A Northern Odyssey
People's Theatre
8th March 2022
Why would an American artist come to Cullercoats on the cold, wet, windy North East Coast? In 1881 Winslow Homer not only came here, but he came and stayed for 22 months. Not much is known about his stay, why he came, or what he did - besides paint some astonishing watercolours - while he was here, so Shelagh Stephenson's play is a creative imagining gleaned from the sparse information available.
It brings together a group of fisher lasses, a fisherman, and the family of the local lawyer in Cullercoats and an artist from a foreign land. There's nothing like dropping a stranger into a close knit community for creating some drama and tension. Like the ripples from a pebble dropped into a pond, the arrival of Winslow Homer affects everyone in the community. News of his arrival spreads quickly and not always accurately! Some welcome the distraction he brings, while others are suspicious and untrusting, but gradually the fishing community accept him and he becomes, for some, a potential means of escape from the hardship of life.
The story is told with much humour, but it is a poignant and sad tale at times - this is echoed in the stories of Fanny Fish - beautifully and brilliantly played by Geffen Yoeli-Rimmer. Fanny haunts the play, echoing phrases spoken by the other characters and telling her own sad stories. She sees through to the truth of people and I found myself waiting in anticipation to hear what she would say next, whose character she would reveal a little more of. We learn much more about life in the community from Fanny than we do from the other characters. She sees and understands that Joe Armstrong and Winslow Homer and herself don't fit in - like fish out of water.
Joe Armstrong is a young fisherman, injured and unable to go out to sea. He is young and full of life and hope, but also fatalistic about his life - "We are fisherfolk. We fish." Adam Thompson plays the part with such grace, winning the audience's sympathy from the outset.
Winslow talks about painting and art as finding the balance - the right balance of colour to create the best image, and this is a metaphor for the lives of the characters in the play - they must all find balance in their lives. Some do, Maggie (Rachel Milligan) is not unhappy with her lot in life, she accepts it for what it is, while Rosaleen reluctantly accepts that her life is not what she had hoped for, but it is what it is. Others like Joe struggle to find the balance at all.
This is a beautifully produced play. It is atmospheric and emotional, a funny but poignant story of love, friendships, hopes and disappointments and ultimately tragedy.
It plays until Sat 12th March.
Denise Sparrowhawk
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