It’s predetermined that humans fail. Despite arduous efforts, humans can’t escape the wrath of the inevitable, even those supposedly blessed with the “luck of the Irish.” Despite the famous adage, Irish heritage does not prevent, or even deflect, any of life’s misfortunes. Just ask The Cripple of Inishmaan director Robin Witt, whose main character, an Irish man named Cripple Billy, epitomizes human failure in man’s eternal struggle against destiny.
“Destiny has a horrible way of kicking us in the ass,” says Witt, who is in the master of fine arts graduate program at Northwestern. “It dangles carrots of our desires in front of us and yanks them away just when we think that they’re within our reach. But nonetheless, the attempt to persevere in the face of utter hopelessness is what the play is all about.”
The Cripple of Inishmaan, based on the second part of a trilogy of new plays by Tony Award-winning writer Martin McDonagh, is a dark comedy set in 1934 on one of the Aran Islands, off the coast of Ireland.
“The play is an extremely funny 1934 reaction of the people of Inishmaan to American documentary filmmaker Dr. Robert Flaherty,” Witt says. “Back then, the art of documentaries was still a young medium. During his two-year stay on Inishmaan, Dr. Flaherty staged every scene of Man of Aran, hiring islanders to portray a family. However, it is contrasted with the beautiful shots taken from the ground-up perspective, to portray these peasants as noblemen.”
Consumed by the fervent yearning to discover what true Irish identity was, McDonagh began writing his trilogy in 1995, calling upon the group of people who initially rejected him outright.
“There was controversy surrounding McDonagh’s motives for writing his plays,” Witt says. “A lot of Irish people argued that (although) he was born and raised in Ireland, his London upbringing nullified his qualification as a true Irishman. Up to this day, there is still some opposition against McDonagh, who writes mostly Irish-based plays. But he refuses to let it stop him.”
Witt cites a personal connection to McDonagh’s plays, and of course, has a fondness for his offbeat sense of humor.
“I first fell in love with Irish plays Winter Quarter of last year,” Witt says. “I just sat down and started reading some of them and couldn’t stop laughing. In fact, I still do when I read them. They’re so human, so mean, and the (expectation) for a certain turnout is completely thwarted, as there are always a series of surprises.”
Fueled by her love for McDonagh’s plays and a grant from the university, Witt was able to conduct a month’s worth of dramaturgical research in Ireland, discovering many of the same concepts that McDonagh came to love.
The cast is also knowledgeable about Irish idealism and history. The cast consists of nine individuals, including Communication senior John Dixon, who plays Cripple Billy.
“We went through an entire process,” Dixon says. “We went through background information, history and looked at each part of the play, scene by scene, to see how each one affected the play. It’s interesting to gain a new perspective on things.”
In his role as Billy, Dixon says he hopes to convey a sense of optimism about life’s possibilities. Dixon says Billy can show the audience that no matter how hard life is, there is always light at the end of the tunnel.
“I want to give them hope, in a word,” Dixon says. “Billy is a worst-case scenario, but he still pushes on despite being on a pathetic island with poor people. And as soon as there is a chance for him to have a shot at his dreams, he goes for it.”
The Cripple of Inishmaan is playing at the Josephine Louis Theater, 1949 Campus Dr., at 8 p.m. from Friday, Nov. 11, to Friday, Nov. 18. Tickets cost $10 to $20. Tickets are available online at www.tic.northwestern.edu or by calling (847) 491-7282.4
Medill freshman Taren Fujimoto is a PLAY writer. She can be reached at
