"You'll laugh with Maire.................
you'll cry with Maire....................
what you'll never do...................
is forget her!"
Ireland 2008 review -
"Set against the backdrop of the outbreak of the troubles in Northern Ireland, 'Máire - A Woman of Derry' frames the story of one individual in a troubling climate of hatred and social injustice, with hope giving way to resignation and despair.
Brian Foster's play chronicles the highs and infinite lows of Derry woman, Máire McLoughlin. Motherless from a young age, and living with a father who clings increasingly to the dubious solace provided by drink, Máire sees marriage as her only way out of a bleak future which already seems pre-destined. Along comes Tommy McLoughlin, and together they dream of a future happiness which will transcend their environment.
When Máire gives birth to baby Patrick, familial bliss provides an aegis against the sobering realities of the time. Tragedy soon strikes a double blow. The first is Bloody Sunday, an event which marks a change in Tommy which Máire can do nothing to reverse. With her husband becoming increasingly withdrawn, Máire revels in her role as mother. Cruelly, a cot death shatters her one source of happiness. Alcohol takes over, and the rest of the play charts a wretched, if predictable, downward spiral...
Its construction as a one-performer play presents 'Máire...' with its single biggest obstacle. By their nature, these plays must be dramatically engaging and performed by an actor of intense theatrical gravitas to stand up to any degree of scrutiny. This succeeds in both regards.
It vividly evinces the polarity of the human condition, the edifying humour of macro-humanity, and the pathetic, nihilistic destruction of the micro. It is also a severe indictment of the misery and all-consuming decay wrought by alcohol.
Perhaps the single most disturbing aspect of the play is the way in which the protagonist accepts her incipient decline and plunges wilfully into an alcoholic abyss. Is this a sign of weakness on the part of the individual or is it just another subterfuge of booze? Foster makes no attempt to pontificate, and simply teases the piece out patiently and thoughtfully to its inevitable conclusion.
Actress Carmel McCafferty, sister of well-known journalist Nell, gives a spellbinding performance of pathos, power and poise. With impeccable timing, flawless delivery - even as the character gets increasingly inebriated - and stunning use of facial expressions, McCafferty draws the audience in to her nightmarish world of loneliness and isolation. This is a world tinged with that lethal concoction particular to alcoholics - regret permeated by resignation with every drop to pass her lips - until stupor brings a temporary respite.
Bleak and depressing it undoubtedly is but, with that fatalistic humour and effusive situational comedy particular to the North, 'Máire - A Woman of Derry' is also tour-de-force theatre."
Tom Grealis - RTÉ Entertainment
