Inside a man’s psyche: the dichotomy of the urinal
BY PEACH EMMETT
‘Against backdrops of suburbia, sea change and small town Europe, they fight lone battles whatever their economic status.’
This is how playwright Kieran Carroll epitomizes his new series of short plays ‘In the Mens’ which have opened at the Tap Gallery, is. ‘In the Mens’ peeks inside the psyche of the rougher sex via a two-man show that follows a vast cross-section of male characters through a series of environments and dramas.
Mr Carroll feels the production has a degree of confession and provocation. The urinal represents the dichotomy of what is public and what is private. ‘Men having a piss at a urinal; they’ll be having a conversation but won’t actually look at each other or look into one another’s eyes.’
For the first time, Mr Carroll has handed over his work to a new creative team, giving way to director Rob Gibson and actors Ben McLaine and David Callan. ‘I was involved in earlier rehearsals, but writers can become very interfering creatures, you’ve kind of lived with the creation for a long time,’ Mr Carroll says.
Comedian and former spy David Callan is new to Carroll’s work but says he is looking forward to speaking his lines. ‘There is a certain Shakespearean lyricism in what Kieran does, the meter, the flow, he paints these beautiful pictures. There is a beautiful clear delineation between characters.’
Mr Callan, who made an incongruously smooth transition from Intelligence Officer to entertainer, has worked primarily alone on stage or in improvisational performance. He says he has enjoyed the challenge of working to a script that is so word heavy. ‘There is a certain discipline to it, do what’s in the script and don’t do anything else.’
Combining the creativity of three incredibly different men, ‘In the Mens’ explores the various complexities of humanity and moral dilemma. ‘What it is to behave kindly and dutifully up against if and when hedonism should take over’,’ Mr Carroll asks. ‘What we owe to other people versus what we owe to ourselves’ When do we give up on trying to like or tolerate somebody else”
Mr Carroll is used to writing poetry, but has seen the audience appeal in shorter character pieces and has spent the last four years working on this new project. Focused on writing inclusive theatre, Carroll has developed a range in subject area. ‘It’s a mixture of comedy and drama, there is barely any swearing and no gratuitous violence or simulated sex.’
Carroll is looking forward to engaging with the interpretation of his piece when he sets off to spend some time in a writer’s commune in New York in December. He is one to take pride in the bohemian nature of his life. ‘I’m the only person in the world who does not have a mobile phone.’
