The Irish Heritage Theatre in Philadelphia presents and preserves the rich legacy of Irish theater (Synge, O’Casey, Robinson, Boucicault, etc.) and Irish American theater (O’Neill, Kelly, Cohan, Harrigan, Hart, etc.). The IHT offers a wide range of Irish plays featuring its abundance of laughter, the emotional richness, and the inventive language, which brings out the depth of Irish theater.
 
IHT‘s latest production, JUNO AND THE PAYCOCK, is now onstage at Plays and Players Theater (read the Phindie review here). Its director, Peggy Mecham, teaches in the theater program at Community College of Philadelphia. She has directed over 25 productions at the College over the last 20 years and is the artistic director of Once More Theater. She holds a Ph.D. in performance studies from New York University.
 
Juno Boyle, the matriarch who holds the family together, often calls her husband, the delusional “Captain” Boyle, a peacock (“paycock”): “I killin’ meself workin’, an’ he sthruttin’ about from mornin’ till night like a paycock!” When things get out of hand, she tells him, point blank: “Your poor wife slavin’ to keep the bit in your mouth, an’ you gallivantin’ about all day like a paycock!”
 
Captain Boyle, the eternal procrastinator, dishes out this advice: “Get out o’ this! Get out o’ this at once. Ye’re nothin’ but a prognosticator, a procrastinator!” When his unmarried daughter becomes pregnant, the drunkard turns violent: “See that that lassie o’ yours is not here when I come back; for if I lay me eyes on her, I’ll lay my hands on her. An’ if I lay my hands on her, I’ll not be accountable for me actions.”
 
Henrik Eger interviews Peggy Mecham about JUNO AND THE PAYCOCK, the second part of playwright Sean O’Casey’s “Dublin Trilogy”, which is receiving a multi-year production by IHT

Henrik Eger: What made you decide to produce the O’Casey trilogy?
 
Peggy Mecham: We chose O’Casey’s trilogy because we are hoping to produce The Plough in the Stars in the spring of 2016 in honor of the 100th anniversary of the Easter Rising which took place in April 1916. Having determined our interest in producing Plough, we thought what a marvelous opportunity to actually perform the entire trilogy. While individually very powerful, the plays collectively speak to the experiences of the people of Dublin through the six year period from the Easter Rising through the Irish struggle for independence and the trauma of the Irish Civil War.
 
Eger: We are experiencing a lot of turmoil in our own time, too.
 
Mecham: In our troubled world, it is important to remember that events are happening not in the news or somewhere else, but to real people. It has been very interesting to examine the similarities in the plays and also the effects of the turmoil—emotionally and practically. In each of the plays in the trilogy, [O’Casey presents] this extended conflict, caused in ordinary people’s lives, [and] explores how it changes. One of O’Casey’s greatest gifts as a playwright is the great sympathy and affection he feels for the Dublin people and his ability to make us care about them as well.
 
Eger: What makes the O’Casey trilogy still relevant today—psychologically and dramatically?
Mecham: All the plays in the trilogy have this intense, sharp moment of loss and that is such an abiding aspect of human experience that it makes the plays relevant and significant.
 
Eger: Juno, the wife and mother in JUNO AND THE PAYCOCK, has to handle a great deal of conflict.
 
Mecham: Juno explores the dynamics of the Boyle family and, even if the circumstances are not our own experience, they are familiar and topical. She offers a prayer to “take away this murderin’ hate” and there are so many places in the world where this lament could still be offered. We tend to think about the numbers of dead in a conflict without considering that the numbers represent a heartbreaking loss, not only the dead, but those who loved them.  
 
Eger: Tell us about the actors you chose for this production—with Ethan Lipkin towering over everyone, literally, and with the petite Kirsten Quinn standing up to him in extraordinary ways.
 
Mecham: We were very fortunate that Kirsten Quinn agreed to play the role of Juno. Obviously, the role requires an actor who can explore and uncover the psychological complexity of Juno’s relationships and experiences. Kirsten gives a powerful and nuanced performance.  
 
For Captain Boyle’s character we also needed a very strong actor to communicate both his relationship with Juno, [and] the sense of dependency found in the relationship between the Captain and Joxer [his sidekick].  If Juno is resilient, Boyle has been diminished by the years of conflict. Ethan [Lipkin] was able to really work with both sides of the character.
 
Kevin Rodden and Dexter Anderson played the leads in The Shadow of a Gunman, the first play of the trilogy we performed, and we were thrilled they were interested in continuing to work with the company again. Several other cast members, including John Cannon, Angelique Bouffiou, and Jimmy Guckin also appeared in Shadow.  

Eger: The Irish Heritage Theatre is a small young company with a small budget. How did you manage to produce this play with its very large cast?
 
Mecham: One of the challenges for a young company is the large number of characters required for O’Casey’s plays and we are so happy that so many talented young actors in the city are interested in exploring O’Casey’s work.
 
Eger: How much is the Irish Heritage Theatre attracting non-theatre going audiences, especially from the Irish-American community and other groups in the Philadelphia area?
 
Mecham: The Irish Heritage Theatre is actively involved in outreach to the Philadelphia Irish community, through formal groups and publications, such as the Irish Network and the Irish Edition [Newspaper], and, informally, by distributing information about our work at Irish establishments throughout the city.
 
Eger: Tell us about your outreach to the Irish American community, and what are their responses?
 
Mecham: Kate Danaher, one of our Board members, is in constant contact with people from the Irish community and they in turn share information about our productions. We are very fortunate as a theatre company to have a constituency of people interested in Irish culture as well as attracting a more general theater audience.
 
Eger: What do you do to foster a better understanding of Irish culture and Irish theatre in Philadelphia area schools and universities?
 
Mecham: We are really planning to expand our outreach to area schools, colleges and universities.  Classes from Rosemont [College], Villanova [University] and Community College of Philadelphia have attended our productions. We are developing a program with many schools in our region to share study materials with faculty and students at both the high school and college levels. The plays we produce would be of interest to theatre courses in world literature, as well as more specific Celtic literature [classes]. We also hold talkbacks after performances for audiences to have any opportunity to ask questions of those involved in creating the productions as well as share their reactions.
 
Eger: How do you see the future of the Irish Heritage Theatre here in Philadelphia?
 
Mecham: We are truly honored to be able to share the plays of Irish playwrights with Philadelphia audiences. The works are still important and audiences are interested in seeing these plays which would rarely be produced without a company dedicated to them. Each of our productions has grown in audience number and support.
 
Eger: Congratulations, comhghairdeas.
 
[Plays and Players, 1714 Delancey Place] October 15 – 31, 2015, irishheritagetheatre.org. Tickets.

For an earlier version on Phindie, click here.

Such is the autobiographical background of this moving drama. However, unlike many other coming-out plays, ALTAR CALL goes deeper. It shows the conflict with which each character struggles, performed by a fine cast. Even though it is a modern tragedy, directed by William Andrew Robinson and produced by Random Acts of Theater, it’s ultimately a dramatic and not so random act of kindness.

The play takes place in a Baptist church and an upscale home in an Arizona desert. Unlike the Catholic Church, where the hierarchy at the Vatican makes decisions for Catholics around the world, the Baptist church follows a different model where pastors have much more leeway in their decision making—an important part in the conflict-laden family of a bright and well meaning, but ultimately bigoted and homophobic minister. The patriarch of the family, Silas Elmore (Russ Walsh), makes decisions that tear the family apart, but also lead to major breakthroughs for some of the key players in this moving drama.

“Theologically speaking, have you ever considered going to hell?”

Right from the beginning, we hear the voice of tradition, mediocrity, and hate, setting the stage. Howard (Ben Kendall), a senior church member, berates Pastor Silas Elmore, for supporting “perverts.” When the homophobe doesn’t give up, Pastor Silas delivers a brilliant coup de grace, “Theologically speaking, have you ever considered going to hell?”
Ruth (Susan Mattson), the Pastor’s wife, argues with her husband about their grandson John (Gil Johnson) whom he considers “so weak.” Foreshadowing the events to come, the Pastor tells his wife, “I’m just being vigilant.” When Maggie (Julia Wise) tells her father about Matt (Peter Andrew Danzig), the young new musician who is tutoring John, the Pastor, full of suspicion, asks, “How often are they alone?” He quotes Leviticus, Chapter 18.

Maggie, still under the spell of her father, confesses that she always loved his sermons, “whether they were good for me or not.” Right from the beginning we realize that the main character is a bright woman who is going to come into her own, even though she will be tried severely by everyone in the play.

Dysfunctional traditions

Her father reverts to traditional interpretations, especially when it comes to women and minorities. His daughter admits that she is “still tempted to believe too much.” If John, the minister’s grandson, falls in love with Matt, he has to be fired—an act that leads to not only the break-up of the family, but to many insights about the negative impact of dysfunctional traditions. “We’re next in the cross hairs,” he admits, and later tells the young musician, “You’re hurting this ministry. And now my family.” Matt, outraged, asks, “Aren’t they the same? You made me part of this family.” Convinced that he is doing the right thing, Silas tells his grandson, “I SAVED him! And you!”

ALTAR CALL begins and ends with hymns, not only setting the mood but, through carefully chosen songs, it sends out thought-provoking messages. Lightening up the play, Maggie, troubled by her husband Alan (Andy Joos) and his infidelity and coldness, sings, “I’m gonna wash that man right outa my hair,” while the Pastor, concerned about the financial future, sings, “If I were a rich man.” Yet, the same man who powerfully interferes in the life of his gay grandson tries to whitewash the digressions of Alan, his heterosexual son-in-law: “Maggie, don’t be so suspicious.  It’s unattractive.” Dutifully, but also honestly, she tells him, “I’m trying, Dad, but it’s a lot of work being blind.”

“Liberals picket to save an old theatre or rattlesnakes”
​
Pastor Elmore who appears as the epitome of open-mindedness can be as narrow-minded as any homophobe when he learns that several of his colleagues have lost their ministries because they had affirmed homosexuals. “Liberals don’t give money to churches anymore. They save trees and animals. Not souls. They’ll picket to save an old theatre or rattlesnake but not a church. White liberals anyway. Don’t they build churches with closets anymore?”

The same woman who suffered the consequences of a rigid religious upbringing and the selfishness of an arrogant husband, comes into her own by defending her gay son, and telling her father what she thinks of a book that was written by tribesmen over 2,000 years ago.

​Edward Albee and grieving parents respond to ALTAR CALL

After previous performances of her play, McBain received moving letters from grieving parents whose gay kids no longer could endure the constant harassment and abuse from classmates and neighbors. One mother wrote, “I don’t have a gay son; I have a dead one.”

I concur with Edward Albee, who had read the script and liked it so much that he recommended it (“you should see this play”). ALTAR CALL could open minds—inside and outside churches.
[Broad Street Ministry, 315 S. Broad Street] October 9-17, 2015; altarcall.brownpapertickets.com

This review was originally published by Phindie ​ on October 17, 2015.