WITH help from City of Culture, The Abbey Theatre made it to Lime Tree Theatre 18 months ago with ‘The Plough and Stars’. Then we saw ‘Sive’.
Now The Abbey returns again, with a completely new production of the O’Casey classic. This is, of course, to do with Easter 1916 commemoration and is directed by the Olivier-award winning Sean Holmes who has clad this play in contemporary cloak.
The O’Casey is central to the theatre’s ‘Waking the Nation Ireland Ireland 2016 Centenary Programme’.
“I think it was brave of Fiach Mac Chongaile [artistic director] to invite Sean Holmes over from London to direct this ‘The Plough and The Stars’, brave of him to crack the egg and see what happens,” states actor Ian-Lloyd Anderson/ Jack Clitheroe. “My friends who are actors who have been to see it say they look at it with fresh eyes”.
Alluding to the layers of significance the playwright wrote into this turbulence on Dublin’s streets and in people’s hearts and minds, “You are allowed to un-lock with this production, it bring it into a modern tense. It makes access easy. It’s exciting and engaging for an audience and so amazing as an actor to do that”.
Photo: Fennell Photography 2016
Clitheroe goes off to join the Irish Citizens Army that organises the revolt against British bastions – to the annoyance of tenement dwellers sheltering from the shellshot and confusion.
Playing Jack “was on the bucket list, one to strike off” for Anderson. Television audiences will know him from ‘Love/ Hate’ (Dean, dead now) and ‘Game of Thrones’ 5 (Derek).
Who is Jack to Ian-Lloyd Anderson? “A man who is quite a basic man with a particular set of ideals to do with family, to do with Ireland. The line between family and commitment to the cause becomes blurred”.
Underlining how very few and radical the volunteers were, he perceives his character to be “strong, bullheaded, macho, a vain man” who ultimately, sacrifices his wife and life for country.
He describes Holmes’ production as “very loyal” to O’Casey’s vision: “There’s a massive difference between a style of production and an adaptation. This is completely loyal to the script”.
At Lime Tree, MIC from Tuesday May 10 to Saturday 14, 8pm. Matinée on Saturday at 2.30pm.
