Sex, Drugs & Tinned Ravioli – by Andy Gallagher – Theatre Upstairs – until August 9th

Rick and Chloe have just broken up. Rick was Chloe’s first boyfriend and she really didn’t see it coming. She thought they had something special, something that would last. They were also due to share a tent at a music festival next week. These plans have been scrapped, and Chloe is now sharing with the girls. It is a chance for her to get over Rick and get on with her life. The girls have plans for her, to move on by ‘getting a ride’ with some new men. Rick is sharing a tent with his friend Stoney. Stoney has travelled to the festival with narcotics all sorts, a mixed bag of drugs he intends to consume over the course of the weekend. Rick plans to have sex with any girl with ‘four limbs and a hole’ as he so quaintly puts it. And so this tale of excess begins in field somewhere in Ireland.

This new play by Andy Gallagher gives us an insight into the world of the average music festival in Ireland. This is not a world of quiet young people, going to enjoy themselves and hear some new bands, this is the world of sex, drugs and alcohol abuse, and sounds closer to something happening Los Angeles than Stradbally!

The play has three main characters, with the actors taking it in turns to perform monologues at the front of the stage. There are also some scenes and flash backs that include interaction between the actors, but mainly they tell the stories of their conquests and the various substances they ingested. The stage is simple, with a triangle on the wall behind each character to represent their tent.

The play shows a lifestyle which is pretty far removed from anything I’ve witnessed at music festivals, but if the reports coming back from the Swedish House Mafia are to be believed, there is another world out there! Music takes a small role in the play, there is a mention of their failed attempt to see Professor Green  and a couple of other name checks. This is a play about the excess of youth and the things that their parents are never meant to know. It contains a lot of humour and while the substance abuse and promiscuity may be beyond the realms of reality, it’s an enjoyable flight of fancy. Don’t forget your wellies!

PREMIERES July 29th – August 9th

CAST

Andy Gallagher as RICK

Mark Hughes as STONEY

Joanna Kelly as CHLOE
CREATIVE TEAM

Director / Dylan Coburn Gray

Production Designer / John Gunning
DATES: Tuesday, July 29th – Saturday, August 9th

1PM Performances:

Tuesday – Saturday
(July 29th – August 2nd / August 5th – 9th)

7PM Performances:

Thursday – Saturday
(July 31st – August 2nd / August 7th – 9th)