REVIEW BY BERNIE Ní FHLATHARTA

DATHANNA GEALA AMHÁIN – AN TAIBHDHEARC

Irish people really pride ourselves on the ‘good wake’, and a one-woman show at An Taibhdhearc, as part of Galway Theatre Festival, uses a touch of immersive theatre to capture why this is so.

Dathanna Geala Amháin begins in the foyer, laid out with small tables and chairs where people are welcome to sit down to a sandwich and a cuppa – tea, coffee and plates of sandwiches are provided!

As the audience make their way into the auditorium proper, they climb a few steps onstage to offer condolences to Brídín Ní Mhaoldomhnaigh, in character as a chief mourner standing beside a coffin, in a living room setting.

The story kicks off straight away with an insider’s view of funerals – or the undertaking business – to much laughter.

It’s not clear if this character is in the business or just has a keen interest in what’s involved. There are hints of Good Housekeeper or Lessons in Chemistry in this part.

She swiftly moves on, telling the story of her unmarried auntie, with sad and funny anecdotes.

But it’s when she tells her own story of living through the Troubles in Belfast in the 1980s and 90s that we get to the heartbreak of what life was like for ordinary families trying to live their lives – the teenage years and the heartache of looking for love/romance against the backdrop of a military presence on the streets.

And while the 80-minute long show is light enough for the most part, the atmosphere changes during reminisces about the funerals of the Gibraltar Three – Mairéad Farrell, Seán Savage and Dan McCann – in March 1988, when mourners were attacked and three people killed. We also hear how two British soldiers subsequently met violent deaths when they drove into a funeral for one of those victims that was fuelled with angry grief.

These incidents, filmed as part of media coverage, were shown on TV. One viewer, the father of our narrator watching from his sick bed in his West Belfast home, died shortly afterwards of a heart attack.

It is a dark story, told poignantly by Ní Mhaoldomhnaigh. The silence is palpable during this stark but graceful reminder of a time that many of us have almost forgotten.

It’s not easy to be the sole focus on stage but this former Rós na Rún actress does it with aplomb, in beautiful Donegal Irish.

Those with little Irish or from other Gaeltachtaí and in need of assistance, get it via sub-titles on a screen which also depict beautiful animations by Mandy McIntosh.

The show remains immersive to the end, as Ní Mhaoldomhnaigh puts on her coat and beckons the audience to follow her and the coffin.

Outside, a hearse from O’Flaherty’s awaits. The character solemnly places her flowers into the vehicle and waves it away before turning back to her audience, now standing on Middle Street, as if they were mourners, to take her bow.

Surely a fitting end.

The show had originally been programmed as An Taibhdhearc’s production for the 2023 Galway International Arts Festival but had to be postponed. No damage done, as its week-long Theatre Festival run practically sold out.

Based on Pauline Goldsmith’s show, Bright Colours Only, which she staged as a one-woman show in the Edinburgh Fringe many years ago, it’s directed by Muireann Kelly.

This thoughtful production hits the right notes, thanks to the flawless performance from Ní Mhaoldomhnaigh.

The show is currently on tour, taking in Donegal, Castlebar, Dublin and Belfast.

Pictured: Brídín Ní Mhaoldomhnaigh in Dathanna Geala Amháin/Bright Colours Only, which ran as part of Galway Theatre Festival.