I found it difficult to do anything but smile for the entire running time of The Irish…and How They Got That Way, the delightful history-with-song revue now onstage at the Music Theatre of Connecticut. The Norwalk theatre is now offering nothing more than just a great time for its audience.
Given my last name, it’s hard to believe that I’ve never seen a production of The Irish… It began life Off-Broadway in 1997 by the Irish Repertory Theatre. Based on Frank McCourt’s book, the show is an eclectic mix of Irish music, most which was new to me, and ranging from the traditional “Erie Canal” to U2’s “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For”. McCourt’s play (with original musical arrangements by Rusty Magee) has been a staple of area Connecticut theatres for years now, especially around the St. Patrick’s Day holiday. I can’t imagine a better produced show than the joyful revival now at MTC.
Under Kevin Connors’ snappy direction, the five-member ensemble are quintuple threats, excelling in acting, singing, dancing and playing instruments. Set in a perfectly detailed Irish pub (the solid scenic design is by Sean Sanford), the show covers decades of Irish history from the potato famine to the Molly Maguires to the election of JFK. A poignant rendition of “Johnny I Hardly Knew Ye” highlights this moving memory (bring Kleenex!).
It’s storytelling with a purpose, and it’s all delivered with enthusiasm and polish by a stellar company of actors who include Zachary Anderson, Hillary Ekwall, Jeff Raab, Joseph Torello and Erin Margaret Williams. Anderson, as the show’s invaluable music director and pianist, stops the proceedings at one point with a beautiful rendition of “Danny Boy”, and Williams shows her special skill as an Irish Step Dancer that both enchants and surprises. Raab, who resembles a young Joel Gray, is superb throughout, playing multiple instruments and even portraying George M. Cohen at one point. All the actors have individual moments to shine, but it is as an ensemble that this company of professionals really deliver.
The Irish…and How They Got That Way continues at the Music Theatre of Connecticut, 509 Westport Avenue in Norwalk, Connecticut through March 22. For further information and ticket reservations call the theatre box office at (203) 454.3883 or visit: www.musictheatreofct.com.
Tom Holehan is one of the founders of the Connecticut Critics Circle, a frequent contributor to WPKN Radio’s “State of the Arts” program and the Stratford Crier and former Artistic Director of Stratford’s Square One Theatre Company. He welcomes comments at: tholehan@yahoo.com. His reviews and other theatre information can be found on the Connecticut Critics Circle website: www.ctcritics.org.
