By Vanessa Cuddeford

Ireland has long been used as an extension of a Hollywood set. Films such as The Quiet Man, Man of Aran and Ryan’s Daughter have all been filmed using “natives” as extras, in effect using them to act as caricatures of themselves.It is this, which Marie Jones explores in Stones in His Pockets.

The plot centres around the filming of The Quiet Valley, in particular two extras Charlie Conlon and Jake Quinn who at of the outset are excited about the prospect of being paid £40 a day, getting three free meals and being close to Hollywood superstar Caroline Giovanni.

However, the suicide of a local lad Sean Harkin causes them, and all the other locals to reassess the shallow nature of film and the American Dream.

Unrealistic ideals and dreams propagated by the industry leave a rancid taste in the wake of the tragedy and Jake and Charlie vow to tell the real story of the disregard for the locals at the hands of the producers in their own film.

Malcom Adams and Hugh Lee alternately jig, pout, grimace, sashay, stumble and stride their way through the two hour performance as between them they play 15 characters, no mean feat which they achieve, to my mind, without fault.

A more elaborate set or dramatic use of lighting might have served to aid the transitions from one character to another, devices which less accomplished actors may have needed as support. However Adams and Lee developed the physicality of each character to the extent that during the hilarious jig scene they managed to convey whom they were portraying with the flick of a hand or a nod without saying a word.

Given the fact that they were each playing seven or eight parts, they could quite easily have fallen into the trap of playing each one as a parody in order to make it clear to the audience where one character began and another one ended. However they made each personality distinct without sacrificing the integrity of the performance, and they still allowed room for each character to develop as the mood of the play became more sombre.

This is a comedy on several layers, overtly funny at times, self-reflexive at others, poignant and touching throughout – a must see!