Too hot to handle!
Danielle Reck and Stephen Byrne in a scene from ‘Closer’ by Wexford Drama Group at the Arts Centre. The play, ‘very much about sex and love’ according to director Paul Walsh, is unnerving some audience members who fail to return to their seats after the interval.
A play which details the lives of four people searching for love in 1990s London has proved too hot to handle for some audience members since it opened last Thursday evening.
Written by Patrick Marber, ‘Closer’ tells the story of Dan, Alice, Anna and Larry and is, in the words of director Paul Walsh, ‘very much about love and sex’.
And despite going on to become a Broadway hit and spawning a successful film adapation, the play’s contents have unnerved those in attendance at the first run of shows in the the Arts Centre.
‘There’s definitely been some people who haven’t come back for the second half,’ said Paul.
‘This bemuses me a little because all the information is on the posters, they could have read up on it beforehand, every piece of information was available.’
Those posters expressly state ‘Closer’ is for over-18s only and contains both nudity and choice language. But even so, Paul believes its contents pale in comparison with works he has seen on Irish stages.
‘It’s funny to me, is flesh really that offensive? People are entitled to their opinion, that’s the beauty of the arts. I do know it’s received a standing ovation every night.
‘There’s no doubt some of the language is raw but I’ve seen torture and violence towards women in plays. A shadowy profile of a naked body and people are in arms,’ Paul said.
With further performances of ‘Closer’ at the Arts Centre on Thursday, Friday and Saturday of this week (all at 8 p.m.) Paul discussed both the story and the cast of a play he ranks among his top-five of all time.
‘It’s a play which is very much ensconsed in the nineties. It’s part of the movement of ‘in-yer-face theatre’ pioneered by Mark Ravenhill, Sarah Kane, Martin McDonagh, and Irvine Welsh, which tends to be either very violent or very sexual.
‘But it’s very much about love and sex. ‘Patrick Marber wanted to portray the sense that you can love someone and hate them at the same time. It’s a very real piece of writing,’ said Paul. Bringing this writing to life on the stage are Stephen Byrne (Dan), Danielle Reck (Alice), Seona O’Connor (Anna), and Alan Fitzhenry (Larry).
And Paul believes his cast more than do this great work justice.
‘Stephen is a stalwart of mine and a multi-award winning actor. He plays Dan, an obituarist in a small newspaper, who dreams of writing a great novel.
‘Seona O’Connor is from New Ross and she plays Anna, a photographer whose husband leaves her and believes she’ll never find love again. Then she has two men pursue her.
‘Danielle Reck is, in my opinion, one of the best actors in the country. She plays a stripper, Alice, who’s very sensual and confident, but the most broken of all the characters.
‘Alan Fitzhenry is a great actor, it’s the kind of role which could be unlikeable in the wrong hands but he brings a certain charm to it.
Open about the bad language and mild nudity in the production, Paul said it is all in the context of the performance and not gratuitous in any way.
And following the first show last Thursday evening he asked some of the audience members what they made of it.
‘There were three women in the back row, perhaps aged in their sixties. I asked them what they thought. They said it was no worse than aynthing you’d see on RTÉ after 9.30 p.m.’
Closer continues its run at the Wexford Arts Centre this week with performances at 8 p.m. on Thursday, February 20, Friday, February 21, and Saturday, February 22. Tickets €14. Contact 053 912 3764.