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Playboy laid bare >> Irish kids are all right at Concordia by AMY BARRATT
Whether or not you saw Michel Garneau's adaptation, which moved the action from Ireland to the Gaspésie, you won't want to miss the Concordia theatre department's interpretation of the original gorgeous text, complete with (promised) authentic accents, opening this Friday, April 17, at D.B. Clarke. Originally produced at Dublin's Abbey Theatre in 1907, Playboy is a modern classic because it tells the story of a particular time and place with such authenticity that it becomes--as several of the actors in Concordia's production sheepishly told me--universal. "When I first read the play," says Sarah Bezanson, who plays the Widow Quin, "that was my first big question: why would she (director Kate Bligh) want to put this on at Concordia University, in Montreal?' It's so Irish. It's so not here. But the more we discovered the play, there are so many things that are really relevant--aside from the fact that there's this huge Irish community in Montreal--there are also a lot of things that really apply. These people are in such extreme circumstances that they could anyone, anywhere." "They're a small, embattled community," adds Bligh. "A lot of their talent has left them. And they feel rather distressed for that reason. (Shades of anglo Montreal perhaps, or am I reaching?) We talk about the society in the play being a 'hero vacuum.' They need somebody who will play that role for them. And it's just a coincidence that along comes somebody who is able to grow into what they need." Christy Mahon appears in the village one night, tired and hungry, and relates an extraordinary tale of having brained his father with a spade and killed him. The admiration this act inspires in the villagers can be understood only in the context of the youth of most of his listeners. Think of a rap star singing about violence and the street and Christy's appeal doesn't seem so far-fetched. A combination of the things he claims to have done and the way he relates them makes him irresistible to young women dreaming of romance, but already trapped in poverty and drudgery. A majority of the characters in the play are under 21, which is one reason why a student production is such a good idea. Just as Romeo and Juliet should never be played by 35-year-olds, Christy and Pegeen must have the idealism and rebelliousness of people barely out of their teens. François Chiesurin, who plays Christy, explains: "He's been living with his father and his father's always been very hard on him. He's a poet inside, but he has no outlet. The journey of the play brings it out of him. It just opens him up." Pegeen, described in the script as "a wild-looking but fine girl of about 20," is in a similar boat. "I think everybody needs Christy in their own way," says actress Elisa Schwarz. "(Pegeen) lives alone with her father and pretty much has taken on the role of the protector of the house. She takes care of her father really more than her father takes care of her. Inside, she is a real fantasist and a very passionate young woman." Unlike Romeo and Juliet, Playboy of the Western World is a comedy. But that doesn't necessarily mean it won't make you cry. Playboy of the Western World, April 17-19, 24-26 at D.B. Clarke Theatre, Hall Building, 1455 de Maisonneuve W. Reservations 848-4742
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Here at the end of the 20th century, the word "playboy" has a not-entirely positive connotation, conjuring up, at best, a rich, handsome ladies' man. But when J.M. Synge used it in the title of his masterpiece, Playboy of the Western World, the word meant something quite different. For one thing, Synge's playboy, Christy Mahon, is dirt poor. He's also closer to what today we might call a Renaissance man. He is a champion of sports (literally, one who "plays" well), as well as a great player-with-language. Though there isn't a woman in the story who doesn't swoon for him, Christy is not just a sweet-talker, but a genuine artist with words. The title of the recent French-language production at Théâtre Denise-Pelletier, Le Beau-Parleur du vaste monde, captured that meaning beautifully.