Amid craggy rocks, the stage was set for the world premier of Bryan Delaney's award-winning play "The Cobbler," which opened at the Irish Classical Theater Company Friday night.
The Cobbler was Delaney's first play and was selected from over 500 entries in the 16th International Playwriting Competition, established by the Warehouse Theater in London. It also had professional, staged readings at The Warehouse Theater, The Soho Theater, The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and the Old Vic in London.
"The Cobbler" is directed by Derek Campbell, whose previous credits at the Irish Classical Theater Company include "The Importance of Being Earnest," "The Weir," "Penumbra," "Mrs. Warren's Profession," "One for the Road," "Translations" and "You Can Never Tell."
Campbell has been awarded with an ARTIE Career Achievement Award in 2003 and his production of "Mrs. Warren's Profession" won awards in five categories in the same year.
"We have an insanely gifted director," said Delaney, addressing the audience after the play.
The play takes place on the island of Inishbollock, a desolate lump of rock somewhere off the coast of Ireland with no means of escape. The impoverished inhabitants speak in the thick Irish brogue of the early twentieth century.
The arrival of a mysterious cobbler makes the community uneasy and strange things begin to happen. The proprietor of a crumbling hotel hires him to cobble new boots from old ones, mostly taken from the dead at the town morgue.
A strange alliance develops between the mortician and the hotel owner, who is hopelessly in love with the town prostitute, Lily.
Lily has her hopes set on the resident poet who is the father of her unborn child. Amidst intrigue and murder, the play carries the audience through the bittersweet nine months of Lily's pregnancy.
The play features Gerry Maher as The Cobbler, Brendan Powers as The Poet, Christopher Standart as Orwell, Catherine Eaton as Lily, Carl Kowalski as Mogue and Michael Providence as Malachy. The artistic director, Vincent O'Neill, selected an ideal cast from Buffalo's pool of actors and actresses and persuaded Delaney into coming to Buffalo to be present throughout the rehearsal and to contribute to the development of his play.
Lily (Eaton) delivered an above-average performance, managing to look sexy despite the poverty and despair of the decrepit barroom. She is the bright spot of the play. Hers is the only character for which one can muster pity.
Lily sells her body to the highest bidder for hopes of a better future. Her deep and throaty voice echoed through the tiny theater as she screamed in agony from labor pains.
Powers (The Poet) was less effective, but nice to look at.
There were a few chuckles in a play that exploited the darker sides of human nature. Malachy (Providence) drowned cats for a living, Mogue (Kowalski) stole the boots from the dead, Standart (the bar owner, Orwell) only thought of money and profit and Powers (The Poet) had murder on his mind. The characters were dislikeable, strange and even unearthly in appearance.
"The Cobbler" is tragic, and unsuitable for children. The language was foul and there were "tisks" of disapproval from audience members when "the F-word" reared its foul face numerous times.
This world premier production opened on Friday, March 4 and will run through Sunday, April 3 at the Andrews Theater, 625 Main Street, Buffalo, New York. A reception was held immediately following the production upstairs at the Bijou Grille where one could converse with the playwright, director and cast members.
"It's strange and trippy and one of those moments I want to relish for the rest of my life," Delaney said after receiving a standing ovation for his play.
