during The Troubles I can recognise some of the potential issues but also how well this play reflects the duality and the complexity of human nature. This production does not shy away from the brutal violence or the madcap gallows humour often employed to cope with the horrific but also celebrates the humanity in all of us even when we are at our most inhumane.
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