THEATRE REVIEW
André de Vanny in ‘Swansong’ (Photo – Yure Covich).
It will be hard to name emotions you didn’t experience after seeing this gritty one-man tour de force depicting the life of Austin “Occi” Byrne (played by Andre de Vanny), a complicated character from 1960’s Ireland.
By Carol Edger Germain
He has experienced a logical and unavoidable sequence of life experience, triggered by his upbringing (an unknown father, highly damning in that country at that time, leaving him crowned with the “B” word, which he is bullied with but can’t bear to say, with a degree of mental illness as well).
He keeps fighting his way to the top of the dark waves trying to pull him down and send him out to sea forever, trying to ride instead of drown, but before he gets settled another is rolling in on him. He’s the eternal optimist. The play is physically intense, it is difficult to watch and imagine the brawls and brutality he has suffered and remembers vividly, but that’s the point of good theater, to make you feel what the character is feeling, and it hurts, makes you cringe, makes you want to yell out encouragement, advice, and admonitions, we feel anger at his failure to learn from his experiences and want to point it out to him. Even though Occi’s beginnings and experiences are unique, you can feel a connection and want to change and guide him. But it is not to be, he fights, laughs, screams out his anguish, tries to fit in, you want a happy ending, there is something valuable and endearing enough about him to cheer for him, but this complex, damaged, isolated character cannot channel forces sufficient to overcome and triumph 100%.
‘Swansong’ at Skylight Theatre Company (Photo – Yure Covich).
An intense 65 minutes, you will feel Occi, and you won’t soon forget him. The playwright, Conor McDermottroe, as well as de Vanny, have won numerous awards, the play has been done around the world in several languages, and is well worth your time if you are ready to experience this range of emotions.
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