FIRE BELOW: A WAR OF WORDS – Written by Owen McCafferty
Directed by Jimmy Fay
A co-production between Lyric Theatre and Abbey Theatre
In Association with Belfast International Arts Festival
12-28 October 2017
Fire Below: A War Of Words tells the story of two ‘middle class’ couples who were neighbours that decided to have their own 11th night celebrations while the traditional bonfire celebrations took place at the bottom of their respective gardens.
Subtle nods to their professions, academic achievements and the lifestyles of their now adult children quickly allowed the audience to establish that these were accomplished middle aged people who were refined to a point – living a lifestyle that such successes had afforded them.
However, thankfully, the true essence of their backgrounds and upbringing never truly deserted them. Gerry particularly, with his crass tongue.
Rosemary and Tom’s interplay with the Irish language, much to the annoyance to their respective partners, helps to bridge the topic of heritage and embracing equality in today’s society, and shows how language can be viewed as a means to isolate and antagonize.
This piece of theatre is not lazy, it does not embellish old political cliché puns, and the humour is well placed throughout, serving to fan and extinguish the flames of political rhetoric that forms the basis of the dialogue. What the cast, writer and director as an impeccable creative ensemble have managed to achieve is a real sense of equilibrium.
Although the subject matter is often dark, evocative and contentious, the position and arguments offered by the characters have true depth, but remain respectful without destroying the enthralling tension that builds during the first act.
The general focus of the production was the issue of social classes and although I initially dreaded how this theme could undermine the integrity of the piece or alienate some of the younger audience members, it served as a seamless link that carried the show with fluidity.
Thankfully, this piece does not shy away from some tough topics – it balances perfectly an ability to engage the audience, hold them intently, whilst challenging them to draw on their own beliefs and bias’. A truly interactive piece of theatre at its best.
Ali White as Maggie Cara Kelly as Rosemary
By discussing issues such as ‘foreigners’, past hurts and how foreign conflict have been used a political tool in local sectarian propaganda, Fire Below: A War Of Words allows us to explore the very important questions: Have we in Northern Ireland truly moved on? Have we learned lessons from our past? Or is the sense of contention/intolerance a never ending cycle given issues such as Brexit and immigration?
The global impression of Northern Ireland was also a key feature of the production; an issue which is as prevalent as ever as our identity/perceived identity is often at odds. I think it was noteworthy that alcohol served as an accelerator to the metaphoric bonfire that engulfed these four seemingly refined, mature individuals.
The culture of binge drinking and alcohol abuse transcends the class system in Northern Ireland. Alcohol, as we all too well know, tends to loosen what would normally be maybe a restrained and politically correct tongue, and it very much serves as a catalyst in the arc of this production.
Discussions regarding the origin of the wine and how cultured they perceive themselves to be transforms into an alcohol laden war zone. This was achieved with poise, and each audience could relate to the scenario were the elephant in the room that is political bias/contentious views became apparent due to seemingly harmless remarks.
What is beautiful about this piece of theatre is that it demonstrates how we can forget our own upbringing or humble beginnings, which in Northern Ireland often meant being subjected to segregation and oppression and witnessing acts of violence and terrorism perpetrated by those who only want to further manifestos based on hatred and ignorance.
The characters reflect on points in history such as the Good Friday Agreement as a barometer of progress from the troubles to the political stalemate that has peppered recent times. Yet as our characters demonstrate perfectly, we often live in glass houses, cast dispersions on others based on ignorance as to their heritage or customs. The cast highlighted commonly used phrases that seem to condone what we know now as acceptable racism by saying ‘I am not racist….but’.
The characters often refer to those attending the bonfire at the bottom of the garden as ‘those down there’ and create an image of an almost barbaric tribe mentality when describing these individuals who are simply honouring an age old tradition, no matter how contentious it may be to others.
The staging was simply genius, adorned by lanterns in colours representing the national colours that each couple would have an affiliation to (blue and red lanterns hanging stage right, above were the unionist characters predominately resided, and green and orange hanging above stage left).
The mirrored backdrop provided a visual illusion of the bonfire and night sky, and in the most basic sense offered a subliminal message about a need for self awareness in Northern Ireland in regards to how we engage with others.
The use of classical music was a perfect accompaniment to the dialogue that created a notion of sophistication among the characters, and the use of a Van Morrison track to close demonstrated the great cultural heritage we have in Northern Ireland – one of our great offerings to the wider world.
Act two demonstrates how far we as people can come when sensitivity, self awareness and forgiveness prevail. We learn that it is much better to fill awkward silences, which were used effectively as a metaphoric wooden spoon in this production, allowing the tension to build to fever pitch on stage, rather than with respectful dialogue helping to gently usher the perceived elephant out of the room.
Cara Kelly as Rosemary
This production highlights that a mere partition or wall that separates us from others by the slimmest of margins may become a monumental void when ignorance and a lack of understanding and respect ensues.
One of the characters basically puts the world to rights when he looks into the night skies and discusses that sometimes we need to look above or across our city at night to realise that we know as much about the inhabitants of the universe as we often do those who live in houses in the distance, and that it is better to have that clarity than to look down on others and judge.
This piece is groundbreaking in its honesty and transparency, previously other playwrights have relied solely on satire to attract those who share a particular stance on politics, to in a sense put bums on seats, but this production has a great balance of integrity and humour. A must-see by all accounts, be aware that your mind will boggle for the hours and days that follow as you challenge and reflect on your own views about the good, bad and ugly that is Northern Irish culture and politics.
Running times, booking/concession details are available here: lyrictheatre.co.uk/event/fire-belowa-war-of-words