This Must Be The Place

Hard Ticket’s rendition of Irish playwright Conor MacPherson’s award-winning play “The Weir” opened at the Corner Brook Rotary Arts Centre on Thursday, April 20, 2023. 

Theatre lovers were happy to come out and show their support for Hard Ticket’s first full-length performance since before the Covid-19 pandemic began in 2020, nearly selling out the intimate Colemans Theatre.

This was my first time catching a show at this west coast venue, and I was impressed. The theatre is somewhat of a horseshoe shape, with seating wrapping around the stage. With this design, it doesn’t seem like there’s a “bad” seat in the house.

For “The Weir,” the stage had been turned into a small pub. A large bar stood at the back, with barstools lining the front. A couple of small tables filled out the space, with a wood stove in the corner.

The show begins when regular Jack (Mike Payne) arrives at the bar ahead of bartender Brendan (Ian Locke). With drinks poured, the pair begin catching up on local gossip – a new neighbour has moved into Maura Nealon’s old house, and she’s expected to show up at the bar later that evening.

Another regular, Jimmy (Craig Haley) soon joins the conversation, and they begin talking smack about how local businessman Finbar Mack (Mark Bradbury) is showing this new neighbour around town, questioning his motives and morals as a married man.

When Finbar arrives at the bar with former city girl Valerie (Allison Crowe), Jack is awe-struck by her beauty. The assembled crew get acquainted with their new neighbour, while the men sarcastically tease and mock one another in a friendly-yet-slightly-spiteful way.

The chinwagging continues but soon shifts into spooky storytelling as the crew begins exchanging tales of local folklore, specifically about the fairies.

Jack is prompted to go first, telling a tale that took place at Maura Nealon’s, now Valerie’s home. Finbar scolds Jack for potentially scaring Valerie, but she brushes it off. Finbar then tells a story involving a Oujia board, or “Luigi Board,” as he incorrectly calls it, prompting boisterous laughter from Jimmy, Jack, Valerie, and Brendan, as well as the audience.

Jimmy is next, recounting a ghostly encounter in a graveyard with a local pervert, only to be chided as well for telling a woman about creeps in the countryside. 

Again, Valerie dismisses their concerns and one-ups the lot of them with a true and eerie story of her own: one about her daughter who drowned, and how Valerie received what seemed to be a phone call from her, from beyond the grave.

Shocked by this terrible tale of loss, tensions rise as the group grasps at straws for a logical explanation. The conversation turns into a bonding moment for them all, creating a safe place to share comfort and solace as they offer sympathies and condolences.

After Finbar leaves for the night, giving Jimmy a lift home on his way, Brendan, Valerie, and Jack pour up a final drink.

The final story of the night is another sad one – Jack’s tale of the one that got away, and the remorse and regret that followed from having loved and lost.

“The Weir” ends as suddenly as it began, with the remaining crew shutting the bar down for the night, putting out the fire, and piling chairs on top of the tables.

While the ending may have seemed abrupt to some, with so much potential to further explore the characters, this was a logical ending to what was simply a glimpse into an average night at an average rural bar, with seemingly average patrons sharing extraordinary stories.  

“The Weir” serves as a reminder that our lived experiences are elevated through the stories we tell about them. What we need are places to share these stories, and audiences who are willing to listen. 

“The Weir” runs April 20-22, 2023 at the Corner Brook Rotary Arts Centre in Corner Brook. Tickets are available via www.rotaryartscentre.ca.