Brian Friel is often called the “Irish Chekhov”, and for good reason. Just take a look at his 1979 play Aristocrats, with its stark similarities to Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard and Three Sisters. And not coincidentally, there are three sisters featured in Aristocrats. It’s a tall order to compare anyone to the work of the great Russian dramatist but if Aristocrats doesn’t measure up to the Chekhov classics, there is much to admire in the play. And there’s probably no better venue to find a worthy production than at the Irish Repertory Theatre, directed by the venerable Charlotte Moore.
The play takes place in Friel’s fictional town of Ballybeg where we meet members of the O’Donnell clan, longtime aristocrats whose ancestors “ruled”, holding prominent positions there for many generations. They live in Ballybeg Hall, a lavish country estate, which has been handed down through the years. But echoing the Chekhov plays, the times have been very hard on the current family and they no longer have the means to maintain the property which is falling apart.
It’s set in the mid 1970’s and the house is occupied by the District Justice O’Donnell who’s unseen, ailing in an upstairs bedroom. His daughter Judith takes care of him with help from Willie Diver, a local laborer tending to the land. Judith’s younger sister Claire lives there too but struggles with bouts of depression and spends most of her time playing the piano. Uncle George also lives there but he does little but wander around the place, saying nothing.
[Read Sandy MacDonald’s ★★☆☆☆ review here.]
The rest of the family has long moved out but they’ve all gathered to celebrate Claire’s impending marriage. Her brother, Casimir, has arrived from Hamburg where he lives with his wife and 3 sons, or so he says. The third sister, Alice, has come with her husband Eamon from London. Their marriage is troubled and she has a drinking problem. Into the mix comes Tom (expertly played by Roger Dominic Casey), a scholar who wants to write about the lifestyle of the Roman Catholic “Big House,” as such estates are called. And while Casimir fills Tom’s head with stories of the great artists who’ve visited over the years, it becomes clear that Casimir lives partially in a fantasy world.
There isn’t much more to the story than that, the play proceeding much like a character study. It’s mostly exposition which, in lesser hands, would be a slog over its 2 hour running time but as directed and performed, we are slowly drawn into the sorry lives of the siblings. Much of the angst comes from their father who ran the house with an iron fist. He’s unseen but a baby monitor that was set up enables him to be heard barking orders from his sick bed. As one character puts it: “Father is adept at stifling things.”
There is of course a wider cultural context to consider here. Much like the Chekhov plays, class differences are a big part of the dramatic conflict. For Chekhov it’s the bankrupt Russian aristocrats vs. the encroaching peasants. For Friel, it’s the bankrupt Irish aristocrats vs. the Catholic poor who work their lands. And both writers highlight a member of the lower class who thrives as the landowners decline. In Aristocrats, Shane McNaughton is a natural as the highly competent and upstanding local man Willie Diver. By contrast, Judith says “None of us are trained to do anything.” And that of course is their downfall.
All of the performances are first rate. There is a strong familial bond between the siblings and it is a credit to this company that we feel for them despite their seeming indolence. Their father’s bullying has cost them dearly. Baby sister Claire was destined for a concert piano career but her father forbade it. Likely it contributed to her fragile emotional state. Meg Hennessy plays her with a sweet innocence. She and Casimir have a special relationship. Both are wounded birds playing imaginary games in an effort to escape their unfortunate reality. As Casamir, Tom Holcomb, with his spontaneous yelps, pulls off the very challenging role of a nervous young man who’s become sadly aware that he is “peculiar,” and worse, belittled by his father as the village idiot. His Act 2 monologue is heartbreaking.
Alice has succumbed to the bottle with little to do but ponder her boredom and drink all day. That’s how she escapes. Sarah Street does a nice job underplaying her drunken scenes with subtle intensity.
Only Judith among the siblings has the capacity to accomplish anything, but she is saddled with caretaking responsibilities looking after her dying father. As a woman with the weight of the world on her shoulders, Danielle Ryan portrays the overburdened Judith with decency and strength. It explains why Alice’s husband Eamon carries a torch for her. As an outsider who married into the gentry, he knows the truth about this failing clan but keeps quiet. The outstanding Tim Ruddy delivers a world class performance as the cynical Eamon. With his extensive experience on the Irish stage, he owns the role.
Amid all the family dysfunction, the O’Donnells manage to survive by what one character calls their “residual aristocratic instincts.” Or as Friel writes, they are “absorbed by great silence.” But that’s where Chekhov and Friel seem to part ways. The Russian aristocrats may be similarly bored and reticent but they do have their passions, acutely aware of what’s to be lost. One of the reasons Aristocrats doesn’t measure up to the masterpieces it seeks to emulate is that there is no passion in this Big House. I guess that was absorbed, too.
Aristocrats opened January 21, 2024, at the Irish Repertory Theatre and runs through March 3. Tickets and information: irishrep.org
