Coolatully ***

Finborough Theatre

EXCERPT: "It is a very lovely piece and high on the end of 3 stars, but its lack of originality or any real thought provoking punch prevents it from tipping into the four star arena. "

Summary

“Life isn’t easy Kilian Óg. It tests us. Always has, always will. And not everyone gets a pass. Leave Coolatully boy. Before it’s too late.” Kilian was once Coolatully's pride and joy, its champion on the hurling field. Now the village can't muster a team, the country's shutting down, and Eilish wants to leave for a new life across the ocean. And this is 2014. As Irish history repeats itself, Kilian must confront the demons of the past and decide whether to stay or go forever. 

The winner of the sixth Papatango New Writing Prize, Coolatully shines a light on modern rural Ireland, asking whether a generation can be saved. Since the country’s plunge into recession, Ireland has experienced levels of emigration unparalleled in Europe, with young men particularly affected. Lyrical, compassionate and urgent, Fiona Doyle’s first play is an astonishing insight into the links between the economy, masculinity and society in the modern world.

Thoughts

Fiona Doyle's Coolatully doesn't feel especially new. It comfortably finds its place in the company of the great and the good Irish playwrights - Brian Friel, Conor McPherson - with its depiction of slow and stagnant rural Irish life, young people's wish to get out of there, and how their frustration and need to escape makes them do desperately foolish things. In this play, the characters are all nicely drawn, their actions are credible, and their relationships beautifully rendered by the impressive cast of actors in Max Doran's stunningly small-scale set. They never feel like stereotypes when you're watching them, and the fact we've seen this storyline be played out again and again doesn't prevent us from being wholly engaged by it. It is a very lovely piece and high on the end of 3 stars, but its lack of originality or any real thought provoking punch prevents it from tipping into the four star arena.