The Lonesome West
This play is part of a trilogy including The Beauty Queen of Leenan and The Skull in Connemara written by four time Tony Award nominee and two-time Academy Award winning playwright Martin McDonagh. All three plays depict the outrageous and homicidal goings-on in the Western Ireland town of Leenane. The plot revolves around two brothers who are locked in an endless battle of bickering, insult and ridicule. Vicious retaliation and vengeance is disclosed more and more as the play continues. The alcoholic parish priest attempts to calm the relationship but, failing to do so, comes up with a scheme that bets his very soul on their reconciliation. The fourth character of the play is that of a foul-mouthed teenager called “Girleen” who aids minimally the progression of the story.
The Lonesome West, however, is not the strongest play in the trilogy. It lacks the narrative warmth, psychological depth, and even suspense that we come to expect from McDonagh. The constant brutality and violence become repetitive. The loneliness, (so obviously alluded to in the title), accompanied by the boredom, despair, and sheer helplessness of these ignorant, virginal, isolated villagers is not sufficiently illustrated to the audience to give any explanation of what might prompt such idle mayhem. I had the feeling that this tale would have worked much better as a short farcical skit.
Unfortunately The Ruskin Group Theatre Co. did not succeed in adding anything to the material that would make it more palatable. The set (Cliff Wagner) was very good, artistically and professionally painted by GJ Strawn; rustic, uninviting, and so worn that it was surprising and funny that the two brothers would fight battles and connive over its ownership. The music (The Young Dubliners) was interesting because it was probably the sounds the two brothers would actually be hearing in their world. It might have served the production though to have included some of the old, sad, and yearning melodies we associate with Ireland; the element of tenderness would have helped in our understanding; it was just this total lack of pathos that crippled our appreciation of the story and its characters.
Of the cast, Jason Paul Field was the most experienced, and he performed well. Conor Walshe (Father Welsh), an actor with whom one could work, missed opportunities to bring some depth to the progression of events. When he delivered his long monologue he wasn’t relaxed or sure enough of himself enough to speak in his true voice; his delivery is too quick without variation or build. These problems are not so difficult to solve. Rachel Noll (Girleen) showed promise; Jonathon Bray (alternate in the part of Valene), attempted to bring “primness” to his character. As in almost every Irish production the actors strove too hard to achieve authentic accents failing to realize that clarity is much more important to audiences. Director Mike Reilly has the opportunity to solve many of these problems as the run continues.
The Ruskin Group Theatre Co. must be applauded for attempting such difficult material and giving actors the opportunity to ply their craft.
Ruskin Group Theatre
3000 Airport Rd., Santa Monica, Ca. 90405
Jan. 27-March 4, 2012. Fri. & Sat. 8pm, Sun. 2pm
(310) 397-3244
http://www.ruskingrouptheatre.com