Day five: Chronicles of Long Kesh and Hou Hou Shahou's Chorus of Descent

Two plays today. The first, Chronicles of Long Kesh by Martin Lynch, is about Northern Ireland's prison, and the people kept there, working there, and visiting there. I don't know much, if anything, about Irish history, so it was a little hard to follow. After the first act, though, it picked up for me, and I understood it better without needing much background. I don't feel like writing much about it, because it was a long show and I don't have much to say other than I ended up really enjoying it, and it seems like it would be highly significant and touching to an Irish audience. Lynch sprinkles a good amount of humor in the otherwise dramatic play. Also, there was a lot of singing and stomping that was 98% successful and moving, and 2% cheesy and awkward.

Hou Hou Shahou's Chorus of Descent, written by Richard Fredman, was GREAT. It was put on by Babolin Theatre, a company from Cambridge made up of people who can't be much older than I am, if older at all. I don't know how to describe the show, other than: an explosion of energy with captivating music, movement, and a simple but poignant story line. The story investigates human nature, following a young woman with two kids. She has a drunk husband who leaves her, so she moves and meets another man, who is a reformed alcoholic (which we realize and she doesn't). They get married, she gets pregnant, he starts drinking again, ultimately leading her to drink, too. The whole community is just as significant to the story as the woman and her husbands, making it truly an ensemble cast. The costumes were colorful and intriguing, and every actor was spot on with his/her movement and singing. It wasn't a musical, just more a play with the actors singing to add to the overall feeling. It was all very theatrical, beautiful, and plain fun to watch. A couple reviews I read described it as "seamless" and "carnivalesque." Both fit perfectly. It's completely a kind of theater I love and hope to make, but I don't think I specifically realized that until seeing it.