The Weir

by Conor McPherson

The Weir had 5 performances about 1 year ago (between the 3rd of April 2024 and the 6th of April 2024) at The Riverhouse Barn

197th Production. The Weir was written by Conor McPherson in 1997. It won the Laurence Olivier Award for best play of 1997/8 and was voted one of the 100 most significant plays of the 20th Century in a poll by the Royal National Theatre. Michael Billington listed it as one of the 101 greatest plays of all time.

Set in a small pub in a remote part of Ireland, over the course of one evening we meet BRENDAN the pub owner, JACK the local garage owner, JIM a labourer, FINBAR a local boy ‘made good’ and VALERIE a young woman who has moved from Dublin. There is some antagonism between Jack and Finbar. The latter moved away and made his fortune and it is Finbar who brings Valerie into the pub to meet the locals, also Finbar is the only married man in the group.

As the drink flows the men banter with each other and start to tell stories with a supernatural theme. They are trying to impress Valerie. But when Valerie tells her story which is true and also has a ghostly element the atmosphere changes, the men become more genuine and in the end we are left with a possible redemption for two of the characters.

The actors will need to make the characters live and be natural but also hold the audience, particularly when they tell their stories. There are subtleties in the relationships and shifts and changes in mood which need to be explored and conveyed. Each Character has a back story and their actions in the pub are coloured by their lives outside.