The Stony Brook Department of Theatre Arts is currently hosting an Irish play under the direction of Deborah Mayo. “The Playboy of the Western World,” a three-act play written by John Millington Synge, takes place near a village on a wild coast of County Mayo, Ireland. It has likeable characters who bring together a rustic, comic play.
The story revolves around Christopher Mahon (Dan O’Reilly) who runs away from home and claims to have killed his father. Soon enough, his stories outrun the truth as villagers, especially Widow Quinn (Jennifer Crawford), becomes enamored with him. He wins the village race by using the slowest beast and earns the title of the Playboy of the Western World.
But Christy only has eyes for a bar-maid who goes by the name of Pegeen Mike (Natalie Allen), the daughter of the drunk, Michael James (Kevin Villaran). But she is about to be betrothed to her cousin, Shawn Keogh (Eli Jacob Clark-Kramer).
Unfortunately, for Christy, his acclaim is about to turn into shards when his father, having just been wounded, tracks him down. What follows is a comedy of errors in the likes of Shakespeare and his village fools who entertain the audience with charming dialogue and witty intrigue.
The likability of the characters comes through, as in the words of Christy, who at one point exclaims, “it’s great luck and company I’ve won me in the end of time – two fine women fighting for the likes of me – till I’m thinking this night wasn’t I a foolish fellow not to kill my father in the years gone by.”
The one aspect that stood out the most was Jeanette Yew’s dull, yellow lighting. It perfectly complemented Tanner Cosgrove’s set design and Peggy Morin’s costume design, who has already succeeded with plays staged here in the past.
The one aspect that soured the performance was the command of the Irish dialect, which feels forced and is inconsistent among the characters. The length of the play, nearly two hours, also feels stretched for one that entertains more than preaches.
The ending of the play surprises the audience, but not for the right reasons. The ending is unexpected, but it is also markedly different in tone when compared to the rest of the play. Whether you prefer it one way or the other, is left up to you, and the only way to find out is to go see it.
Editor’s Note: The final run of “The Playboy of the Western World” is this weekend from Dec. 11 to Dec. 14. Thursday through Saturday performances are at 8 pm and Sunday’s performance is at 2 pm. Student tickets with ID are $8 each.
