THE PLOUGH AND THE STARS by Sean O’Casey is a legendary masterpiece. With 2016 being the centenary year of the Easter Rising in Ireland it made perfect sense for The NATIONAL THEATRE to stage the final of the ‘Dublin Plays’ trilogy. Although the directors, Jeremy Herrin and Howard Davies create some compelling moments, they still fail to bring the spirit of the piece alive; resulting in the production feeling somewhat irrelevant and stale.THE PLOUGH AND THE STARS takes place at a tenement house in inner city Dublin over the period of 6 months prior to and during The Easter Rising. Here the young Nora Clitheroe (Judith Roddy) argues with her husband Jack (Fion Walton) over his involvement with The Irish Citizen Army whilst her uncle Peter (Lloyd Hutchinson) drowns himself in nostalgia. Despite the rising political tension in the country, the life of these working class people remains hard, and come the Eastern Rising they will be the ones to suffer most.
O’Casey’s writing is not easy to grasp, as with any classical text the key of unlocking the poetical and detailed language lies in its rhythm, but sadly despite some great performances most of the cast struggle to deliver the lines in a believable way. Still Stephen Kennedy is mesmerising as the comedic Fluther, Tom Vaughan- Lawlor as The Young Covey steals every scene and Justine Mitchell shines as the feisty Bessy Burgess.
Vicki Mortimer’s spectacular revolving set, which transports us to several different locations, is yet further proof that she is one of the most detail-oriented set designers in the country. In the second act we witness a scene outside the house in which Mortimer plays with the vastness of Lyttelton stage; creating the feel of wide Dublin streets and the atmosphere of the decaying city.
When it first premiered at THE ABBEY THEATRE in Dublin THE PLOUGH AND THE STARS caused riots and O’Casey himself was being ostracised for casting a negative view on the Irish rebels and the working classes. One could argue that the play could never cause such reaction in today’s world but O’Casey’s writing does not age and it still holds a powerful message. It is a pity that the creators of this production at THE NATIONAL THEATRE did not concentrate more on the socio-political context of the piece.
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