Content area
Full text
Faith Healer
Written by Brian Friel
Directed by Judy Davis
Belvoir Upstairs
Brian Friel is considered one of the great Irish writers, no mean feat in a country renowned for great writers. You reali.se this even more when wandering around Dublin and coming across tributes to the writer at regular intervals.
Friel's plays are strong in their use of language, which is often the case with the Irish. Actor Stephen Rea, with whom he often collaborated, reports, '"It's all about language', he said to me. The play, I asked? The theatre?' 'The whole thing', he said." And this play exemplifies just that.
This very different play, written in 1979, follows no linear path and contains four monologues. The first is by Frank Hardy (Colin Friels), who tells us of his experiences as a travelling healer with his partner - or is it wife - Grace (Alison Whyte), and manager, Teddy ( Pip Miller).
He describes his experiences in different halls...