Irish playwright Martin McDonagh once again plumbs the depths of human depravity to hilarious and horrifying effect in his pitch-black 1997 comedy The Lonesome West, one of Little Fish Theatre’s best productions ever.

Feeling especially Lonesome In Leenane, Ireland this time round are 40something brothers Valene and Coleman Connor (Bill Wolski and Cylan Brown), whose stultifying small-town lives in the West of Éire leave them no choice but to attack each other with words and fists.

Not that either can call himself a paragon of virtue.

It did, after all, take only a casual jibe about his son’s haircut for the younger Connor sibling to shoot Da dead, and if Valene testified under oath to their father’s “accidental” demise, it was hardly out of the goodness of his heart, but in exchange for his brother’s share of the inheritance, a deal with the devil Valene makes sure to remind Coleman of every time he inscribes the initial “V” on yet another piece of furniture, appliance, or knickknack in the dingy little house they call home.

Meanwhile, newly arrived Catholic priest Father Welsh (Brendan Kane) does his best to instill ideals of brotherly love in siblings for whom any milk of human kindness has long gone sour, local high schooler Girleen (Eliza Faloona) pines for a fresh-faced padre who’s only got eyes for The Lord, and just about everyone guzzles down 180-proof poteen by the bottle.

Following in the footsteps of its Leenane Trilogy predecessors (The Beauty Queen Of Leenane and A Skull In Connemara, whose pair of “accidental” murders it references), The Lonesome West explores a side of small-town County Donegal likely to shock anyone expecting a heartwarming slice of bucolic Irish life.

What McDonagh provides instead is a world in which boredom breeds resentment breeds violence, especially between live-in family members like Valene and Coleman Connor.

With enough “feckin’” language to earn it an R-rating within seconds of lights-up and more fisticuffs than several plays combined (albeit staged by fight choreographer Patrick Vest with an adroit comedic touch), The Lonesome West may not be a stodgy traditionalist’s cup of tea, but for those willing to walk on the wild side, it’s one scrumptious feast of humanity at its most putrid and depraved.

Director Stephanie Coltrin not only brings out the best in her all-around superb cast, she scores bonus points for one of the most inspired scene changes this reviewer has ever witnessed, one that not only avoids wasting precious minutes but adds even more impact to the most heartbreaking of monologs.

In two of their finest performances ever, longtime company members Wolski and Brown add up to a particularly believable pair of squabbling siblings; Kane makes an absolutely stunning Little Fish debut as the effervescent, tormented Father Welsh; and Class Of 2019 UCLA grad Faloona is a sweet-and-salty delight as Girleeen.

By seating the audience on two walls of the Coleman brothers’ dilapidated Leenane digs, scenic designer Matt White guarantees a you-are-there experience throughout.

Stacy Abrams’ evocative lighting, Diana Mann’s just-right costumes, and sound designer Holly Baker-Kreiswirth’s mood-setting Irish folk ditties earn their own design kudos as well, and though properties designer Coltrin skillfully fills the Connor abode with countless bottles of poteen and an even greater number of Valene’s beloved figurines, two identical issues of UK weekly magazine Take A Break and a letter that would easily take up several hand-written pages and not a single sheet merit rethinking.

Jacob Severance is stage manager.

Anyone anticipating How Green Was My Valley-style nostalgia is hereby advised to revise their expectations. As black as the darkest corners of of the Coleman brothers’ pitiful excuses for hearts and as exhilarating as a play and production can get, The Lonesome West makes a visit to L.A.’s South Bay a September must.

Little Fish Theatre, 777 Centre St. San Pedro.
www.littlefishtheatre.org

–Steven Stanley
September 1, 2019
Photos: Mickey Elliiot

Tags: Little Fish Theatre, Los Angeles Theater Review, Martin McDonagh