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Seeing the happy faces around me, the lilting accents at intermission and the teary eyes as they expressed their love upon leaving the theater, all of this tells me it is an emotional experience that resonates with the Irish deep in their soul.
Patrick Shields, Ciaran Sheehan, Kerry Conte, Terry Donnelly,Gary Troy and Kevin D. Winebold
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On the other hand, if you aren’t schooled in Irish music and folklore, if you don’t bleed green, this show is a two hour tromp through a litany of anger, sullenness, bitterness and hopelessness.
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The show opens and closes with a cute refrain about how the Irish see music and romance in everyday life – and then proceed to drown out any spark of hope through a forced march of wrongs done to the Irish People through the years. The British get it the worst, starting from an early 1800s satirical piece in “Punch” and moving on with stops at their Empire, their food and their landed class. The Potato Famine then moves the narrative to America, where the show finds blames with the press, the politicians, the employers and the inhabitants of most major cities.
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And the show is not content with only telling the audience how much the Irish were hated, and singing about how much the Irish were hated. The cast reads selected articles and private letters aloud, writings from the 1800s by the very people that hated them the most. Frank McCourt didn’t write this show as much as dig in the archives to find the worst things ever said about the Irish and share them with us, for purposes unfathomable to me.
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The American Civil War forced them to fight brother versus brother, after which the Irish returned to (single handedly) build the transcontinental railroad, pave the streets of New York and dig Eire Canal. Intermission comes as a merciful break.
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In the second half we start with fun vaudeville and Jimmy Cagney, before trudging off to World Wars one and two. It all comes to a close with the assignation of John F Kennedy, before wrapping the show up reminding us that they are a happy people.
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Oddly, the unrelenting tales of woe don’t dampen the enthusiasm the cast brings to the show. The six member ensemble works hard to lift the mood from the dreary stories told. The ensemble of fine voices is nice, but it is the wonderful clear voice of Gary Troy that sells every song he sings.
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The odd directing choices of Charlotte Moore mainly work, unless you were sitting on the side. The Irish Repertory Theater has the main audience seating in front of the stage, but also has a significant amount of seating stage right, and this group was mainly ignored during the show. The staging features the cast primarily sitting on the detritus of travel, old trunks and suitcases, with the story teller or singer standing during their bit. It was interesting for a while, but soon ventured towards the animatronics for me. It seemed like the “The Carousel of Misery” at some depressing version of Disneyland, complete with awkward and forced comic relief.
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The Irish … and How They Got That Way.
Cast: Kerry Conte, Terry Donnelly, Ciaran Sheehan, Patrick Shields, Gary Troy, Kevin B. Winwbold
Director: Charlotte Moore
Writer: Frank McCourt
tickets
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Irish Repertory Theatre, July 22 – September 5, 2010
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Rating: If it sounds interesting to you
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What works: The songs and memories for those of Irish Heritage
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What doesn't work: The songs and memories for those not of Irish Heritage
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What you get to brag about to your friends: Hearing Gary Troy’s majestic voice soar on some well known Irish standards
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