Beginning - Gate Theatre Dublin

[Rory]

I'm plugging this Dublin production of David Eldridge's gorgeous play because it's bloody fantastic and a thing of wonder! Eileen Walsh (Sharon's friend in Catastrophe) and Marty Rea moved me incredibly. I was rooting for them every step of the way. The most brilliant production which ends on 20th April. If you can possibly see it, you really, really should. It's something else.

[Rory]

Best play I've seen in a while.

[Rory]

The acting in it was so good there were moments where you nearly found yourself holding your breath without realising you were doing it. Eileen Walsh's performance in particular was masterful. Not an inflection, a tic, a mannerism which struck a false note. Same with her co-star.

It struck me that there are so few dramas which just show life as we know it, people as we know them. But maybe it's because, as @theatremonkey says, it's so hard to get it right, let alone near perfect.

[lookingatthestars]

Apr 13, 2019 9:04:22 GMT Rory said:

Best play I've seen in a while.

Good to know. I'll be in Dublin next weekend and bought tickets for this based solely on the fact Marty Rea is in it. I've seem him over the years in many different roles and he is always outstanding. I also booked the Glass Menagerie because he's in it, along with Samantha Bond.

The Gate seem to be putting on very good productions of late.  

[chameleon]

Interesting that so many liked this. I found it tedious and repetitive - kept repeating the same dramatic beat, over and over, for an hour and a half - each time with a tiny bit more information added. And the 'significant' revelations didn't seem to change anything. It felt like it should have been the first (half hour) act of a longer play with a bit more story..

Then, the ending (and, perhaps, also, the characterisation of the woman..) seemed very right-wing (though I'm sure the playwright wouldn't see himself as a Tory)..

[showgirl]

I'm surprised at the enthusiasm for this as though it was OK when I saw it at the NT, the casting was a major flaw for me as the male lead came across as simply lumpen, oafish and too ill-matched for his far more driven female counterpart. It would be interesting to see it with a different cast as the fault may have lain with the direction or interpretation rather than the writing - but on the basis of my first visit, I wouldn't rush to see it again.

[peelee]

When I saw this at the Dorfman Theatre I was struck by the writer's skill and the quality of acting that beautifully presented a hopeful woman and a hesitant man in a situation that was all too recognisable for many people. People from different occupations and worlds of work, and also quite different emotional-pasts. Social awkwardness viewed sympathetically. Beginning is such a good title for this play.

Having seen the actors in this in the Druid Murphy plays staged over here in London by the much admired Galway theatre company for Cultural Olympiad in 2012, I'd say this production should be petty good. Eileen Walsh then went on to appear in things I've seen at the National Theatre, London, and at the Royal Court, and I've loved her acting range. Were I in Dublin I'd love to have a look at this new production.

[barrowside]

I saw this at the Gate last week and thought it superb. Eileen Walsh and Marty Rea were brilliant. The Gate are on a roll with sharp, intelligent plays with small casts at the moment. The've also given us a great production of Lucy Kirkwood's The Children a few weeks ago. Next up is The Glass Menagerie directed by Tom Cairns with Samantha Bond and Marty Rea.

[lookingatthestars]

Saw this on Saturday. Excellent performances, characters full of so many layers of life experience and humanity, played in such a subtle way, even the 'bigger' bit's. It seems obvious to say, but acting doesn't get much better than this, when you're watching real people doing real things and become invested in and start to care about them. And then of course start to reflect on your life and decisions. Reminds us we are not all so different, which is why I always think theatre and art can be so powerful and important, as well as entertainment.

But as theatremonkey said, in the hands of less skilled actors and direction, I would imagine this could be dull and cringy.

Roll on the Gate's Glass Menagerie