Half Light – Smock Alley – Review

10 – 14 Jan | 7.30pm | Main Space

As part of the First Fortnight Festival

Robin is a happy-go-lucky ten year old boy. His father writes and illustrates children’s books and works in a shed at the end of their back garden. It is his father’s 40th birthday but for some reason he is in bad form. He is not his usual self and does not read Robin a bed time story. When Robin tries to find out what is troubling him, he realises that his father has disappeared inside one of his own books. Robin sets out on a magical journey to find him, travelling through forests and climbing to the peak of the highest mountain in search of his father.

This production was the winner of the First Fortnight Award at the Tiger Dublin Fringe Festival last year. This prize is given to a production that in some way relates to mental health and is staged during the First Fortnight Festival. As you enter the theatre, the cast are already on stage, with four of them playing musical instruments. The small band play flute, guitar, keyboard and drums. The story is told through music and song as we follow Robin on his journey.

As with most Fringe shows, the set is not integral to the story and much is left to the imagination. There are a number of pine trees at the back of the stage (left over Christmas trees?) and then a collection of odds and ends on the ground. The band are on one side of the stage and Robin (Foley) is on the other, although he does venture into the audience on occasion!

While this tale is obviously suited to a younger audience, it is in no way confined to it. The cast often interact with the audience and there are many laughs along the way. Fionn Foley plays our hero Robin with a wide-eyed innocence and some charm. The other members of the cast play the characters that Robin encounters along the way. They also create a variety of sound effects for the diverse locations that Robin finds himself in, which adds to the mirth. It is a playful and smart production that will leave a smile on your face.

For Audiences 8+

Directed by Mollie Molumby
Story by Richard Durning, Martha Grant, Kerill Kelly, Ursula McGinn, Mollie Molumby, Camille Oswald, Colm Summers and Tilly Taylor.
Songs by Fionn Foley
Set + Costume Design by Ursula McGinn
Lighting Design by Ellen Gorman
Produced by Michael Stone
Sound Design by Richard Durning

Cast: Juliette Crosbie, Richard Durning, Fionn Foley, Martha Grant and Kerill Kelly