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Blood, humor flow in 'Inishmore'
(by Herb Hammer - October 01, 2008)
THEATER, BY HERB HAMMER
Blood, humor flow in 'Inishmore'
The locals of downtown Cleveland may not even know there is a professional theater company on Euclid Avenue near Public Square. But as a matter of fact, there is. The Bang and the Clatter Theatre Company, a spinoff of the Akron company with the same name, has been playing host here for the past few months.
The choice of plays, though unfamiliar to most Northeast Ohioans, has had excellent responses from New York critics.
Take the latest offering by award-winning playwright Martin McDonagh. This one would hardly land in suburban Cleveland, where theater is more prim and proper.
"The Lieutenant of Inishmore" is anything but proper. Mr. McDonagh's play is a bloody mess. In fact, six gallons of fake blood were used in the Broadway version. Those with strong stomachs will find this black comedy an exceptional romp.
The early scenes are less than bloody, but time brings about more carnage than can be found on any stage.
At the outset, Davey and Donny are trying to fix an unfixable problem. It seems that Davey has just run over Padraic's cat, the beloved Wee Thomas. Wee Thomas lies on the kitchen table with his brains tumbling to the floor.
Padraic is a vicious character and the leader of a splinter group of the Irish Republican Army. They threw him out. The IRA found him to be too mad.
The play moves quickly along with one character hanging by his feet and Padraic looking on.
When Padraic returns home to his rustic, rundown cottage, he finds that Davey has replaced Wee Thomas with a brown cat that Davey is covering with shoe polish to make him look like Wee Thomas. Padraic instantly catches on and blows the cats brains out. Bloody violence is just beginning.
The playwright has let us know that the characters are pretty stupid. They commit bloody violence in the name of causes they can't always remember.
When another splinter group arrives and begins shooting out the window, Padraic pops them off one at a time as blood starts to splatter all over the room.
Director Sean McConaha does have some gruesome tricks. A gunshot to the head has blood come flying out and splashing everywhere. Before it's over, chopped-up bodies lie on the floor with Davey and Donny sawing them into smaller pieces.
Believe it or not, this is all very comical.
Sean Derry is a ruthless Padraic and would be better off if his thick Irish brogue wouldn't be so difficult to understand.
Davey and Donny, played by Ryan McMullen and D. Michael Franks, are the only survivors and are a comical yet rather stupid pair. They are equally excellent.
Bethany Taylor, as Mairead, Padraic's girlfriend, is a rough, tough revolutionary, though as dumb as a rock. She eventually kills off her boyfriend for killing her cat. She's terrific.
All are up to the bloody task, and, if you can stomach the gore, you'll find it extremely funny.
Martin McDonagh has written another excellent play built on torture and violence. His "Pillowman" is another of his plays where awards were heaped on.
Sean McConaha does excellent work keeping humor clever and messy.
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