Two Irish blokes Charlie Conlon and Jake Quinn plan to hold on to their dreams of being extras in an American movie until the cows come home. Their little village has been invaded by the entire Hollywood stars and crew to make a film "The Quiet Valley" and Charlie and Jake are eager for the theatrical experience, with the hope that it will lead directly to their fame and fortune.
Come meet these funny fellows in the highly entertaining comedy "Stones in His Pockets" by Marie Jones playing at New Haven's Yale Repertory Theatre until Saturday, February 16. Euan Morton's Charlie and Fred Arsenault's Jake are versatile with a capital V and talented with a capital T, as they play the whole village of County Kerry, Ireland from the crotchety, whiskey loving gent to the impossible to please, dictatorial director and everyone in between.
They are but two of the 350 extras hired to make the movie authentic, but to the powers that be nothing is satisfactory, even the cows aren't Irish enough. Yet the hopeful pair plug on, Jake with his memories of his stint on American soil and Charlie with a movie script he wrote tucked in his back pocket. Both feel that their time is ripe for a happy harvest.
When the leading lady Caroline Giovanni casts her roving eye in Jake's direction, he feels it's a sign from the fortuitous gods watching over him. But not every dream has a silver lining and a lot can happen on the way to the box office, like a wee bit of Irish step dancing, a plaque of shattered dreams and a good old-fashioned whiskey-soaked wake. Let Evan Yionoulis be your tour guide of the Emerald Isle as he deftly direct this fun folksy tale.
For tickets ($20-96), call the Yale Rep, 1120 Chapel Street, New Haven at 203-432-1234 or online at www.yalerep.org. Performances are Tuesday - Saturday at 8 p.m., with matinees Wednesday and Saturday at 2 p.m.
Decide for yourself whether Jake and Charlie are guilty of taking advantage of the film crew or if Hollywood is using Ireland for its own selfish purposes.
No comments:
Post a Comment