Preview
SAY NOTHING
Ridiculusmus
Written and performed by David Woods and John Hough
Presented as part of the High Performance Rodeo
Runs January 12 to 16
Big Secret Theatre (Epcor Centre)
In 1994, the Irish Republican Army announced a complete ceasefire, raising the hopes for peace in the Loyalist and Republican battle for Northern Ireland and an end to 25 years of bombing and shooting that led to the deaths of more than 3,000 people.
It is this post-ceasefire milieu that David Woods and John Hough of Ridiculusmus explore in their searing satire Say Nothing, the two-man, 80-minute production from Belfast that opens at One Yellow Rabbit’s High Performance Rodeo on Wednesday, January 12.
Inspired by their own depressing experiences in Londonderry in the mid-1990s, Woods and Hough’s play focuses on the polarized community that emerges from the ceasefire announcement, where instead of espousing a mindset of reconciliation, each opposing faction clings to a flawed impression of victory over the other.
As Woods explains, one purpose of the play is to "puncture the artificial feeling of euphoria" created by the ceasefires.
In the production, Woods is Kevin, a local boy, armed with a PhD in peace and conflict studies, who returns home to bordertown Londonderry in an attempt to orchestrate reconciliation workshops between the two opposing communities for an E.U.-funded project.
However, Kevin runs into problems in his attempt to fulfil his mandate as he encounters members of the community completely unwilling to consider his uncomfortable truths. Hough plays all of these characters, including Sally, a Republican-minded Irish B&B landlady and Frank, a violently unstable Loyalist caretaker.
Via interaction between Kevin and these ordinary citizens, Say Nothing amusingly and strikingly illustrates the low-minded, trivial prejudice that fuels each group’s misguided brand of patriotism and the futility of the nature of the attempt used at fostering reconciliation.
Eventually, the collective inability to understand where he's coming from drives Kevin over the edge.
The title of the production is taken from an infamous Northern Ireland saying: "Whatever you say, say nothing" – an unspoken code that is part of a careful politesse which prevails among Protestants and Catholics who must work, study and dwell side by side in a crowded country. Such mannered avoidance of sensitive topics preserves a degree of peace – but at the cost of an open exchange of opinion, clearly displayed here by Ridiculusmus.
It isn’t necessary for Calgary audiences to possess in-depth knowledge of the history of Northern Ireland in order to appreciate this performance. However, it’s important to be aware of the fact that Northern Ireland is a part of the United Kingdom, which also consists of England, Wales and Scotland; and is not a part of the Republic of Ireland, which is a common misconception among many North Americans.
This question of "ownership," however, is a root cause of the battle between the Republicans and the Loyalists, the former seeking a united Ireland and the latter fighting to remain part of the U.K.
Say Nothing’s performances at the Rodeo mark the show’s debut in Western Canada. Woods and Hough have previously presented their critically acclaimed play at the Montreal Irish Festival in 2000 and in New York in 2001, as well as at the 2000 Edinburgh Fringe alongside One Yellow Rabbit. |
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