Theatre Reviews

The plight of those in search of a better life way from their place of birth and the difficulties in defining the true essence of what is 'home' is a narrative that has been widely expressed in the Irish theatrical tradition.

The work of Tom Murphy and, to a lesser extent, Brian Friel immediately come to mind. The stories reek with desperation and an acute sadness, as opportunities are wasted, through the combined effects of alcoholic dependency and ineptitude.

This decade has seen Ireland become the destination for those who 'want a better life' and in Gianina Carbunariu's story the lives of three young Romanians come under the microscope.

The play begins with Madalina (Houghton) suspended in mid-air - a clever visual device that places her aboard an aeroplane. Her excitement is palpable ahead of the departure to Dublin and a new life, where hard work will be rewarded and money more plentiful than in her native land.

Madalina's point-of-contact in Dublin is her boyfriend Voicu (Spellman), who, in her own words, has been 'Irish for over a year'. She immediately finds work in a Kebab shop, working all hours of the day. In fact Madalina is willing to work at anything and, through Voicu's insistence, she ends up prostituting herself, which in turn leads on to a starring role in sexploitation videos.

Voicu is the brains behind the latter business venture, with visual arts student Bogdan (Crane) providing the equipment that captures images of male domination. What this play is essentially about is the power to dominate and what a vulnerable teenage girl has to put up with in order to get on in life.

When Madalina wonders what it would be like to live somewhere like California, Voicu immediately puts her down, stating that Ireland is just the same as America - in essence her life would be no different.

'Kebab' makes for unsettling viewing, no doubt helped by Simon Daw's claustrophobic stage space and Phillip Gladwell's moody lighting, which captures the unwelcome seediness. Whatever misgivings there may be about its central message, it is hard to get way from the idea that style takes precedence over substance here.

Carbunariu's short snappy scenes prohibit any real character development, leaving the actors short-changed in the extreme.

What was required was a more incisive approach in dealing with the idea of displacement, and forsaking this in favour of a something akin to a pop video, makes for a less than satisfying endeavour, An opportunity wasted to say something constructive about those who now call Ireland 'home'.  

James McMahon

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