Preview: The Weir, Tobacco Factory Theatres

This month sees the fruits of a new co-producing partnership between Tobacco Factory Theatres and Cardiff’s Sherman Theatre. And we begin at TFT with Conor McPherson’s fascinating and unsettling drama The Weir.

In remote rural Ireland, Brendan’s bar is a shelter and solace for lonely souls. Drinks flow to a backdrop of howling winds and the whistling of the sea: four friends are assembled, with disquieting stories to tell and a stranger to impress. Cue a night of heartfelt humour and confessions of our deepest fears in the dead of night.

Here are director Rachel O’Riordan and Tobacco Factory Theatres’ artistic director Mike Tweddle to tell us more.

One commentary notes that the protagonists’ stories “arise out of the popular preoccupations of Irish folklore: ghosts, fairies and mysterious happenings”. Is The Weir a specifically Irish drama?
Rachel: I think so, yes. It’s a play as much about Ireland as set there, I think.
Mike: It’s been inspiring to see Rachel and designer Kenny Miller developing and discussing the set design for The Weir, which springs from their deep and detailed understanding of the play’s location: a rural Irish pub, a place that brings together people and their stories, and is as much a home to waifs and strays, and a fragile community hub, as it is a business.

Another critic notes that “the play is as much about lack of close relationships and missed connections as it is about anything else.” Fair comment? And if so, what’s the ‘anything else’?
R: Well, the play is very concerned with humanity, with those kindnesses and cruelties we all commit day to day. It’s a profoundly human meditation on living.
M: When I first read the play after being offered the job at Tobacco Factory Theatres, I was very excited by the prospect of McPherson’s writing brought alive by Rachel’s direction. Rachel’s approach to working with actors and text is perfectly suited to exploring the deep undercurrents of expression in this play – the longings, regrets, fears and angers that flow just below the surface, constantly threatening to emerge.

What impact do you hope the play has on audiences?
R: I hope the audience thinks about love, and friendship, kindness. And also the power of community to get through hard personal stuff.
M: Yes, the power of community is such an important theme for our time. One we should emphasise and explore again and again. What I love about The Weir is how storytelling is key to that sense of community. Without our stories, and our commitment to telling them with authenticity, we will cease to understand each other in meaningful and positive ways.

The Weir is at Tobaco Factory Theatres from Tue, Oct 25 to Sat, Nov 5. For more info and to book tickets, visit www.tobaccofactorytheatres.com/shows/the-weir