By Kelly Palmateer
In Irish comedy, darkness is a constant theme. The upcoming production by the Irish theatre group Tara Players is no exception.
Happy Birthday Dear Alice will take the stage beginning Feb. 20 at St. Patrick’s Hall on Gloucester Street.
Set in rural Ireland, the play is about a 70-year-old woman named Alice whose children visit her each year on her birthday. While they come bearing gifts, they also come with pamphlets for nursing homes, determined to convince their dear, old mother that she should be in one.
But the play isn’t solely about Alice’s struggle to remain independent. According to director, John Collins, there are a lot of other issues within the piece.
“This play offers a lot of things,” he says. “Drama, sadness, tenderness, comedy, wickedness and darkness. It’s very entertaining.”
The drama begins to unfold immediately when we are introduced to Alice’s highly dysfunctional children, Barbara (Sarah Hearn) and Barry (Dana McNicol). Although highly educated, Barbara disappoints her mother in every decision she makes, particularly in her choice of a partner, Cormack (Lawrence Aronovitch). Barry, on the other hand, has a 17-year-old girlfriend named Sandy (Kate Werneburg), even though he is in his early 30s.
“This family is dysfunctional to the max,” explains Collins.
Another character is Jimmy, Alice’s married friend who seems to have a hidden love for her.
While Alice and Jimmy seem perfectly happy in each other’s companionship, Alice’s children can’t understand the relationship and therefore refuse to accept it.
According to Kel Morin-Parsons, the director of Tara Players’ literary committee which chose Happy Birthday Dear Alice, the play presents many issues that people will have to face eventually.
“The audience will be able to relate to these issues,” she says. “There is a wide appeal to all kinds of people, not just those that are Irish.”
But possibly the most intriguing part of Happy Birthday Dear Alice is the dark comedy. According to Collins, the play derives humour from its intense issues.
“We often laugh at things we are afraid of,” he says. “We have to remember that while the play is extremely funny there are a lot of serious moments too.”
For Kate Werneburg, a Canterbury high school student, playing the role of Sandy is particularly difficult because of the levels of emotion she has to portray. Sandy, who starts off as a sexy 17-year-old in love with an older man, is forced to grow up quickly when she gets pregnant and then loses her baby.
“Sandy really becomes a woman as the play progresses,” says Werneburg, “It’s a big part for a young person to play.”
She’s not the only one who has found challenges in this production. Charlotte Stewart, who plays Alice, says one difficulty she faces are the dream sequences in which Alice goes into the past and has conversations that advance the current plot. Stewart says this is difficult because she has to make the audience understand the difference in time without makeup or costume changes. Instead, she does it through body language and voice.
While Collins agrees there are challenges, he says the play is coming along “marvelously” and that he hopes it will be received positively by audiences.
The production will take place Feb. 20 – 23 and March 1 and 2.