The Washington area’s unofficial Totally Irish Theater March Madness continues unabated this week, aided and abetted by Scena’s new production of Conor McPherson’s problem comedy The Weir. Now playing at the H Street Playhouse DC’s increasingly trendy Atlas Theater District, Scena’s current offering is the second iteration of McPherson’s play to hit the boards here over the last month or so, with the Keegan Theatre’s highly-regarded production opening first. In the immortal words of “Cheech” Marin, both productions are “the same, only different.”
The Weir is a play that in many ways follows the lead of G. B. Shaw: put a bunch of interesting, somewhat disparate characters on stage and let them talk. In this kind of play, plot is not exactly irrelevant, but it’s secondary at best, arising in many instances from the interesting gabfest itself that’s occurring on stage. Each character’s quirks, likes and dislikes, and touchiness on various issues serve to slowly but relentlessly reveal hidden life secrets.
Appropriately enough, The Weir takes place entirely within a rural pub, somewhere near Sligo town in Ireland’s still fairly wild West. Pub owner Brendan (Eric Lucas), who runs the marginal establishment at the behest of his wealthier sisters, entertains a couple of middle-aged regulars, namely Jack (Gordon Fulton), who runs a local auto repair shop, and Jim (Barry McEvoy) who occasionally helps Jack out when he’s not caring for his aging but still feisty mum.
Eventually, local hotelier Finbar (Brian Mallon) shows up with a young Dublin woman named Valerie (Kerry Waters), which occasions some gossip and ribbing, as Finbar’s wife is not accompanying them. And then, the stories commence. Ghost stories. Good ones. Tales of Irish fairies and long-dead but still-troubled spirits who roam the earth. And it’s through these stories that we begin to learn of the primary characters’ hidden sorrows, fortunately with ample doses of humor tossed in to avoid a descent into lugubriousness.
The Weir—whose title alludes to a small local dam where, presumably, still waters run deep—is, in the end, a marvelous, funny, tearful visit with ordinary people who sometimes experience extraordinary lives. It’s witty, somber, quarrelsome, and true, and it needs experienced actors to bring it to life.
Fortunately for area theatergoers, both the Keegan’s and Scena’s productions are really very good. (I’ve reviewed Keegan’s here.) But they are, as we’ve already indicated, different, ranging from the sets to the actors to the over all directorial touch.
The Keegan’s Church Street Theatre pub felt older, homier, and—via more pronounced sound effects—stormier, creaking, as it was, with the wind and the tiredness of the time-darkened old wood paneling that defined its limits. Scena’s pub seems to be of more recent vintage, sporting cheaper paneling, a somewhat more modern bar, and sporting an oldish CRT TV on the high shelf, a nice touch reflecting the play’s time-period just a couple of years before today’s flat-panel monitors became all the rage.
The Keegan’s cast of characters was a bit more cantankerous, perhaps a bit more authentic old coastal Irish. But Scena’s characters seem a bit more modernized, a little less quick to flash temper, a little more cautious in their reactions.
The character of Jack is the proverbial ball of fire in both productions. As portrayed by the Keegan’s Kevin Adams, Jack was a high decibel alpha male and a bit of a bully. Scena’s Jack, as portrayed by Gordon Fulton, was a bit more subdued, though still feisty, looking very much the part with his round, jolly Irish face and twirly white moustache. While spinning a good yarn, Fulton’s life-of-the-party Jack nonetheless proves a complex character, shadowed by sorrows and regrets that he eventually reveals, proving our initial suspicions.
Keegan’s Jim, as played by David Jourdan, was the embodiment of a rough but dutiful working stiff. Scena’s Jim, as portrayed by Barry McEvoy, is the strong, silent type, slow to reveal his inner self, he’s cautious, careful, but capable of great introspection and surprising depth. It’s an endearing performance that sneaks up on you before you are aware of it.
Keegan’s Finbar, played by Mick Tinder, was loud, swaggering, and obnoxious, an obvious nouveaux riche, more or less, whose bluster showed he still had something to prove. Scena’s Brian Mallon takes an entirely different tack on the character. Yes, he’s a bit forward, too, at the outset. But he’s easily embarrassed, somehow more eager to make peace than Tinder’s rough-and-tumble Finbar.
The Valeries in each production proved entirely different. The play’s dialogue clearly indicates that Valerie is 30-something, and in Keegan’s production it was clear that Susan Marie Rhea fell into that category. Scena’s Valerie, Kerry Waters, is a bit beyond that—and we mean no disrespect because we are, too. But the age difference here creates an entirely different dynamic, different expectations, and different psychological outcomes.
The central tragedy that Valery encounters is flavored by the age of the character. We might expect that a younger Valerie, as in the Keegan production, would be blindsided and completely confused by this tragedy, too early in life yet to have any experience in dealing with such a thing. Indeed, that’s how Susan Rhea portrayed her character, evoking a sudden, unexpected paternal reaction by the pub’s patrons.
A more experienced Valerie—as in Kerry Waters’ portrayal—is more a contemporary of the pub’s male denizens. Their reaction, too, is a bit paternalistic. But it’s also more halting, more subdued, more respecting of her space. Scena’s Valerie has, in a sad, yet magical way, become one of the boys by telling her story. They treat her with kid gloves, in their way, while also silently admitting her to their own version of what Jack London once called the “Fellowship of Pain.”
In the end, it’s this treatment of Valery that gives the Keegan and Scena versions of The Weir their distinctly different looks and feels. Keegan’s production was crisper, more sharply tailored, its characters bigger than life. Scena’s production is, if you will, a kinder, gentler one where sorrow runs deep and where humorous avoidance is at times the only answer.
The difference is confirmed by the conduct of Brendan, the pubmeister in both productions. Keegan’s Jon Towson played Brendan a bit younger and seemed content, after the opening scene, to remain on the sidelines of the action. Scena’s Eric Lucas, however—while still limited by the small number of lines McPherson has allocated this character—somehow seemed more an equal to the others, more of a master-of-ceremonies, fulfilling his duty to keep the momentum going once it had gotten started. And he, too, like the others, seemed to carry his own past and present burdens graciously even though they remained heavy as well.
It’s rare one gets a chance to see two entirely different versions of the same marvelous play within the period of roughly a month, but that’s what we’ve had a chance to experience with The Weir. Keegan’s Weir was, from a purely theatrical view, funnier, more boisterous, more purely entertaining, although the playwright’s message still came through loud and clear.
As directed by Robert McNamara, Scena’s Weir is in many ways a deeper, more literary interpretation of the same material. It breathes deeper, older, sadder, wiser. It’s a different kind of marvel entirely.
But perhaps the greatest marvel of all is McPherson’s play. That it can withstand two quite-different approaches and remain valid, meaningful, and entertaining while remaining thought provoking is a tribute to the skill of the dramatist. And it’s a tribute as well to the enduring humanity of the lonely, neglected rural characters McPherson paints with such affection, skill, and understanding.
The Weir runs thru April 24, 2011 at H Street Playhouse, 1365 H St NE, Washington, DC.
Details here.
Buy tickets.
The Weir
by Conor McPherson
Directed by Robert McNamara
Produced by Scena
Reviewed by Terry Ponick
Recommended
Running time: 1 hour, 30 minutes without intermission
Other reviews:
- Jenn deMayo. TheHillIsHome
- Benjamin R. Freed . Washington City Paper
I saw both productions as well, and I felt like I had to- and I totally support the reviewer comparing and contrasting the productions. I loved both productions, but as the reviewer mentioned the incredible and magical theatricallity is largely engrained in McPherson’s ethereal work. The fact that the two productions were so close together intrigued my interest as well as left a bad taste in my mouth, so to speak.
DC has a large and boisterous theatre scene, but a small and intimate theatre community. We see the same actors popping up all over the place and a never ending stream of new festival works with Fringe and Source etc. I find it interesting that the Scena director chose to step outside of this community to hire actors from abroad and then claim that THIS theatrical production was “genuine” and “authentic”, when, plainly, its theatre- it’s all pretend! To be frank, it was a rather tasteless and futile marketing attempting to debase another DC theatre’s production. In the end, I do not think the production was better for it.
What is the deal with this review? I know Scena did itself no favors by opening a play a week after another company closed their production of the same material, but come on, does the review need to be a side-by-side comparison? I’m not sure why, out of the rather large stable of reviewers DCTS has, they would send the same guy to review both productions?
Scena Theater’s production of The Weir was a true masterpiece. I was blown away by the production: the actors, the set, and of course the brilliant direction by established DC Director, Robert McNamara. Granted, I did not see Keegan’s production, however, I can say that this play at H. St. Playhouse is one of the best plays that I’ve seen in D.C. I was brought to tears many times throughout the evening. I was also laughing out loud. A poignant play, well-written obviously, but the actors brought this piece alive. I lived and worked ( and had a child) in Dublin. The accents in this play were authentic-of course some of the actors are Irish. I was transported back to Ireland and I enjoyed every minute of it. Keep up the good work, Scena!
Wow, I saw both productions of The Weir … and there was really no comparison. Saturday night, Scena’s rendition of The Weir brought me to tears three times. I was on the edge of my seat in the front row the whole time, mezmerized. The timing of the actors was perfect, and there was a lot of great interplay and chemistry amosgt the cast. They obviously understood the nuances of Irish storytelling. Then, a few minutes later, I was seriously laughing out loud. Cudos to the actors from Ireland … and I think one or two were from DC too. Anyhow, I am usually not overly-critical, but I have to be honest and say Keegan’s version of The Weir was not up to par. The accents were not good and there was a lack of ooomph in the storytelling. I actually nodded off a few times. And this is all coming from a guy who once lived in Dublin.
Interesting that for a supposed review of the Scena version of The Weir, the reviewer spends so much time reviewing the Keegan version. Comparing and contrasting is fine, but why so much time on a version that has closed up shop when the Scena version is playing now? I sensed a poke at Scena right off the bat by calling Keegan’s version “highly regarded” as if to imply the Scena version is not. Whether the Keegan version is good or bad or better or worse shouldn’t be the point. The Keegan version was allowed to stand on its own merit and be judged for what is was. Why not afford the same treatment for Scena’s version? In a town the size of DC, there should be room for all – the Keegans, The Scenas, the Kennedy Centers. All deserving of the same treatment. As for the Scena version, I found the play to be quite humorous and boisterous, while still thought provoking and at times even sad, as the reviewer noted. The truth is as someone who missed the Keegan version and will not have a chance to see it, the comparison falls flat for me. I’d rather read a review spent discussing the version that I did see, and more importantly, still have a chance to see. And that version, the Scena version, was incredibly acted, funny, poignant, and moving. Scena actually imported well-regarded Irish actors just for this show. I highly recommend seeing Scena’s The Weir while here, whether you saw the other version or not!