Nova Scotia
Traverse Theatre Company
In various recent interviews John Byrne has expressed disdain at the attempts of journalists to pry into his private life by drawing parallels with his latest play.
"The play’s structure
is all over the
place... silence
filled a number of
excruciating pauses"
Fair enough, but if Nova Scotia isn’t explicitly a confessional work – perhaps even an attempt at atonement – then it remains unclear why he or the Traverse felt the need to inflict it upon audiences.
Thirty years on from the final scene of the celebrated Slab Boys trilogy, painter Phil McCann is living in the north of Scotland with his younger, more successful artist wife. One chaotic summer day sees the arrival of both an arts correspondent to record a radio profile and a film crew to make a music video at a neighbouring castle.
The star of the video, it soon transpires, is Phil’s former colleague and love rival George ‘Spanky’ Farrell, who’s brought with him his wife, Lucille.
Old wounds are quickly re-opened and new ones inflicted (literally as well as metaphorically) as the characters regress and regret. There’s the odd laugh here and there – most of them courtesy of Gerda Stevenson’s deadpan Lucille – but much of the time the actors rush their lines as if desperate to be rid of them. While the Slab Boys plays were by no means jolly, light-hearted affairs, the combination of emotional cruelty and bitterness in this instalment makes it very difficult to engage with any of the characters.
Gerry Mulgrew has fun as rehab veteran Spanky, but Paul Morrow’s Phil is stiff and oddly camp, and there’s no spark between the pair. Cara Kelly struggles as Kirsty Wark sound-a-like Nancy Rice, a strictly one-dimensional character who looks more like she’s on her way to a fancy dress party than a crucial business meeting. The considerable talents of Meg Fraser are similarly squandered, and as Turner Prize nominee Didi she’s not only required to wear one of Byrne’s signature quiffs but also a horribly unflattering outfit of the type that seems to be considered ‘trendy’ by people who are not.
The play’s structure is all over the place, with huge revelations tossed casually into the final half hour and serious subjects dismissed with throwaway lines. On the second night a late but substantial set change prompted glances at watches, and silence filled a number of excruciating pauses as the play limped towards its conclusion.
Shona Craven
Until May 24 2008 at Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh. Tel: 0131 228 1404.
www.traverse.co.uk
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What the papers said:
The Daily Telegraph:
"Struggles with a poorly structured script which almost kills off Byrne's trademark pathos in its desperate bid for cheap laughs"
The Guardian:
** "Despite Byrne's vivid characters and first-rate performances in Paddy Cunneen's production, Nova Scotia never gets to the point"
The Herald:
*** "Equal parts Ibsen and Chekhov, dealing with the unfinished business of hand-me-down dysfunctions as much as marking the end of an innocent idyll"
The Independent:
*** "Too frivolous for too much of the time, too weighty for too little, and rather too long"
Metro:
** "With laughs thin on the ground and too many storylines vying for space... the material onstage just doesn't cut it"
The Scotsman:
"The old one-liners still fizz like sherbet across Byrne's writing... a theatrical event to cherish"
The Stage:
"Excellent performances all round ensure that Byrne’s script is fully realised"
Sunday Herald:
*** "Nova Scotia is a brave gamble. Sadly, it looks like a tired last throw of the dice"
