Andrew Cusack’s provocative play set in an Ireland of a century ago comes to Camden Fringe. Magpie is the tale of two brothers on either side of the political divide.
Michael (played by Cusack), an IRA gunman and prisoner haunted by visions of his experience in the Great War trenches. Patrick (Johnjoe Irwin) is a prison guard for the Free State.
Magpie is a complicated tale that may require a bit of knowledge of the history behind it.
The Easter Rising of 1916, the young men pressured into serving King and country, the birth of the Republican movement.
While Patrick will take whatever freedom Ireland is allowed, Michael has become extremist, and after being ordered to kill in war, follows this up by a murder in the uneasy peace that follows.
His only friend and torment is the magpie who chatters outside the cell window each day. He names it Jamie but sees it as a threat, ‘one for sorrow’ as the old rhyme goes.
Period prop details like a vintage chamber pot and straw mattress set the scene, while Patrick’s uniform is richly detailed as contrast with Michael’s grubby garb.
At just 60 minutes, Cusack’s economic writing captures the family tragedy within the Irish civil war. Not a moment is wasted.
The oldest and youngest of a family of five, the brothers have a highly charged chemistry throughout.
Director Ronan Colfer makes a brief appearance as a priest, the only relief of sorts from the cat and mouse sparring of the brothers.
Magpie is a tragedy full of emotional energy that seeks to shine a light on both sides of the Irish question.
Bleak but full of character colour, the play does find moments of humour, too.
But the ending, unexpected, perhaps, cuts deep, with ‘two for joy’ proving a harsh assessment of this sibling story.
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https://camdenfringe.com/events/magpie/ (to 4 Aug)