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BELFAST FESTIVAL AT QUEEN’S REVIEW: What the Animals say
The Spielgeltent in Belfast’s Custom House Square played host to David Ireland’s relentlessly witty play, ‘What the animals say’, on Sunday night and in truth contributed partly to the two-man show’s unquestionable success. Not one for grand theatres or opera houses, ‘What the animals say’ revelled in the easy, intimate charm of the continental Spiegeltent without ever relying on it too heavily. A play centring on the awkward reunion of two Protestant schoolmates (one a boisterous footballer for Celtic and the other a struggling actor) whilst waiting for a homebound ferry in Stranraer, Ireland’s gem wastes no time in assuming a breakneck speed, which it upholds throughout.
BY GAVIN BRADLEY
In fact, within the unfortunately short running time of a mere 45 minutes, this necessarily rapid pace works to the show’s advantage, not allowing it to dwell on issues, like politics, religion or even football, which might bog down many lesser efforts. Instead, wonderfully over the top performances from David Walshe and Robbie Jack help this comedy jump from topic to topic like a hyperactive child, delivering fresh outlooks, sharp observations and ultimately relatable laughs for the home audience. Jack (footballer Eddie) especially, carries out a superb piece of overacting; creating a character that is both hilariously and almost unsettlingly recognisable. Walshe though, in a more understated role as actor Jimmy, also gives an excellent account of himself and helps the sharp dialogue flow effortlessly, displaying a genuine talent for comic timing. While the material might not be terribly original for a Northern Irish play, (again with the religion and politics) infrequent lulls in the otherwise engaging plot are more than compensated for by the strength of Ireland’s writing, his knack for building jokes up to a climax and the frequent and effective use of a certain four lettered swear word…
Tags: Belfast Festival at Queen's, Gown, newspaper, qub, Queen's, queen's university, student, The Gown
This entry was posted on Monday, October 26th, 2009 at 9:46 pm and is filed under Arts + Ents. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
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i know the reviewer says it isn't too original for a northern irish play, since it is somewhat centred around religion and politics... maybe that's true.
But this play was hilarious, and subtle, and never once all "woe is me, i'm a child of the troubles."
That makes it pretty original in my book.
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