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Disclaimer:
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Reviews Louisville Irish Fest presents Reviewed by Cristina Martin Entire contents are copyright © 2009 Cristina Martin. All rights reserved.
After several years' hiatus, the Louisville Irish Fest has made a triumphant return. Hosted by the Irish Arts Foundation of Kentucky and held on the quadrangle at Bellarmine University, it was a lovely weekend devoted to celebrating all things Irish, from traditional music and dance to handiwork, food and drink. For the first time this year, the festivities featured a theatrical performance a costumed Reader's Theatre adaptation of Irish playwright Dion Boucicault's lively melodrama, The Shaughraun. And what, you might ask, is a shaughraun? Literally, a wanderer, a vagabond, a restless adventurer; in this case, a congenial, clever fellow named Conn O'Kelly (Austin Clark), who gets himself into and out of all manner of mischief, never losing the twinkle in his eye. Boucicault himself played the winning protagonist when The Shaughraun opened in New York in 1874, and he starred in many subsequent performances as well. Throughout the latter half of the nineteenth century, Boucicault enjoyed considerable popularity on both sides of the Atlantic as both actor and playwright, often championing the Little Man whose ever-present wits and charm help him to prevail. The Shaughraun centers around Robert Ffolliott (Jim Watters), who has been denounced by police informer Harvey Duff (Bob Hammer) ostensibly, for anti-government activity - and is away in a penal colony in Australia as the play opens. Ireland is under British rule, and the country is crawling with Redcoats eager to root out any subversive behavior on the part of Irish nationalists. Robert's sister, Claire (Whitney Miller-Brengle), laments his absence, as does his fiancée, Arte O'Neal (Taylor Brengle), but not for long. With the help of his friend Conn the Shaughraun, Robert returns, only to find the dastardly country squire, Corry Kinchela (Rick O'Daniel-Munger), threatening his land with foreclosure and his lady love with unwelcome romantic overtures. Meanwhile, Claire has caught the eye of a British soldier stationed nearby, Captain Molineux (Liam O'Daniel-Munger), and she finds herself falling for him in spite of herself and her Irish sensibilities. Conn has his own romantic intrigue with Moya (Meredith Fitzsimmons), the niece of Father Dolan (Gary Marvin). Schemes and treachery abound as Robert is freed and recaptured and then freed again; people are kidnapped; somebody dies (or does he?); in short, plot threads are knit together as skillfully as an Aran sweater, with an equally pleasing result. Boucicault's characterization is very entertaining stereotypical and sometimes overblown, sure, but that's the nature of melodrama. The predictable can be comforting; the Good and the Villainous face off and I'll bet you can guess who wins in the end. The fun lies in just how we get there, and The Shaughrauns spirited dialogue moves the action along and keeps the audience chuckling. In one memorable line, clergyman Father Dolan speculates that Corry Kinchela's nastiness could be due to the fact that when St. Patrick drove the snakes out of Ireland, one large vermin stayed behind and took up residence in the man! The characters may be drawn with broad strokes, but the way they're depicted is never boring. This cast rose bravely to the challenge of relying overwhelmingly on their vocal expression to bring Boucicault's characters to life. In Reader's Theatre, the actors usually read from their scripts instead of memorizing lines (though notably, all three narrators Brandice Combs, Kate Barry and Bryanna Shelby performed without scripts), blocking is rudimentary, and set and props are minimal. Expecting a bare bones sort of experience, then, I was delighted at the richness and polish I encountered. A beautiful backdrop featuring rolling hills, vibrant greenery, medieval ruins, and a full moon shining over the sea provided a visual starting point, and a colorful array of skirts and shawls, uniforms and sundry outfits captured and held the attention. A table formed by a door (which actually figures in the plot) placed on top of two big barrels held a handful of props, including a number of whiskey bottles and a teacup. Most importantly, however, as Nancy Miller, President of the Irish Arts Foundation of Kentucky, put it so well in her opening remarks, a scripted reading like this one lets the audience's imagination soar in the most extraordinary way, as the mind uses what is heard to flesh out what is not seen. Traditional Irish music performed by Rachel Blanton on violin and Josh Bailey on flute created just the right tone throughout to allow us to do so. The actors were clearly very familiar with the script and with their respective characters. All were well cast. As Mrs. O'Kelly, Dottie Wyman looked and sounded the part of the Shaughraun's mother perfectly, with particularly animated facial expressions. The younger women of the village radiated youthful energy, and as Conn's love interest, Meredith Fitzsimmons had ample opportunity to display her lovely smile. Gary Marvin brought out Father Dolan's struggle between obeying the law and showing compassion to his friends, and Bob Hammer provided perfidy and humor in equal measure in his role as the scoundrel Duff. David Brengle did admirable double duty as both police sergeant Jones and a villager by the name of Sullivan. Both members of the talented O'Daniel-Munger family who appeared in the production gave particularly memorable performances. Liam was an amusingly stiff, befuddled and besotted British army captain whose well rendered, clipped accent set him apart from the Irish characters from the very start. Rick was extraordinary as Kinchela, the central villain we love to hate. The gusto and focus with which he played the pompous, double-crossing magistrate anchored the entire production. And then there's Conn, more blithe spirit than anchor, whose reputation precedes him and whose presence pervades the play even when hes not on stage. Austin Clark's rendition was excellent. He was merry and irreverent and irrepressibly likable, and he has an impressive singing voice to boot. Many of the actors were obviously experienced performers; it would have been interesting, not to mention a well deserved nod to the past accomplishments of cast and crew, if their bios had been included in the program. With the exception of Liam O'Daniel-Munger who played an Englishman, nearly all of the actors attempted an Irish brogue, with widely varying success. At intermission, a number of audience members complained of having to strain to understand the dialogue, not a good thing when it comes to Reader's Theatre especially. Had all the accents been consistent, I believe they may have been less jarring and easier to understand. Speaking of intermission, it seemed rather long in coming. The first part of the performance actually consisted of the first two acts of Boucicault's play, with the third act left for the latter part. This made for about 90 minutes before intermission and roughly 30 after. It seems it would be more prudent either to have two brief intermissions or to present excerpts or a truncated version of the play. On a positive note, however, delicious desserts and Irish coffee were served at intermission (a custom I think every theatre should adopt!). Whether the Jameson's was partly to thank or not, the second part of the production flew by in a burst of energy and good humor, a hearty and satisfying denouement. I hear that the Irish Arts Foundation of Kentucky plans to mount another production in early 2010. I'll be eager to see it and hope that it will be as entertaining and culturally enriching as this production of The Shaughraun. With any luck, Irish theatre will become a mainstay of Louisville Irish Fests to come.
The Shaughraun
September 25, 2009 at 7:30pm
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