Our Brothers in Cloth. Cockpit Theatre.

Set in rural Ireland in 1995, Ronan Colfer’s Our Brothers in Cloth is a reminder how much that nation has opened up over the last three decades. The tale of a village and of a family fractured by allegations of child abuse by a catholic priest evokes a distant, unlamented time when the local churchman was an almost unimpeachable figure of authority. The play occasionally veers into soap opera territory and a second romantic storyline sometimes feels at odds with the central theme, but Colfer still manages to serve up a credible picture of the impact on a community of suppressed sexual abuse.

Mid-twenties Alan (Jake Douglas) is struggling to come to terms with the suicide of younger brother Chris. A chance encounter with returning emigrant Mark (Michael Lavin) hints that altar-boy Chris may have been the victim of unwanted attentions from erstwhile village priest Father Mulvaney. A second suicide is also linked to Mulvaney’s presence. But can Mark, whose own inadequacies have bankrupted the family business, really be trusted?

Alan, battling demons in the form of alcohol addiction and a failed relationship with local schoolteacher Siobhan (Oli Fyne who along with Douglas has the best of the evening’s performances), sets out to investigate. Ranged against him is mum Martina (Emily Swain), Uncle Barry (Kieran Keliher) and the denizens of a village most of whom simply refuse to contemplate that Mulvaney is anything other that a figure of faultless probity.

Complications arise when Mulvaney is arrested on suspicion of sexual abuse in his new parish. Old rumours about Mulvaney begin to surface, sides are taken, and family and community ties are stretched to breaking point. Add into the mix the beginnings of a reconciliation between Alan and Siobhan. Sarah Brittain Edwards bare bones set comprises church pews placed, much of the time, to encircle the action. The feeling of being held captive by religious dogma is haunting.

Writer: Ronan Colfer

Director:  Ryan McVeigh