McPherson drama for Ramor

'Port Authority' by Conor McPherson stages at the Ramor Theatre, Virginia, on Friday 9th and Saturday 10th November. It is directed by Andrew Flynn and has a stalworth cast of Garret Keogh, Carl Kennedy and Phelim Drew. Youth, middle age and old age all present people with different challenges and these are explored in Port Authority. Conor McPherson's rich piece consists of three intersecting monologues in which a young man, Kevin, a middle-aged business man, Dermot and an elderly man in a retirement home, Joe recall crucial, life-changing moments in their past and how they dealt with these. In Kevin's case, it's about moving out of home and becoming a tenant in a shared house with a motley crew of residents, including a girl he fancies. For Dermot, it's landing the job of his life and how it turns his head until reality reasserts itself. In Joe's case, an unexpected legacy leads him to recall an encounter with a neighbour, which shook his life to its core. Garret Keogh as Joe exudes a sadness, which is tempered by a sense of mischief, demonstrated when he relates how he and two other residents ramble to the pub for afternoon drinks, and become the talk of the home. He is a man whose life has followed a steady - some might say, boring - trajectory and while he muses on a lost opportunity, he doesn't indulge in self-pity. Carl Kennedy as Kevin has the most difficult role in some regards - his life experiences are relatively small compared to the other two.  Yes his character will resonate with anybody who ever shared a house in their youth, and his character offers some of the play's funnier moments, with tales of parties and would-be music stars. Phelim Drew plays the part of a the middle-aged, generally unsympathetic and unwittingly funny Dermot, i He moves about the stage like a caged animal, recounting and replaying how he got drunk to camouflage his nervousness among his new colleagues. The consequences are hilarious and cringe-inducing in equal measure. He is a real product of the Celtic Tiger, consuming drink and drugs and spending money with frightening ease, while never quite believing he belongs in this gilded world. Booking at the theatre on 049 8547074 or on www.ramortheatre.com