WHEN BAD GUYS CHASE BAD DEBTS
The Collector is a macho tale
The Collector New Theatre, Dublin Until February 4
Hugh is a reasonable man. A psychopath, but reasonable by his own standards. You keep to his rules and there’s no problem. But there’s no latitude, no excuses accepted for breaking the rules.
Hugh’s the debt collector of the title and a great believer in the punishment fitting the crime. His enforcer is a tyre-wrench-carrying goon. There was a time when a character like Hugh would have been considered a melodramatic exaggeration. Not any more.
The other main character in this five-man play is Oren, a young man who sees himself as a tough nut, a bully with a soft heart who swears a lot and sports a gun. But he owes Hugh money and that’s the central conflict. When they’re not around, the play wilts.
Daniel Wade has written for radio, but this is his first stage play. It has good moments but it’s a bit hit-and-miss. He has tried to tackle extortion, suicide, secret gay sex, youth crime, family relations and shattering remorse, but it’s a tough call to weld them into a satisfactory unit in the space of an hour.
The middle section is taken up with some over-written speeches by Oren’s uncle Des, manager of the pool hall where all the characters come together. A lot of his time is spent telling his hard-luck life story to Joe, an American friend of Oren’s dead brother Frank. But Michael Heavey has problems with those speeches and the Des/ Frank/Joe episode dilutes the main conflict although it’s meant as the driving force in the plot. The drama really gets going at the second appearance of the collector, Hugh. The writing here between himself and Oren is sharp and nasty, and has genuine dramatic power. Harnessed into a more compact format, this element would have given the play real impact.
Kevin Brennan as Hugh and Graeme Coughlan as Oren have strong roles and do deliver very convincing performances.