James Joyce's "The Dead" Review

I got to watch Cheshire Academy’s Varsity put on James Joyce’s “The Dead” on opening night, Thursday, November 10th. Overall, I think that I enjoyed the performance rather than the play itself. Many of the actors shined onstage when they fully encompassed their character onstage. The costume choices were also effective. I liked the vintage winter look that all the characters seemed to have. I think that the mix between straight dialogue and the songs sung by various characters provided a way to keep the play moving. This was an effective change because the audience was always engaged through the songs and dance that were interspersed in the play. One of my favorite characters was Freddy Malins played by David Mattison. I think that he was really able to bring the character to the next level because he was not afraid to ‘over-act.’ I mean that his acting may have been seen as over-the-top to someone part of the production, but in reality, it just made his portrayal of Freddy that much better. I think that the play itself felt a little bit unfinished and incomplete. I say this mainly because of two scenes; the scene where Aunt Julia and the ending to the story. When Aunt blank dies, it feels very rushed and insignificant to the rest of the characters. This may because the audience does not see the other reactions, but when Aunt Kate comes in to check on her, she does not see the younger self of Julia. This makes me think that they do not know that she is dying. The other scene that I did not like was the ending scene. There was no resolution between Gabriel and Gretta. The play ends with the two of them sitting on opposite sides of the bed, not talking to each other. I thought that there should be some indication to the audience to what might have happened in the future. But, it did leave the audience still thinking about the play, even though they left the theater. These are just a few of the reasons why I think that this production was so successful.