I was a little worried about seeing this show. I had somewhat higher hopes as the show reminded me of Little Women more than I would care to admit. But, it also had a few cast members from Derry Girls (my roommate is JEALOUS!). I absolutely adored the set. I thought the set had a really nice forced perspective that added a really balanced stage focus. I also really loved the direction and execution of ideas when staging Michael.

When Michael speaks his dialogue, he is looking at the other person in the conversation, while the person in the conversation is living out their life from Michael’s past. It truly is a memory play, and the scenes of dialogue make that point very clear. I don’t think the plot of the show was difficult to follow specifically because of the direction that was used in this show.

I also really liked at the end – which I didn’t notice on my own but was brought to my attention – the shadows that were cast on Michael when he delivered his final monologue. I’m not sure if they were to represent his past, present, and future selves coming together to talk to the audience one last time or if there was another desired effect. From my seat in the audience, I could not see these shadows, so I’m wondering if it was an accidental result that came from the lighting or if the purposeful lighting can only be seen in particular seats.

Another thing that was pointed out to me was the mouse! At first, I thought the cockroach from the Met made an appearance! But, alas, I was wrong. I believe there was a rigged mouse that ran across the floor near the sink during Michael’s final monologue! I’m not entirely sure of the purpose of this, though. I was trying to find a reason, but it only made me more confused.

The acting, the direction, and specifically the set has my heart with this show. Everything else, I’m not over the moon about. To set the picture, I was jumping up and down, waiting for our bus after getting off the airport. With this show, I was fighting the sleep demons the whole first act. After the initial breaking into the dance scene, the show really picked up and was much easier to follow. I think the accents may have been the initial barrier to enjoying the play as well, as after 20 or so minutes, I could understand what they were saying. But, I do feel as though I missed a lot of the jokes with solid punchlines that everyone else seemed to get except me.

The show wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t my favorite. I think the script itself has a few open-ended plot points that I would prefer to be tied up, and that is no fault to the actors or directors. The set itself was breathtaking. I was so focussed on the grass and how their shoes would sink into the grass as if it was cushiony. I want to know what they made that out of! Further, I want to touch it – badly. The stone tiles of the house and the use of no doors, I thought, were very clever. I think the actors did an amazing job creating the sense of a house with four walls. I loved the faces of the characters peeking out the windows as if there were flat walls that they couldn’t see past as well. The detail of the set and the direction of the characters were so well done; I just wish the script could have given the actors more justice.

We wrapped up day two in London by crossing the River Thames to head on over to the National Theatre. It was such a beautiful walk with a broad view and food trucks surrounding. After exploring the gift shop and purchasing an expensive can of still water, we headed to our balcony seats and got ready to watch our show, Dancing at Lughnasa. The stage was enormous and full of beautiful design. It presented as a rural Irish field with a dirt trail, tall crops, a haphazard pile of wooden farming equipment, all surrounding an open kitchen. The kitchen had beautiful plate shelving, early twentieth-century appliances, and a classic kitchen table right in the middle on top of a red antique rug. The sky was projected onto thousands of long strands that were hung from the top of the stage, ribbons that Rose and Christina both interacted with throughout the play as they played with the sky on a leisurely stroll. The cast was absolutely brilliant in their execution. The sisters all had amazing chemistry that established a beautifully complicated family dynamic. Christina’s love interest Gerry brought an upbeat excitement to the blocking, even if his role was specifically problematic. Uncle Jack was confused and confusing at the same time, but he acted as the inactive head of the household within the script. The narrator who also represented young Michael, Christina’s son, pulled the story together and added context where it was needed. However, the five sisters were the stars. Specifically, the dancing scene in the first act felt so extremely powerful as the volume of their radio and the click of the heels increased. Once that scene ended, the exciting feel of the play sort of dissolved into a preface of struggles to come and hints of war and famine. Though it was a painful and uninspiring story, the acting, direction, and set brought it all together as a wildly impressive piece.

This is what we came for! Last night, our group had the opportunity to see our first theatre show performed by the Olivier Theatre Company at the Royal National theatre! The performance is known as Dancing at Lughnasa written by Brian Friel. The story takes place through the memory of a summer during 1936 in a fictional town known as Ballybeg, Ireland. The narrator, Michael, reflects back on this time that he spent around his mother, his four aunts, and his uncle known as Father Jack. I was so excited to see this play in person because it was enjoyable to read the script in class. It reminded me of Little Women because of the dynamic sisterly relationships within the story. The plot of the play focuses on these five sisters and how they navigate through hardships as the Industrial Revolution impedes on their quiet life in the countryside of Ireland. They manage their difficulties together by dancing which seems to be a way that the characters speak to each other and comfort each other more so than through words. Despite my pleasure of reading the play, I did discover some pros and cons to my live viewing experience of this performance. 

Let us start out on a more positive note, shall we? As I made my way through the doors of the theatre’s performance hall, my jaw immediately dropped at the sight of the beautiful set. I think this might have been the most detailed and realistic set I have ever seen. My eyes immediately were drawn into the dirt and grassy path that led down from the back of the stage to the center where a central square was set up to resemble the kitchen of a home. I couldn’t believe how effective the set designers had been at making a portion of the stage appear to take place outdoors. There was grass outside of the home and wheat on either side of the dirt road. What truly made the set come to life though were these projecting lights that hung down from the ceiling. They projected images of light, the sky, and trees into the background of the set to further emulate an outdoorsy feel. I truly felt as though I were looking into the window of a home in the countryside of Ireland. 

Besides the stunning set designs, there were other aspects of the play that I also enjoyed such as the acting. My favorite character was the sister, Maggie who is played by the talented Siobhan McSweeny. McSweeny truly brought this character to life from the pages of the script with her lively body movement and animated voice expressions. I also really loved the way she delivered her lines and jokes throughout the play. I also enjoyed the character Kate. She was insufferable quite a bit because of her righteous traits, but I found it humorous whenever she would get all bothered by something someone said and how the other characters would try to nag at her. 

My favorite scene throughout the play was when all of the sisters started dancing which bothered Kate because she found it to lead to sin. However, as Kate sits at table, frowning upon the girls dancing ferociously around the house, she steps outside to dance alone. I found this to be a beautiful moment for her character to unleash her inner spirit and reveal a side of her she keeps hidden from the other characters. Previous to this scene, I had found myself struggling to feel engaged by the play. However, this portion of the play really made me feel alive as an audience member. I found myself leaning off the edge of my seat in excitement, wanting to rush down to the stage and dance with the characters. After this scene however, I found myself slowly falling into boredom once again. Perhaps my lack of attention was due to the jet lag that I was experiencing or the pure exhaustion that culture shock brings when you go to another country for the first time. 

I think that the true reason that I did not enjoy the play completely was because of the script and the plot. No matter how proficient the acting was or how ornate the set design was, I could not for the life of me stay entertained. I particularly did not enjoy the narration of Michael because I prefer plays that show rather than tell. This play translates well on script, but I found myself actually wanting to see the things that Michael was telling the audience about and I also found myself struggling to follow some of his narration due to how slowly he talked. I think in terms of narration, it all comes down to the fact that I simply did not like the actor ‘s voice for Michael in this play. I sometimes wonder if narration works in this play and if there would be more effective means of showing the depth of Michael’s memories rather than telling. 

While Dancing At Lughnasa has one of the most captivating sets of any stage and actors with the best attempts to bring the characters to life, It was still difficult for me as an audience member to feel moved by the play. I felt as if there were no real character arcs for anyone in the story which left me as a viewer feeling unfulfilled. I struggled to see a resolution to the story other than it simply being the interactions of a family for three hours. Some may argue that some plays and stories don’t necessarily need a resolution, but rather just exist as a display of the reality of everyday people. Many of the audience members surrounding me seemed to enjoy the play quite well for there were laughs to be heard echoing throughout the performance hall. Audience members who identify with the culture and characters of the play may find more value within the production for it focuses on themes of emotional memory and family connection.  The indication of other audience members’ enjoyment shows that there must be something good to take away from such a play, but when it comes to being entertained and emotionally moved by a performance, unfortunately this one was lacking for me.

By Brittaney Mann

“In that memory atmosphere is more real than incident and everything is simultaneously actual and illusory. In that memory, too, the air is nostalgic with the music of the thirties.”

from Michael’s end monologue in Dancing at Lughnasa

The National Theatre’s production of Dancing at Lughnasa by Brian Friel is gorgeous. The actors did a great job bringing the characters to life, the set was dazzling, and the sound effects created an immersive experience for the audience members. But this play does demand patience from the audience member because the conflict does not follow a natural rising and falling like on a plot mountain; this play exemplifies what an avoidance of conflict looks like.

The title is misleading to the actions that play out in the story, but maybe it is meant to be that way. Every action in this play has two sides to it, and nothing is really what it is. Surrounding the joyful conversations, the dreams of dancing once again, the dreams of Father Jack returning to his religious position, the hopes that Chris will be okay, and so on, are comments about reality — an admission of aging, of Jack’s thoughts changing, of knowing Gerry will never stay, of lost jobs impending — and these comments are brushed aside for dancing or conversations as mindless and soothing as song. 

“It drifts in from somewhere far away — a mirage of sound — a dream music that is both heard and imagined; that seems to be both itself and its own echo; a sound so alluring and so mesmeric that the afternoon is bewitched, maybe haunted, by it.”

Michael’s monologue continued

I had an epiphany at the end of the play, which brought comfort to me sitting through it. Michael recalls that there is one memory that he thinks of most often, and what fascinates him about the memory “is that it owes nothing to fact. In that memory atmosphere is more real than incident and everything is simultaneously actual and illusory.” This line I think sums up the magic of the set and why Chris and Rosie run their hands along curtains that have a projection of the natural scenery on them and why the music jumps from the radio to a louder speaker outside the stage. 

The actors did an excellent job to make this play engaging, but even with skillful allusions to their feelings through body language and tone of voice, it might still be difficult to track the story. I think this play is one that the audience member has to take with them outside the theatre to reflect on in order to feel fully satisfied with watching the performance. 

This play is great to see if you are willing to be wowed by the set immediately and later ponder the plot to fully understand the purpose of this story being shared. 

“And what is so strange about that memory is that everybody seems to be floating on those sweet sounds, moving rhythmically, languorously, in complete isolation’ responding more to the mood of the music than to its beat.”

Michael’s monologue

The last two days have felt like a week. It’s almost like time doesn’t exist here. I woke up at 4:30 AM yesterday, and it was completely bright outside. I couldn’t fall back asleep, so I decided to stay awake and read for a while. I attempted to meet people downstairs for breakfast, but I somehow ended up on a staff elevator and ended up in the kitchen… a nice worker man showed me how to get to the lobby, and all was well. After trying a full English breakfast for the first time, we got on a coach and got a tour of London. We spent three hours driving around London seeing the sights and getting a better feel for the city. Once we returned, a group of us traveled to a little vintage store called Hunky Dory. It was a cute little shop, but I was more obsessed with the area of town we were in. It felt like every surface of the city was covered in a combination of murals and graffiti that worked to tell the stories of the city’s character. We rounded out the night by going to the National Theater and seeing Dancing at Lughnasa.

First off, the architecture of the building was lovely. It is a brutalist type of building made with formwork concrete. The exterior is layered rectangle spaces, while the inside has a fun wood-like texture. I was obsessed with looking at the individual components that made up this building.

Once we made it into the theater, I was blown away by the beauty of the set. I don’t think I have ever seen a set with so much depth and character to it. The grasses, garden, and winding path stretched back into the void, while the little house was carefully placed at the front of the stage. There were no walls to block the limits of the house, but the actors’ blocking was done so well that there were no problems deciding where the windows and doors of the house were supposed to go.

I personally wish that the storyline of the play was a little better executed by the writer. Unfortunately, the writing feels very slow, and it seemed to only show the sad parts of life. It showcased the mundane tasks of life, and I don’t think I have ever seen anyone iron and fold laundry as much in a play as I saw in this one. That being said, I feel like the acting and directing of the play were beautiful. The dancing scenes were breathtaking, and I could feel the emotions that the actors were trying to evoke. I almost cried a few times because of the way the actors made me relate to the small moments.

I wish there was more to the story, but I don’t think they could have done a better job while producing Dancing at Lughnasa. The blocking made sense, and I wanted to learn more about the characters.

Overall rating: 6/10

               Plot: 2/10

               Set: 9/10

               Characters/Acting: 8/10

Today was just as eventful as yesterday. We started off at the Tower of London, and for some reason, I was obsessed with the windows. Something about the stone of the castle made it feel enchanting. A pigeon flew so close to my face that I could feel its wing hit the side of my head, we saw the crown jewels, and Amelia successfully stole Alex’s beloved fanny pack. We journeyed to Spitalfields market where I had some fantastic Pad Thai and Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble. I got lost in the antique booths surrounding the market, and finally fell asleep while listening to my audio book when we got back. This evening we went and saw a play, but I will give it it’s own review later. Afterwards, Alex, Ryan, Nick, and I went to Chinatown and had some interesting, seemingly Americanized Japanese food. It was pretty good though, it was a cool experience, and it was fun to try so many different kinds of food.

The only downside to London so far is that I haven’t found a great cup of coffee yet, and this wifi is teaching me a kind of patience I never thought I would need (including deleting all my photos multiple times before I could post).

That’s all for now. ❤