Tarbert Theatre players returned to the stage over the past two weekends with a comedy from the pen of Sam Cree, directed by Helen Enright. It was a return to thread the boards after a two year absence after they last put on “nobody is talking to me” back in 2022.
This particular comedy is based on the upcoming nuptials of the daughter of businessman Arthur Marshall (shane wall) who is trying his best to get the house ready for the festivities and to that end he is try manfully to get local painter Andy Crawford (Cormac wall) to try and get the house painted and in tip top shape but Andy seems pre occupied with his upcoming return to fatherhood for an 8th time.
He has a wondering eye and is more interested in getting over time and time and half for very little work and a lot of fun. It has taken 6 weeks to get to nearly finished. Add to this the housekeeper Ivy (Yvonne O Keeffe) is constantly “merry” after many small ones and will regale you with many musical numbers a favourite being “wandering star”. She almost poisons Andy on more than one occasion after trying to top up the whiskey bottle with what she thinks is water but is in fact weed killer !!
To complicate the wedding, Andy’s wife is returning after a near 3 year period away and Andy’s new admirer Madge (ciara shine) is making it tricky. Clare Marshall (noelle mc gibney) is an actress who has been on TV and likes a good time and playing games with her soon to be ex husband.
Judy Marshall (katelyn foley) is Arthur’s daughter and his hoping to marry Alan Rea ( james enright) and after a small fight that was almost the end for the new couple, they manage to find common ground and head up the isle. Alan’s mother (niamh wall) is a widow and thinks the Marshalls are still are a married couple
Local Reverand Gribble (jerry o connell) is hard of hearing and is quite forgetful and seems to think that it’s a christening he is officiating for rather than a wedding. He also seems quite good at getting a damp backside while cycling his trusty stead….
It is a well-constructed comedy that has a few hat tips to the local area, mentioning Tarbert Island and an ongoing strike. It was a debut for Helen Enright is the director’s chair and she can be proud of the efforts that herself and the cast and crew put in over the past few months to bring this comedy to life.
All 9 cast members were well matched to the parts they played and it has been well received by all audiences over the 5 nights. The hard work has paid off for cast and crew who can now take a well-earned break and who knows we may see the Tarbert Theatre players before 2024 ends or failing that we may see them back in some way in 2025…