The McGowan Trilogy by Seamus Scanlon
I have always been very much into Irish-related arts, and came away from “The McGowan Trilogy” anxious to read up some more on my Irish political history.
The play is done in three acts over a few months in 1984, Northern Ireland. Paul Nugent is fantastic as the angry and vengeful IRA member Victor McGowan.
The first two acts have similar violent endings, while the third, as Victor visits his dying mother, is actually sentimental and touching, but I did find the ending of that one pretty predictable.
I loved the fast, witty dialogue and all of the performances. I found myself checking my program a few times to see which actors were Irish born and which, if any, were American. (Irish accents can be easy to mess up, but all of these guys were al spot on.) The program also includes a glossary of terms for those unfamiliar with things like “tayto” and “Dr. Kimble.”
A very smart and engaging evening at the theatre, and I look forward to what is next at the Cell.
