Theater Review: Outside Mullingar

            Robert Smyth, Deborah Gilmour Smyth, Brian Mackey, Rachael VanWormer

I’ve always thought the Irish a crazy lot. Now playwright John Patrick Shanley illustrates it dramatically in “Outside Mullingar.”

In a dizzying one-act, and with only four actors, Lamb’s Players Theatre shows us how silly– and how self-defeating – tribalism can be.

We’re in a small Irish farming town called Killucan (outside Mullingar), where two clans seem to spend their lives arguing rather than enjoying each other’s company.

The Reillys are represented by elder Tony (played by Robert Smyth) and his son Anthony (Brian Mackey). Tony is determined that Anthony will take over after he dies. Anthony seems a lot less interested in farming and a lot more interested in Rosemary Muldoon (Rachael VanWormer), daughter of Aoife (Deborah Gilmour Smyth).

Uh-oh, a different clan. Can this work?

Maybe, but I’ll never tell. But I am here to tell you the show is hilarious and an absolute joy to watch – and that a big part of that comes in the actions of not just the actors but the production team, as they run in and out helping to change scenery and furniture with the moving actions of the plot.

Robert Smythe’s autocratic Tony alternates between efficient, annoyed, determined and (when he’s being impossible) funny as he tries to keep things on an even keel. But the idea of giving the farm to his son? That’s a big ask.

Brian Mackey’s Anthony, more modern and moderate in outlook, realizes his dad isn’t going to change his mind, but is equally determined to at least try to modernize enough to give the younger generation (and himself) the chance to try a different way of being.

Deborah Gilmore Smyth’s matriarch Aoife Muldoon is just fun to watch (as is always the case with her). But what can she do about her daughter?

And Rachael VanWormer’s Rosemary Muldoon, still mad at Anthony for having pushed her to the ground all those years ago when she was a kid, has every right to cling to her original opinion of him (“I don’t hate you. I just don’t like you”). Will she change her mind? 

VanWormer is one of my favorite players at Lamb’s, though in this show I found her more difficult to understand than usual.

“Outside Mullingar” is a most unusual play, not like anything else I’ve ever seen. Kudos to all involved for this remarkable and delightful production.