Yesterday The Complex Live Arts Center opened its doors to the public for the very first time. The first play that was going to introduce the new space to the Dublin audience was the award winning play In Light of Salt Rings They Drew by Sadhbh Moriarty and the Strive Theatre.
Interestingly enough, in the writing community you are told not to write plays about actors. Honestly, I do not know when and where this rule came from. But In Light of Salt Rings They Drew is the perfect exception of this rule.
In Light of Salt Rings They Drew is a story about a demented woman. Maisie (played by Nikki Burke), once a promising film and television star, just had a serious car accident. But that is not the scary part, the awful side of the story is that she doesn’t remember how she got into the car or why she ended up where she ended up; she can barely remember how hours after the crush the rescue team was getting her out of the car. She is in a hospital now… but only for a couple of months, or so she is determined, until the IFTA nominations in April, where she will be accompanying her daughter Mari (played by Rachel Feeney), also a young and promising actress.
In the hospital Maisie gets to know other pationes and staff members. There is the excentric and moody Ethel (played by Shannon Smythe), who wanders into Maisie’s room any time she wants to have a chat or if she feels lonely. And just as easily as she walks in, she leaves. Ethel has dementia and doesn’t recognise members of her own family.
Then there is Alistor (played by Cornelius Dwyer), the caretaker who spends his days craving for a real, non-electronic cigarette. Alister is kind of character who sounds and behaves like he has just stepped down from an Oscar Wild’s book. A kind of Algernon but without the superficiality.
Mona (played by Ellen Quirke) is a kind and caring nurse who takes care of both Ethel and Maisie.
In Light of Salt Rings They Drew, directed by Ciarán MacArtain and Sadhbh Moriarty, is a beautifully paced play in two acts. I personally found it very educative and informative, as the piece deals with two different cases of dementia. And it doesn’t just throw the bare facts at you; but through a very elaborated and thought through plot, it sneaks in the clues and drops bits of information here and there for you to pick them up and study. Just like an early stages of Alzheimer or dementia, it allows you to pick up little bits that are quite out of place, and then create the big picture out of them at the end.
I’m happy to say that there is an unexpected twist at the end. Nowadays, it’s truly very challenging to create an original piece of writing that would be truly fresh and new. In Light of Salt Rings They Drew is one of those plays. Apart form bringing attention to such a difficult topic, Moriarty also created four absolutely human, believable and so unlike each other characters. All five actors gave so much to their characters that it was impossible not to feel and empathise with them.
In Light of Salt Rings They Drew closes tonight in The Complex. But the Strive Theatre is currently touring with the play. So, keep an eye on it! For more info: https://www.facebook.com/StriveTheatreGroup/?fref=ts
Unforgettable Lines 