|
The Beauty Queen of Leenane is the first play in young Irish
dramatist Martin McDonagh's The Leenane Trilogy which includes
A Skull in Connemara and The Lonesome West.
The Beauty Queen was premiered by the Druid and Royal Court
Theatre Companies in Ireland in 1996 at the Town Hall, Galway,
before transferring to London's Royal Court Theatre. Following
this it moved to Broadway where it scooped four Tony awards,
including the award for Best Play.
Set in a shabby, isolated cottage in the west of Ireland,
the play tells the darkly comic tale of a mother and daughter
engaged in an epic battle of ordinary life. The mother whines
and bullies to get her way, while the plain, unmarried forty-year-old
daughter, resentfully carries out Mother's every command.
The women spend their days in endless rounds of petty insults
and physical threats, as each manoeuvre for control of their
isolated existence. When Maureen is offered a chance at love
and a new life with Pato Dooley, this once-benign terrain
grows treacherous and the two women, bound by blood but driven
by desperation, will do anything to survive. Pato's brother
Ray provides the light relief in this potent family drama.
It's a universal theme, as it applies to any place where people
are trapped by circumstances - whether it's family circumstances
or social circumstances.
Ennis Players first staged this production in their home
town in February 2002 & followed with a highly successful
tour of Ireland, playing to capacity audiences in all venues.
This play requires accomplished acting & intelligent direction
to transcend its essentially melodramatic plot & with Ennis
Players it gets this. While there is abundant black humour
in the Play, under Allen Flynn's expert direction we also
get the pathos in the characters. The current production has
won no less than four All-Ireland drama awards including the
coveted All-Ireland title (Best Play, Best Director, Best
Actress & Best Supporting Actor). The production then transferred
to the internationally acclaimed Bailiwick Theatre in Chicago
fro a limited run where it was lauded by critics and audiences
alike.
On the Irish touring circuit The Ennis Players production
of The Beauty Queen of Leenane gathered no less than five
Best play awards, Allen Flynn took four Best Director awards
for his work & Maura Walzer, as Maureen won six Best Actress
awards while Joe Varden won two Best Supporting Actor awards
for his role as Ray Dooley. Special awards were also received
for the ensemble acting, the overall Presentation (two awards),
the lighting, the props and a wonderful moment of theatre
was recognised with an award for the scalding scene.
This production has been described by the Irish theatre critics
as "flawless" … a "blazingly good" show ….. ".. every prop
is perfectly chosen …. I could smell the damp"… "The highest
compliment I could pay a director is that he knows his play
….. and by-God this director did". "A superb evening of entertainment
…. This is definitely a production not to be missed".
The completely authentic setting, with its peeling plaster,
drab walls and damp patches will be transported in its entirety
from Ireland's western seaboard to Melbourne. Even the sods
of turf, the 80-year old dresser, the turf-burning range and
such props as Complan, Oatmeal (porridge) and Kimberely biscuits,
will all be 'brought from home' …… everything, including the
kitchen sink. This mammoth undertaking is considered by Ennis
Players a fitting effort given the traditional ties between
the two countries which although separated by thousands of
miles are very close in heart & spirit. This exciting & emotionally
charged visit has already generated much interest from the
Irish emigrant community, who look forward to hearing the
authentic voices of Ireland on stage in their adopted country.
Ennis Players production of "The Beauty Queen of Leenane"
will be presented at The Athenaeum Theatre for a limited run
from July 3-5 and July 10-12, nightly at 8pm. Matinee is Saturday
July 12 at 2pm.
Tickets are $37.00 Adult and $32.00 with Concession (plus
applicable transaction fees). Tickets are available from the
box office at the Athenaeum theatre or at Ticketmaster
Australia
|
 |
|
