The Shadow of a Gunman
by Sean O’Casey
Seanachai Theatre Company at The Irish-American Heritage Center
September-October, 2011
Described as both hilarious and heartbreaking, Seanachai lived up to its reputation as a powerful, ensemble-driven company with their production of this Irish classic. Jeff-nominated and critically-acclaimed, Seanachai explored the meaning of heroism and the emotional costs of occupation.
““A strong cast vividly evokes the queasy terror of life on the receiving end of counter-insurgency.” Chicago Reader
““Jeff Christian’s turn as Seumas was particularly remarkable.” WBEZ
““The highly educated Seumas (an excellent Jeff Christian) complains: “That’s the Irish people all over—they treat a joke as a serious thing, and a serious thing as a joke.”.” Time Out Chicago ****
“I was impressed with Christian’s shambling, comic, tragic, completely truthful performance.” WBEZ
“Each actor in this Seanachaí production has scrutinized O’Casey’s text in surgical detail to convey the often-unpleasant complexities behind the initial jollity. Nor do they gloss over the injustice of foreign troops bullying innocents forced to become martyrs. The results leave us shaken and outraged, contemplating the contradictions of civil disorder in a fickle universe.” Windy City Times
