Tactics- Theatre Upstairs – Review by Frank L.

Written by Finbarr Doyle & Jeda de Brí

Set somewhere in the Midlands in Ireland, Medbh (Nessa Matthews) is the daughter of a deceased politician who is running for election. It is around lunchtime and she is due to be driven to Dublin to be interviewed on television in a couple of hours. She is with a young man, Jimmy (Kieran Roche), who works in a bar. It is pretty obvious that his presence in Medbh’s house does not easily fit with her marriage vows. Her husband, Michael (Finbarr Doyle), arrives home unexpectedly. He is a solicitor and his criminal court case finished early as the accused pleaded guilty. The three points of the eternal triangle are now in place. To Medbh and Micheal the events which have happened and which subsequently happen need to be concealed even if they are at daggers drawn against each other. Jimmy is a mere piece of meat in their sandwich. He does not seem to matter to either of them. The paramount interest of Medbh is that the events which have taken place in her home shall not be discovered. She sets her mind to ensuring that end is achieved.

My initial reaction was that the plot was too outlandish but on reflection I thought possibly not, as I remembered the case in England in the 1970’s of the leader of the Liberal party, Jeremy Thorpe, and the death of the dog Rilka. Strange things can and do indeed happen to politicians. The three actors commit themselves with determination to their roles. There is an effective interplay between them which ensures that the audience is often taken aback at the lengths Medbh will go to achieve her ends. Worth a visit.

CAST:

Nessa Matthews as MEDBH

Kieran Roche as JIMMY

Finbarr Doyle as MICHAEL
CREATIVE TEAM:

Director / Jeda de Brí

Set Design / Aoife Fealy

Lighting Design / Eoghan Carrick

Costume Design / Christina Byrne

Graphic Design / Ste Murray

DATES: Tuesday, June 17th – Saturday, June 28th

1PM Performances:

Tuesday – Saturday
(June 17th – 21st / June 24th – 28th)

7PM Performances:

Thursday – Saturday
(June 19th – 21st / June 26th – 28th)