Someone Who'll Watch Over Me

‘Someone who’ll watch over me’ by Irish dramatist Frank McGuiness is based on the true story of Brian Keenan - an East Belfast Protestant - who was captured by Lebanese Islamic extremists and held for almost 5 years in underground prisons. Lawson Productions at the Old Mill Theatre, Mends Street, South Perth are presenting this powerful drama until 2^nd October. The two and a quarter hour performances start at 8.00 pm.

This Tony Award winning play showed on Broadway for around 300 performances, before winning the 1993 New York drama critics' circle award for best foreign play.

        It is April 1986 in Beirut and American doctor, Adam (David Gregory), after four months of captivity, is doing press-ups and trying to keep fit. His cellmate is a mentally strong Irishman, Edward (Kingsley Judd), whose idea of sport is recalling well-known soccer matches and racing events. They form a strong self-supporting bond, and then one day a new man appears in their prison. He is a straight-laced, pedantic English lecturer, Michael (Stephen Lee), who is erudite to the extreme. His scholarly conversations leave the other two bored and frustrated.

        Will this strange mix of men be able to survive their indefinite time together?

I remember 20 years ago the release of Keenan, and the similar tale around this time of a giant of a man, Terry Waite. Waite worked with the Archbishop of Canterbury as his international special envoy, and he regularly acted as a negotiator with terrorist groups for the release of prisoners, when out of the blue he found himself incarcerated for 5 years. I can still see his emaciated, pathetic, yet proud, figure emerging from the rescuers van. Because of this I have put off seeing this play, after all why at the end of a tiring day at work would one wish to be faced with such depression, misery and upset? If you have similar feelings put them aside. This is play is packed with humour, occasionally very dark, but most of the time just great fun. Seeing the positive attitude of the three men gives one a true uplift.

The teenage guards are never seen, but are they the real threat? Or is the true enemy within the men themselves? You often wonder throughout the play whether the men are actually mad, or is this flippancy their way of coping?

Because the text of the play was so lucid, I found myself drifting back to the hell that was exposed; the suffering of the families and the desperation of Government officials who had no idea where these prisoners were being held.

When there are millions of starving children, or people suffering, it is easy to turn a blind eye and move on, but when the story of a single individual is being considered, then the whole drama becomes more meaningful and personal. The strength of various individual’s human spirit and determination amazes me. The ability of the three men to endure each other was conveyed in a heartrending way.

The script was superbly constructed, the dialogue marvellous as it conveyed the depths of the prisoners’ feelings. To say that the acting was remarkable is an understatement, it leaves you gasping at the quality and Peter Clark’s direction was astonishing. Beautifully lit by Josh Veitch and managed by Glynis Best.

It is not often that I join the appeal for an audience, as often those asking have chosen a poor play, have cast poorly or simply done a diabolical job. This is NOT a community theatre play, but a professional production – in all the meanings of the word – where the team have invested their own money, hired the theatre and have come up with a superb production. Please support it, otherwise directors will continue to pick ‘safe’ plays and Perth’s theatre entertainment will be boringly bland, generating the same trite repetition.

Theatre at its very best.