Hothouse – Dublin Fringe Festival – Review
MALAPROP

PERFORMANCES – 12 – 15 September – 21:00, €18/€16
OTHER PERFORMANCES 10 & 11 September – 18:15
16 September – 13:00, €18/€16

This play opens with a short introduction by the Captain of our luxury cruise ship, the Crystal Prophecy. The Captain (Peter Corboy) is extravagantly gay, we know because he tells us so! He tells us about the trip we are about to take, it is to the Arctic to see where the ice used to be. We are then introduced to a family and in particular Ruth (Ebby O’Toole Acheampong). She is the centre point of the production that spans from 1969 to the present day and beyond, as we see the effects of climate change on this damaged family.

The writer of this play, Carys D. Coburn, was faced with the difficult task of how to deal with climate change through a piece of theatre. It is a topic so unremittingly bleak that most of us banish it to some distant part of our brains, while we deal with our day-to-day problems. The method used in this production is comedy, as we are presented with a number of grotesque cabaret numbers. The production jumps between different years, as we hear songs evocative of each era complete with some live vocals and dance routines. The family drama is played out in each of these time periods as we meet Ruth at different times of her life, and later her daughter.

The other element of the story is the birds, as we briefly see the many birds that have become extinct over the years this production spans. The birds are represented on stage by actors dressed in flamboyant costumes, with ruffled tails and wings (credit goes to the costume designer Molly O’Cathain for really outdoing herself). The birds arrive on stage and are quickly murdered in a variety of gory methods, as the captain dispatches these beautiful creatures.

The set is quite impressive, with a ruffled curtain hanging as a backdrop, which lifts to allow the ‘all singing, all dancing’ performers to make their way on stage. A circular screen hangs high above the set to one side, which shows the year where the production is currently set or other pieces of information for the audience.

The production does not pull any punches with our present predicament. It is a glamorous and at times deranged production that serves to remind us of the folly of our choices. Its use of the family saga serves to show us on a human level that we all have our own troubles. At one point, the cast brought deck chairs onto the stage, and you couldn’t help but think of the saying “to rearrange the deck chairs on the Titanic”. At 90 minutes, the production felt slightly too long with a final scene used to lighten the mood and put a positive spin on what went before. Overall, it is a rich and stylish production that leaves the audience with a bittersweet view of the beauty of the world around us, tinged with the sadness of what we’ve lost.

Project Arts Centre – Space Upstairs
Duration – 90mins

Writer: Carys D. Coburn with MALAPROP
Director: Claire O’Reilly
Cast: Peter Corboy, Thommas Kane Byrne, Bláithín Mac Gabhann, Maeve O’Mahony, Ebby O’Toole Acheampong
Set & Costume Designer: Molly O’Cathain
Composition, Musical Direction and Sound: Anna Clock
Lighting Designer: John Gunning
Choreographer: Deirdre Griffin
Assistant Director: Ellen Buckley
Associate Sound Designer & Sound Engineer: Eóin Murphy
Producers: Carla Rogers & Caoimhe Whelan
Costume Supervisor: Mary Sheehan
Stage Manager: Evie McGuinness
Assistant Stage Manager: Dragana Stevanic
Production Manager: Pete Jordan

Promo Photography by Pato Cassinoni with Art Direction by Molly O’Cathain