In this one-man show by Ruairi Conaghan, the lasting impact of trauma is investigated with thoughtfulness and humour
Growing up in Northern Ireland, Ruairi Conoghan spent his childhood amidst the Troubles. As most Irish Catholics understand, the lasting impact of that war continues to reverberate throughout communities and families, despite political endeavours to move beyond, to simply forget. Ruairi, in fact, has a distinctly intimate relationship with the violence perpetrated by the conflict. His uncle and namesake, Rory Conoghan, was a Catholic judge in a time that made it almost impossible to be so. Rory Conoghan was seemingly the light of the family, the figure that held everyone together. He was smart and accomplished, and though there were of course the inevitable family squabbles, the Conoghans were a strong unit. One morning, Rory Conoghan opens the door for someone who seems to be the mailman. His daughter, Ruairi’s cousin, stands next to him, holding his hand. The man on the other side of the door swiftly shoots Rory once in the chest. Rory falls, his daughter cradling him, and the attacker flees. This event shakes the family to its core, shattering a then eight years old Ruairi’s illusion of the invincibility of the elders in his family.
Time, supposedly, heals wounds. Years later, when Ruairi is an adult and an actor, he gets the chance to play Patrick Magee, the man who tried to assassinate Margaret Thatcher among others in the Brighton Bomb attack of 1984, in a play to be staged in Brighton itself. The play is an attempt to begin working on truth and reconciliation. For Ruairi, however, it is the beginning of the decline of his mental health. The thin string that had been pulled ever so taut from the time he was a child begins to thin to a dangerous degree.
Ruairi’s passionate, energetic and oddly funny play offers an incredibly open and honest exploration of trauma and mental health. It illustrates how distinctly trauma lives within the body, which is cleverly externalized by his very physical performance style. Ruairi takes us through his life with clear direction, while allowing for interesting trips down unexpected avenues, perspectives from different characters, and additional fictionalized interactions, ensuring that the production does not feel too stagnant. At times we might have needed a moment to figure out who was speaking and where within the story we were, but such questions were quickly answered. This production is a short, poignant, heart wrenching reminder that the impact of conflict continues to be felt for generations not only by those who experienced it, but by the community at large.