Stones in His Pockets

I went to a play at the Gaiety Theatre this past week called Stones in His Pockets. It’s about people in a small Irish town (County Kerry) working as extras for a Hollywood picture, and the aftermath and soul searching from a Tragic Event that occurs at the end of act one.

So, uh, it was interesting. I enjoyed it a lot. The satire about the movie industry was good all the way through, especially the scenes of the extras acting (OK, now act dispossessed! Now do a jig!). The story about life in rural Ireland was… well, this may just be because I don’t entirely get Ireland, but it seems really bleak. Is it a commentary on Ireland in the modern world? A riff on how Ireland always gets screwed over? Is it about the resilience of community? I’m not entirely sure, but that part was a downer.

The two actors did a very good job shifting from one character to another mid-scene, with body language and accents distinct enough that even I could tell the characters apart. Some of the humour went over my head, like the line about Seamus Heaney, who I googled after the show. In all, fun.