Moment
It only takes a moment to snuff out a life, but the after effects can last a very long time indeed.
In Deirdre Kinahan’s sharply funny but sensitive drama (a bit like a Greek tragedy with a contemporary comic edge) pill-popping, forgetful Teresa is expecting a rare visit from her son Nial and his pretty English girlfriend who are passing through Dublin en route to his art exhibition in Spain.
Her married younger daughter Ciara is popping round, too, but no one has told Niamh.
Over the course of twenty four hours, the root of the cause of Niamh’s deep-seated antagonism towards her now successful brother – buried in silence for fourteen years, but far from forgotten – is dug up and turned over in an increasingly uncomfortable family gathering over tea and quiche.
There’s fine acting all round in David Horan’s well-judged production and, as Maeve Fitzgerald’s hostile Niamh forces her sibling to relive a past he wants to put firmly behind him, the uncomfortable feeling remains that, despite the attentive affection of new boyfriend Fin, the healing process is
far from finished.
4/5
Bush Theatre
Shepherds Bush Green
W12 8QD
Tube: Shepherds Bush tube
020 8743 5050
bushtheatre.co.uk
Until March 26
£15-£20
– Louise Kingsley
