The Lieutenant of Inishmore - Liverpool Everyman

[threeletteracronym]

**SPOILERS WANTED**

This is on in Liverpool soon and in many ways it's right up my street.  I love a dark comedy.

BUT I really struggle with animal cruelty - you couldnt pay me to see War Horse, for example.  Exactly how bad is LoI?  I'm OK with hearing 'a cat was killed' but dont want to see/hear graphic descriptions.

Cheers

[oxfordsimon]

You might see a faked animal corpse

But from what I recall (and I don't have my copy of the script to hand), there is no on stage animal violence.

It is a brilliant play so worth seeing.

But probably best to check with the theatre with your specific concerns

[ChristineH]

From memory, all the cat-related violence takes place off stage, although mangled cat corpses do appear (fake, obviously). 

From the Everyman’s website: Content warnings: this play contains loud noise from gun shots, significant violence both threatened and depicted against humans and cats, large amounts of blood and gore, portrayals and references to torture, gun and knife violence and strong language some may find offensive. We will update the website with more information about content as soon as possible - if you have any questions, please contact [e-mail]
There are also a few behind-the scenes YouTube videos which might address your concerns www.everymanplayhouse.com/whats-more/tag/the-lieutenant-of-inishmore

[stevej678]

Seeing this next week. Hoping the front row is not a splash/splatter zone!

[Marwood]

From what I can remember of seeing it in the West End, no animal violence and unless someone has seriously rejigged it, no splattering either.

[bee]

Sept 19, 2024 18:10:48 GMT Marwood said:

From what I can remember of seeing it in the West End, no animal violence and unless someone has seriously rejigged it, no splattering either.

That's how I remember it as well, it's the humans who are on the receiving end of the violence, not the cat.

[ChristineH]

I’m going to see the Saturday matinee on 12 Oct. For anyone who’s interested, there’s a workshop 11.30am to 1pm for £7. If you book for that you can then get a ticket for the matinee at 2pm for just £10 so it ends up as a real bargain Spaces are limited to 30 but I’ve just checked and the offer is still open. There are only a few single seats in the stalls, but a good few still left in the circle. Details here:
www.everymanplayhouse.com/whats-on/a-directing-workshop-with-chris-sonnex-how-to-access-imagery-in-text

[crabtree]

there is usually a real cat involved at some point - when we did it he had his own hotel room and performed exactly as he should have done.

[ChristineH]

Sept 19, 2024 22:24:31 GMT crabtree said:

there is usually a real cat involved at some point - when we did it he had his own hotel room and performed exactly as he should have done.

Yes, one of the supposedly dead cats turns up right at the end to partake (or not, depending on how the cat feels on the day) of a bowl of Frosties. Sounds like your cat had a good agent...

[rumbledoll]

Sept 19, 2024 11:43:11 GMT threeletteracronym said:

**SPOILERS WANTED**

This is on in Liverpool soon and in many ways it's right up my street.  I love a dark comedy.

BUT I really struggle with animal cruelty - you couldnt pay me to see War Horse, for example.  Exactly how bad is LoI?  I'm OK with hearing 'a cat was killed' but dont want to see/hear graphic descriptions.

Cheers

Well, I remember seeing it several years ago in the West End (with Aidan Turner) and it was super funny, the ending is a blood bath indeed but mostly people get hurt in this one and the cat actually survives.. or do I remember it wrong? 

[barrowside]

Apart from the dead cat at the start doesn't one of the cats get shot towards the end? (Mairead's cat Sir Roger who has been blacked up to look like Wee Thomas).

[david]

I'm booked in for Monday's show. I loved the Aidan Turner production a few years ago so hopefully this one will be just as good.

[Cleo]

My friend and I booked the Aidan Turner production without any knowledge of the play. We were rather alarmed when we found out however as someone who avoids horror and squeamish I was crying with laughter at the absurd ness of the plot. This production may be very different so maybe wait for reviews?

[solotheatregoer]

Speaking of Aidan Turner, I really hope he makes a return to the West End soon. I never made it to this when he did it a few years ago. The last time I saw him was in Lemons x5 which was an average play overall but I do think he is underrated as an actor.

[david]

A few thoughts from tonight’s viewing which was the 2nd preview with a run time of just shy of 2hrs tonight (a 19.30 start and a 21.20 finish. Having previously seen the Aidan Turner production and now this latest version from the Liverpool Everyman, it is a terrific play and holds up really well on a repeat viewing. Martin Mcdonagh’s dark comedy is still able to hit the mark and the craziness of the play is still able to provide both shocks and laughs in equal measure. 

I was sat at the back of the centre block of seats and the single tier set is set back from the audience so any folk in the front row will be perfectly safe from being in any splash zones with the blood. There isn’t actually any physical violence towards the stuffed toy cats used in the production, though you may see a bit of fake blood on them from up close. I will advise anybody with concerns over gunshots that blanks are used in this production, mainly in Act 2. Whilst fake blood is used, it is really only used in Act 2 and there wasn’t that much to be honest. The more gory bits in Act 2 didn’t seem to cause any issues for people tonight. 

I did like Ellie Light’s single tier design of the house. It is just a single kitchen design with some LED lighting from Laura Howard surrounding the set that is used to highlight the more violent scenes with a blood red colour. 

I felt the cast did a good job in delivering the script with Julian Moore-Cook as Padraic being able to show Padraic as a cold hearted villain one minute then a big softie with talking about his cat the next. Despite it only being the 2nd preview I thought the cast worked well together with some nice chemistry on show. No issues with pacing of the show for me tonight it flowed nicely enough in both Acts. Though I will say I did have trouble at times with the Irish accents at times in trying to hear the lines and some of them getting lost. 

Overall, I enjoyed it and I’ll be booking for a return visit once the show has had time to bed in. 

Programmes cost £3 each and free posters showing the show artwork were available to pick up from the box office tonight. 

I’d rate this as a 3.5 ⭐️ star show at the moment but has potential to be a 4⭐️. 

[threeletteracronym]

Thanks everyone who tried to answer this. I decided to risk it and I've booked for this coming Saturday.

[Someone in a tree]

Sept 20, 2024 9:37:33 GMT ChristineH said:

Sept 19, 2024 22:24:31 GMT crabtree said:

there is usually a real cat involved at some point - when we did it he had his own hotel room and performed exactly as he should have done.

Yes, one of the supposedly dead cats turns up right at the end to partake (or not, depending on how the cat feels on the day) of a bowl of Frosties. Sounds like your cat had a good agent...

That cat is now staring in MJ the musical

[nash16]

Oct 9, 2024 9:37:03 GMT Someone in a tree said:

Sept 20, 2024 9:37:33 GMT ChristineH said:

Yes, one of the supposedly dead cats turns up right at the end to partake (or not, depending on how the cat feels on the day) of a bowl of Frosties. Sounds like your cat had a good agent...

That cat is now staring in MJ the musical

Classic MJ: The Musical: have just received an email from them saying it’s been catcelled.

[keyspi]

Oct 9, 2024 9:41:40 GMT nash16 said:

Oct 9, 2024 9:37:03 GMT Someone in a tree said:

That cat is now staring in MJ the musical

Classic MJ: The Musical: have just received an email from them saying it’s been catcelled.

Sounds like I'll have to put my plans seeing MJ on paws