The director writes in Directors Notes, "London-born playwright Martin McDonagh is the current enfant terrible of the theatre world." That he is a child of the theatre is undeniable - in all senses. Persephone Theatre's production A Skull in Connemara despite solid acting performances and exquisite production values reveals a playwright revelling in theatrical hijinks and linguistic fireworks leaving me the hope that 'enfant' McDonagh will develop his skills beyond the mid-90's great burst of drafts of seven plays in nine months and eventually grow up. Apparently he agrees: "I just need some quiet time to write, hang out and grow up." ( Time ) Dark, droll, comic dialogue and blood crafted to turn cartoonish violence into art while taking a realistic approach to farcical situations cannot disguise the lack of substance. Entertaining it may be but ultimately the characters who argue endlessly fail to overcome their isolation. Their humanness is mis...
