Drama at Inish by Lennox Robinson
Directed by Fidelis Morgan
Review by Sue Wilcox
A dreary Monday night in the middle of Earls Court in an intimate theatre above a pub/bar (make that seating just 50 folk) proved to be a genuinely joyful night out. The acting was superb at the Finborough Theatre as its tiny stage played host to Celia Imrie, Juliet Cadzow and Rupert Frazer as the biggest ‘names’ in Drama at Inish together with an ensemble cast of some other great actors.
The play, set in the early 1930’s and not staged for over 50 years, focuses on a seaside hotel that comes to life when a small, slightly down on their luck, repertory company arrive , armed with the most dramatic of Chekhov inspired dramas, in a sleepy town more used to the arrival of a circus. As the dramas unfold on stage, passions are ignited in the townsfolk to great comic effect.
A really simple set of furniture, great 30s period details and wonderful costumes all worked elegantly against a beautiful painted seashore and the natural sea and gull sound effects exaggerated the opening hustle and bustle of a town boarding house complete with the conceit of a large hall mirror up against the ‘fourth wall’ that every character checked their hat/grimace and smile in.
It really was a master class in intimate acting and to be so close, you could feel the swish of a cloak as characters ran on and off the set, to so many fine actors was a treat. Even the very last scene featured a strangely familiar tramp…revealed as Paul O’Grady with an outrageous ginger wig and an even more outrageous Irish brogue!