By Tom Dayton
On Friday March 14th, I attended a production of Shirley Valentine at The Concert Hall in Thomastown. This is my fourth production in a row by Lake Productions to attend, having previously seen The Kings of the Kilburn High Road, Moll, and Da. Each production so far has brought an air of freshness that excites and delights me. A former member of Trinity College players, I have the utmost respect for those who are prepared to take to the stage, whether in a main or minor role. I am only too well aware of all the blood, sweat and tears that goes with the theatrical territory of a performance. The first three shows were outstanding, and writing in this newspaper last year I had mentioned how much I loved the interaction and ensemble playing by the actors from the Kilkenny city based company. In the King’s of the Kilburn High Road, the interaction between the actors was as good as you would see on a professional stage. In their follow up of Moll and Da there were similarities insofar as both shows had a main character -Moll and Da- and while both actors who played these roles were brilliant, their performances were enhanced by the wonderful acting by the supporting cast.
Half cracked
This production of Shirley Valentine was different to the aforementioned shows. It is a one woman show. I read an article in this paper a few weeks back, where the actor Clare Gibbs spoke on that point. She explained that you’d want to be ‘half cracked’ to take on a one person show. She clarified it by saying ‘maybe fully cracked’. Never, I would suggest, was a truer word spoken. And having seen the show, and the amount of dialogue that had to be learned, perhaps an odd counselling session or two would not go astray, for anyone considering such a project.
It helped that Clare Gibbs has quite a good acting CV behind her. To perform in a one woman show, one would need a good back up of experience of performing in shows. Apart from the willingness and eagerness to perform such a production, a body needs the confidence to take it on. And while actors can at times feign certain things while in character, you cannot ‘trick around’ with confidence. You have it or you don’t. No half measures. Gibbs had it. And some.
Previous productions include – Scrooge, Lend me a Tenor, The loves of Cass McGuire and more recently Letters from the front.
In my humble opinion, the one thing that can make a good actor great is the gift of giving. For those of you who may have seen the film Selma, you get my drift. This is an elegant quote from a talented actor who is thankfully still living and working today. Oyelowo wowed audiences as Martin Luther King, Jr. in 2014’s Selma and the actor is just as selfless as the character he portrayed. ‘The idea of selflessness should be central to an actor’s performance because by giving to others through performance the entirety of the production is strengthened.’ With a one woman show, Clare Gibbs had to not only give to the other characters, but play their parts as well. Altruism at its best. That act of giving is a trait that should be instilled in anybody taking on the trade. Shirley Valentine is a bored working class Liverpudlian housewife whose life and initially enriching marriage has settled into a narrow and unsatisfying rut, leaving few genuine friends and her childhood dreams unaccomplished and she feels as if her husband and children treat her more like a servant.
Positive moments
Following the production (which received a deserved standing ovation) myself and my Inistioge contingent called to O’Hara’s public house for a few drinks (yes we had a designated non drinker as a driver).
We dissected the Gibbs performance, and to a man we could find no fault with this Lake Productions show. Perhaps it would be more apt to say that each of us listed off our favourite positive moments in the play. Some found great laughs in references to the age old advert of The Milk Tray man wooing the woman of his dreams. For another it was the description of Jane, who invites Shirley on the holiday to Greece, and who is branded a feminist because she has divorced her husband. But it was the complimentary comment by ‘Columbus’ on Shirley’s stretch marks that left us rolling in the aisles. Well, to be precise, Shirley’s comment on men complimenting women’s stretch marks (you had to be there).
It was a play that had equal amounts of comedy and sadness evoking laughter and tears in equal measure, carried off beautifully by Clare Gibbs. The comedy moments are gorgeous, delivered with wonderful timing. Her preparation prior to departure on a holiday, a case of nervousness mixed with fear and anxiety was excellent. As was the brief return of her daughter looking to rekindle the lost love of a mother and daughter. Two other encounters left me in stitches. That moment in the underwear department of the local shopping centre as she purchased items for her holidays, only to be confronted by the neighbour from, next door. The second was the discovery of Christopher Columbus. And if Ms Gibbs had a handle on how to play comedy, then the more reflective and sad moments were handled just as well.
Unused time
Shirley is a woman so lonely she has taken to talking to a wall; a wife and mother who has lost her identity in dutifulness, and a pragmatist who long ago learned to turn her life’s disappointments into jokes. The play reveals itself to be about identity, growing old, how we forget to follow dreams and become people we don’t recognise, and how we tolerate unhappiness for fear of the unknown.
Though some will agree (and others may not), the most poignant line in the play comes when Shirley and her friend are queuing in the Greek airport ready to return to her Liverpool home. It suddenly dawns on her that her new (although brief) life at the holiday resort was the rebirth of Shirley Valentine. Qualities she once had in abundance had returned: love, happiness, devil-may care attitude. She comes out with a deep question that even fellow islander and philosopher Aristotle would have been proud of. In a moment when reality dawns on her she asks “Why have I allowed myself to lead this little life, when inside me there was so much more. And it’s all gone unused.” A most poignant comment that the enthusiastic audience supported. I doubt I will see a more complete production of Shirley Valentine again.
Congrats to all at Lake Productions for bringing this gem to Thomastown. It is a venue that has a rich programme of events and it is wonderful to have it on our doorstep.
Cast, Clare Gibbs; Director, Mary Cradock; Production Manager, Dee Gibney; Lighting, Brendan Maguire; Set Design, Siobhán Hegarty; Box Office, Emily Kelly.
Tom Dayton is a member of Trinity Players, Dublin and a journalist based in Inistioge.
The production of Shirley Valentine was part funded by the Arts office of Kilkenny Co Council.
