| Theatre and Gig Reviews THEATRE
PREVIEW
Rosebud - The Lives of Orson Welles
By Grainne McLoughlin
Marking the 20th anniversary of the death of Orson Welles, second generation
Irish playwright Mark Jenkins has brought to the stage Rosebud - The Lives
of Orson Welles.
The acclaimed production, which stars Christian McKay, charts the rise
and fall of one of America’s most legendary figures.
The life and times of Welles — who was a giant of 20th century cinema
— is set to be played out to audiences at London’s Kings Head theatre later
this month.
The play charts Welles through his various achievements including the
classic film Citizen Kane and Voodoo Macbeth in Harlem.
To the envy of every man Welles went on to marry Rita Hayworth. But that
was where his good fortune ended.
He spent much of his life thereafter battling to find outlets for his
creative genius. Exiled from Hollywood Welles’ ambitions were continually
thwarted by powerful enemies.
Rosebud — which won a Fringe First at the 2004 Edinburgh Fringe Festival
— asks if Welles himself was the author of his own misfortune?
A powerful production which shouldn’t be missed.
Starring Christian McKay. Rosebud - The Lives of Orson Welles will run
at the King’s Head Theatre from December 20 until January 21. For further
information contact the box office on 020 7226 1916 or online at
www.kingsheadtheatre.org.
BOOK REVIEW
Martin Ferris: Man of Kerry, By JJ Barrett
By Graham Clifford
It’s an amazing story regardless of your opinions on Irish Republicanism
and the IRA. Martin Ferris went from being a convicted gun-runner to sitting
in Dail Eireann as a TD for his Kerry North constituency. Man Of Kerry much
like all biographies glorifies the person in focus and romanticises the
role of Ferris and Republicans in general during one of the bloodiest and
most disturbing periods of recent Irish history.
Chronologically ordered we discover that neither of Martin Ferris’s parents
were hardened Republican sympathisers though allegiances to Fianna Fail
were present. His childhood was typical of that experienced by children
across the country at the time and his love of his county was garnished
at an early age. A gifted fisherman and footballer Ferris would go on the
win an U-21 All-Ireland title with his county alongside the likes of Mikey
Sheehy, Ger Power and now sparring partner on the political field of play
Fine Gael’s Jimmy Deenihan.
At a time when sectarianism was rife in Northern Ireland, especially
in the City of Derry, Ferris became incensed that Catholics were being treated
in such a way by the RUC and British forces. North Kerry was and is an area
where Republicanism is strong and his anger and disbelief would soon see
him take the biggest step of his young life by joining the IRA. The timing
of his decision though was quite amazing — Martin’s father died in 1970
at the age of 65 years of age. It was on the day his father was buried that
Martin decided to join the IRA.
Over the next 30 years Ferris would spend 13 of them in jail for IRA
involvement. He was sentenced to 10 years for his pivotal role in the attempted
importation of a heavy consignment of arms from America when on board the
trawler the Marita Ann.
Vivid details of the heavy-handed approach taken by prison guards in
Portlaoise prison, his 47-day hunger strike in 1977 and how he progressed
to the Sinn Féin negotiating team at Downing Street are told as Ferris continues
to veer away from the armed struggle.
With Ferris serving much of his married life in prison the strength and
focus of his wife Marie is obvious. With young children to rear the Australian-born
Marie explains how she dealt with the hardships of being a prisoner’s wife.
You almost have to block out your feelings on the IRA when reading this
book focusing solely on Martin Ferris himself. His strength of character
and determination to succeed are impressive and his decision to move into
politics welcomed. However the book lacks deeper explanations. How could
he justify cold-blooded killings by his fellow members in the IRA? Why did
he decide to become political? Why should non-Republican people vote for
him or his party? Man Of Kerry lacks these answers but still gives an amazing
insight into the world of a man on a mission.
GIG REVIEW
Van Morrison, Usher Hall, Edinburgh
By Richard Purden
There’s no doubt that Van Morrison is a man who has gone out his way
to articulate exactly how he feels in the moment, ignoring the larger world
around him.
With each album release we know if Van’s in love or if he’s feeling spiritual,
inspired or lethargic. Van’s desire to communicate the most intimate, complex
and joyous moments in life has left us with timeless classics such as Astral
Weeks and Moondance.
He doesn’t play the industry game and thankfully he’s managed to hold
onto his audience while doing it.
Nowadays Van has much more of a traditional jazz/ rhythm & blues feel.
It is a disappointment to hear nothing from Astral Weeks in the set but
in saying that there’s no doubt he can still conjure up those transcendental
moments with songs like Raincheck from 1995’s return-to-form long-player
Days Like These.
He also unwittingly wows an excited woman down the front with a version
of Moondance while playing a fervent sax solo.
From start to finish there’s absolutely no dialogue with the audience.
He likes to keep his distance and remains hidden under a white panama hat,
sunglasses and sharp suit — which actively remove him from the crowd throughout.
It really doesn’t affect the dynamic of the gig and the audience seem
to love every minute of this set filled with gems from Van’s latest offering
Magic Time.
It’s an album where Van tries to tap into something more ethereal. The
loving lament Celtic New Year is simply sublime. The title track melts into
a softer more whimsical side to his character.
For the encore we are treated to Them classic Gloria. This song has become
a standard covered by everyone from U2 to Patti Smith but there’s nothing
quite like hearing it by Van.
It’s a explosive moment that proves the Belfast man still has an unquenched
rock ’n’ roll fire in his belly.
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