If pubs are the life and soul of communities, the bar staff are their custodians – arguably having greater sway and meaningful interaction with ‘common folk’ than many institutions. And if this is true in Britain, it is also certainly the case in rural Ireland… Written by Martin McNamara and directed by Su Gilroy, Mary O’Sullivan stars as the eponymous Rita – a 50-something barmaid who shares her thoughts on life and personal history with the audience.
Those with a passing knowledge of one-woman plays may see superficial similarities with Willy Russell’s Shirley Valentine. But while Russell’s play deals with the experiences of a middle-aged housewife from Liverpool, Rita is a microcosm – representative of what the women of Ireland have endured over the past 60+ years.
As a barmaid who has daily banter with the customers, she is ‘half-expected’ to have opinions on everything in the news – just like everyone else who comes into the pub. In any case, she likes to keep herself informed and is particularly fond of scientific ‘facts’ – the quirkier the better. But as Rita discusses the local news which is strewn with sporting events, drinking hours on Good Friday and other ‘trivia’, we see how these intersect with aspects of her own life. Each newspaper article that Rita reads triggers a cascading train of thought that is underpinned by the absence of closure.
Most of the time Rita is ‘conversational’, but in the heat of the moment – when the momentum of her thoughts take on a pace of their own – Rita’s monologue ventures into Joycean ‘stream-of-consciousness’ mode, as past and present collide, entwined.
The hold of the RC Church on society – and Rita’s family in particular – is vividly conveyed, as anecdotes of her childhood demonstrate the fear her parents had for the clergy, even when one particular priest is ‘taking liberties’. At the other end of the spectrum, we hear about the nuns who taught Rita and repeatedly tell her “You’re too bold Rita…”
In a society where certain behaviour is labelled as ‘sinful’ and independent thinking is discouraged – if not downright frowned upon – Rita’s propensity for speaking her mind, as well as her sexual past were always going to be a problem for the official position of the Church on ‘private matters’, as well the punters who she chats to on a daily basis.
Through the tales of former boyfriends, matters such as abortion, and sectarian affiliations and activities are senstively broached. Their inclusion shows ‘guilt by association’ haunted people’s lives and how until relatively recently, young Irish women had to quietly travel to the UK if they needed to end a pregnancy.
McNamara’s writing is full of observational humour, so while the topics at times touch on dark subjects, the natural levity that derives from observing the absurdities of human behaviour permeates the show. The play proves that like many women of her generation, Rita McGrinder is a survivor and despite all the knocks she’s taken from life, she isn’t going anywhere…
© Michael Davis 2023
Rita McGrinder Is Still Here runs at the Omnibus Theatre, London until 16th September.
Breaking The Fourth Wall 