Review: The Seafarer (Seanachai Theatre)

  
  
The Seafarer

Written by Conor McPherson
Directed by Matt Miller 
The Den Theatre, 1333 N. Milwaukee (map)
thru Jan 5  Feb 8  |  tickets: $26-$30   |  more info
  
Check for half-price tickets 
  
  
   Read review
  

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   Now extended through February 8th!

Dark Irish humor for the holidays

Seanachai Theatre presents

The Seafarer

Review by Katy Walsh 

It’s Christmas time.  Richard plans to spend the holiday blind-stinking drunk…literally.  Brad Armacost (Richard) is a boozer who lost his eyesight.  No one in Chicago plays a sloshed Irishman more charming than Armacost.  In The Seafarer, Armacost is hilariously inebriated.  A vivid storyteller, Armacost has this marvelous ability to draw the audience in to his drama and turn it into a jocular adventure.  He amuses everyone but his brother, played by the stalwart Dan Waller (Sharky). 

Conor McPherson penned this Irish tale of going home for the holidays.  Sharky has returned to Dublin to help his disabled brother.  During his stay, he is visited by unwelcomed guests from his past.  They’ve been invited by Richard for drinks and cards.  McPherson’s set-ups cackle with back-slapping, shot-swigging, male-fraternizing.  These guys are having a good time. Their banter feels like whiskey-soaked spontaneity.  In mid fabrication, Armacost viciously goes off on the annoying winos outside. Or Ira Amyx (Ivan) injects an odd comment that is both riotous and bizarre.  Or the amicable and clueless Shane Kenyon (Nicky) schmoozes everyone, including his girlfriend’s ex. These sudden shifts in party chatter seem the natural outcome of the inebriated.  They’re slurring their thoughts.  Dark comedy gold.

Within this merry-making, McPherson yanks the rug out.  He drops an otherworldly twist into this holiday libation.  Director Matt Miller paces the tomfoolery with spirited stumbling.  Then, Miller introduces the polished Kevin Theis (Lockhart) in a dramatic pause.  The added tension is sobering.  Theis effectively kills the party buzz for Waller.  The stakes are raised for the card game.  And the stone-faced Waller impressively plays his hand.

I loved The Seafarer.  The writing, directing and acting are superb.  I was keenly aware, especially in Act 1, that often I was the only one laughing at Armacost and Amyx’s antics.  They are playing pathetic drunks and they are a hoot.  I wondered if my Irish ancestry allowed me to better enjoy their shenanigans.  I remember the big flop of the movie “Arthur 2” where Hollywood learned laughing at alcoholics wasn’t politically correct.  Still, I find pissed Irish men amusing.  Though I wouldn’t want to marry one, onstage they entertain.

Rating: ★★★½

The Seafarer continues through January 5th February 8th at The Den Theatre, 1333 N. Milwaukee (map), with performances Thursdays-Saturdays at 7:30pm, Sundays 3pm.  Tickets are $26-$30, and are available by phone (866-811-4111) or online through OvationTix.com (check for half-price tickets at Goldstar.com). More information at Seanachai.org.  (Running time: 2 hours 20 minutes, includes an intermission)

Photos by Joe Mazza 

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artists

cast

Ira Amyx (Ivan), Brad Armacost (Richard), Shane Kenyon (Nicky), Kevin Theis (Mr. Lockhart), Dan Waller (Sharky).

behind the scenes

Matt Miller (director), Joe Schermoly (scenic design), Beth Laske-Miller (costume design), Julian Pike (lighting design), Stephen Ptacek (sound design), Elise Kauzlaric (dialect coach), Jeff Christian (production stage manager), Rebecca Willingham (assistant director), Andrew Donnelly (stage manager), Joe Mazza (photos).

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