Translations at The Gaiety Theatre,
Dublin
On Thursday
evening last (28th March) I enjoyed attended a performance of Brian
Friel’s play Translations at The Gaiety Theatre. The production is directed by Adrian
Dunbar, Set Designed by Stuart Marshall, Costume Design by Helen Quigley,
Lighting Design by Conleth White, Hair and Make-up Design was not credited.
The scenographic interpretation and staged presentation while being
somewhat visually appealing, effective and economical also has questions to answer
about the collaboration between the Director and Designers and their meeting of
minds. The performance space was book ended on both sides by two high light toned
flats and crowned by large cut-out profile of a huge wind swept thorn bush. While
the Costume Design was sumptuous and effective the Lighting Design seemed to be
compromised, perhaps by the set or the direction, or perhaps trying to say too
much about time and place. The visual presentation of a wordy, heavy on
dialogue play as Translations is, needs the psychological visual support of the
designers to encourage and settle the focus of the audience’s attention on the
delivery of the author’s words and the performance of the cast.
The lit set is visible to the audience as they take their seats and the
performance opens with a light change to darkness and the quiet arrival on
stage of some of the characters.
The play is scripted to open in a hedge-school in the far west of
Ireland, followed by a starry night scene as the youths of the parish make
their way to and from a local dance and the final scene is set in and around
the hedge school.
Stuart Marshall
successfully amalgamates the interior-exterior spaces and sets the play in the
wind swept west of Ireland. The design goes some distance in allowing for the
seamless, smooth, unfolding of the play, in that it minimises the interruption of
scene changes between the acts (with some exceptions) on the immersion and
engagement of the audience in the performance. This theatrical immersion was supported
by the resetting of the
furniture, dressing props and hand props by the in-character cast during the
performance. The absence of an upstage-centre step to give the cast a more
comfortable access to and from the wide upstage rostrum looked and was awkward
for the cast. The height and
brightness of the two side flats with the window opes is questionable as was
the presentation of the hedge school was it interior or exterior? Did the two
flats need to be so high did they need to be so bright all the way up to the top?
Does not west of Ireland rural vernacular architecture not tend to be single
story sometimes with a low loft area?
The colour and brightness of the back projected sky, the attention to
the costumes and attention to the bare feet and hair styles of the characters did
enhance the feeling of remote village life in 1833 West of Ireland. This ambience
was supported and maintained by Conleth White’s lighting and lighting changes
that brought us from a sun lit coastline exterior to a dark, star lit night-time
beach scene and back again to the hedge school interior/exterior scenes. However
the height and brightness of the two side flats is questionable as was the absence
of localising lit performance areas. Was the hedge school interior or exterior?
Costume Designer, Helen
Quigley’s costume concepts ably
capture the images of native peasant characters on the western seaboard of
Ireland in 1833 as recorded in paintings of the period.
The
un-credited Hair and Make-up Artist/Designer ably and convincingly supported
the performers in their character with unkempt hair, dirty bare feet, the smart,
sharp look of the military and groomed look of the returned son of the house; all
reflect the style of society at the time.
The
programme at a Fiver (€5) was poor value, other production companies provide useful
content such as the Director’s view on the play and comments and sketches by
the designers giving their insight into some of the thought process behind the
concept development. Such input from the Designers is of immense value to
students of Performance, Design for Performance and Design for Stage and Screen
and is to be encouraged and when provided, welcomed.
Helen Quigley: http://www.irishplayography.com/person.aspx?personid=16024
Gaiety
Theatre: http://gaietytheatre.ie/
Millennium
Forum Productions http://www.millenniumforum.co.uk/
