GAMM’s ‘The Cripple of Inishmaan’ Mesmerizes

WARWICK, RI — Playwright Martin McDonagh specializes in showing the hardscrabble lives of eccentric characters in small towns and “The Cripple of Inishmaan” follows his template faithfully.

The Gamm’s mesmerizing production, sharply directed by Donnla Hughes (“Faith Healer”),  features a stellar cast of actors in a tragicomic tale set in 1930s Ireland.

Jesse Kodama makes a stunning debut as the teenage Billy, the so-called cripple of Inishmaan, which is the island where he lives with his two aunts, who have raised him following the death of his parents.

Billy walks with a limp and his left arm is permanently crooked. Boys make fun of him. Girls are afraid of him. Billy spends time, too much time, staring at cows.

When Billy learns of a Hollywood movie production being filmed on a nearby island, he sees a way to escape his grim existence and has hopes of finding happiness as an actor. Will his silver screen dreams come true?

Bernadette Harding, another Gamm newcomer, plays Helen, a strong-willed young woman who doesn’t take any aggravation from anyone. Billy has an affection for Helen, despite her propensity for cruelty. In an unpleasant moment, Helen uses a batch of eggs to humiliate a man.

Kodama is always sympathetic as Billy deals with heartbreak while maintaining a strong sense of optimism. Billy is never self-pitying and tries to appeal to others’ basic humanity, which isn’t always successful.

Tony Estrella (“Angels in America”) is also superb as the wily JohnnyPateenMike, a shameless gossip-monger always poking his nose where it doesn’t belong.

Casey Seymour Kim (“Sweat”) brings a charming vulgarity to the role of Johnny’s elderly mother, a woman mourning her husband’s death from a shark.

Rachel Dulude (“Between Riverside and Crazy”)  and Liliane Klein (“Frankie and Johnny”) enjoy a crisp chemistry in their scenes as Billy’s aunts and caretakers. They express their dismay with Billy’s lonely life as they run their own food business.

‘The Cripple of Inishmaan’: Plot Twists Abound

McDonagh, who also wrote “The Beauty Queen of Lenane” and “Hangmen,” throws in a number of twists. Situations aren’t always as they appear.

Billy might seem helpless, but he exhibits more intelligence and ambition than the other people in Inishmaan. He expresses the importance of taking chances and trying to better your life.

There is a lot of comedy interlocked with tragedy in “The Cripple of Inishmaan,” where the misery of others brings pleasure to some, while goodness struggles to prevail.

Some of the humor pokes fun at the Catholic Church in references which may offend some audience members. This is far from a politically correct show. We see the darkest impulse of human nature played out, raw and profane. These characters may remind us of people we know, or even ourselves.

Maybe McDonagh is saying what we all need to hear: we don’t need to look down on people with disabilities. They want love just like everyone else.

The Cripple of Inishmaan runs through May 3.  The Gamm Theatre, 1245 Jefferson Boulevard, Warwick, RI. Runtime is 2 hours, 15 minutes with intermission.

Tickets range from $60-$80 with discounts for subscribers and members. To purchase, go to gammtheatre.org/inish or call 401-723-4266.