As I watched my usual 140 bus blow past me on a lovely Wednesday afternoon, I took that as a sign to walk home and enjoy yet another beautiful day in Ireland. I stopped in a little “mom and pop” restaurant on George Street, grabbed some lunch and headed towards St. Stephens Green Park to enjoy a Shakespeare performance by Trinity College students. I was expecting a traditional Shakespeare performance but what I got was energetic college students, looking to have a fun and interactive time with Shakespeare.

I arrived at St. Stephens Green Park twenty minutes before the performance started. I decided to lay down and grab some color, and be named, “the only person to come home from Ireland with a sun tan.” Ten minutes behind schedule, the narrator took the stage and introduced the Shakespeare play, Romeo and Juliet. To my surprise a female played Romeo, and a Male played Juliet. That is when I knew they were turning traditional Shakespeare into a modern comedy.

This performance only included two actors and one narrator, costumes that looked like they were bought from a thrift store, and a few props. This “low budget” feel of the performance created a better frame to just focus on the acting. Although the actors were just young college students, their acting abilities were fantastic. They were able to keep the audience engaged, which made the show even more enjoyable.

The performance space for the show was a small area. The idea of the small space was to allow the two actors to be interactive with the audience. Multiple times throughout the performance the two actors would joke around with an audience member, or make an audience member a part of the show. Since my time in Dublin studying theater I have found the most interesting theater performances are the ones that are interactive with the audience.

I left the performance surprised by how much I enjoyed their “remix” to the traditional play Romeo and Juliet.  I would have fallen asleep twenty minutes into a normal Shakespeare play. My favorite part was their interactions with the audience; to me this demonstrated their regard for the crowd. I also enjoyed watching how much fun the Trinity Students were having. So I must say, well-done, Trinity College!

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I left class around noon on a beautiful Wednesday with every intention of enjoying this day before the rain really began to take over Ireland. I hopped on the 140 bus from Rathmines Street to Mountjoy Street with my headphones on. As I sat on the bus waiting for my usual stop I decided to get off on Grafton Street and walk around for a bit. With all the commotion going on I knew I was in store for some major people watching, on top of shopping with money I knew I should not spend.

I made my way up Grafton Street dodging the quick walking Irish, and the slow moving tourists, when I noticed a statue I have never seen before. I continued to walk up Grafton Street, still staring at the statue, when suddenly I saw it move. I thought to myself, I really need to catch up on some sleep. Again, I saw some movement from the statue, and then it clicked, street theater!

When you take part in theater a major component is your costume. As I observed the actors, I noticed how well their costumes were able to make them look like an actual statue. What was even better was watching other people’s reactions when they saw the statue move, majority of them jumped about five feet. I continued to watch the performance, and I noticed how many people passed the actors, yet the actors were able to maintain focus, stay completely still, and keep the show going. The interesting part about street theater is breaking what is known as, “the fourth wall”

The fourth wall is that invisible wall that divides the actors and the audience. The interesting part about street theater is the ability to allow the audience to break the fourth wall. I watched as people would walk very close to the statue to see if it was real, breaking that wall. I decided to try this myself. I walked close to the actors, observed their stillness, and then decided to donate a couple euro, the actors made a thank you gesture, repositioned, and kept still for the next donation.

I noticed that when someone donates a euro or two, they become in control of the performance. It creates this atmosphere that makes most of the audience feel like they are apart of the show. This creates an interesting tension between the actors and the audience, which I found most fascinating about the entire performance. Since my interaction with the statue on Grafton Street, I find myself double checking other statues around Dublin to make sure I am not missing out on more performances!

Grafton Street, crowdedness of Grafton Street

Grafton Street, the statue on Grafton Street

Grafton Street, breaking the fourth wall

Grafton Street, breaking the fourth wall and being interactive with the actors

As seventeen eager students boarded international flights to Dublin, Ireland, we all had one goal, to make this the best summer of our college career. We boarded the plane with every intention to sleep until we landed, but in my case I was to excited to even keep my eyes shut. Our plane ride went smoothly, and going through baggage claim, and passport checks was a no brainer. With less than four hours of sleep I was ready to take on Ireland

All seventeen of us dropped our bags in our assigned apartments, and we hit the ground running. We ran around Ireland fearless, and ready to take on the next six weeks. When the excitement settled I began to notice the little details about the city, especially the advertisements about theater. I stumbled upon theaters and performances, but none that sparked my interest. I decided not to take the easy way out and sit through a performance wishing I were somewhere else. So naturally I did what any college student would do, I Googled Dublin Theater. Again I was disappointed, so I decided to unpack my belongings and clear my mind.

As I organized my clothes I stumbled upon a “Discover Ireland” book. I remember getting into a petty argument with my mother, who demanded I leave the book home because, “I would never use it.” I flipped through the thick book highlighting such a small country and came across The Dublin Literary Pub Crawl. It may seem like another reason for a bunch of Irish lads, and tourist to get drunk, but that is far from accurate.

I sat patiently waiting for the pub-crawl to start with three other Temple University students at Duke Bar. As the lights dimed, two older men take the center and belt out a song, and a scene from one of Samuel Beckett’s collection.  The crowd crawled to the next stop, which was a small talk about Oscar Wilde and Trinity University. We continue to O’Neil’s Pub for a quick drink then move on with our actors. Next the actors enthusiastically act out a scene from the work of James Joyce that leaves the crowd and people walking on the street extremely impressed. We swing by another pub for a quick drink, and then were off to an alley for the final performance, a scene from one of Brendan Behan’s work. The final performance was one to remember, the crowd was left in stitches, and people from across the street could be heard cheering. To complete the tour, our actors gave us a quiz to see how much we remembered, and Temple University proudly claimed second place.

For my first theater experience in Dublin, I can confirm that the literary pub-crawl is worth the time. The actors were professional, and each performance was well rehearsed and presented with passion. This experience allowed me to move one-step closer into the theater world, and I’m more interested too see what Dublin theater has to offer.

The Duke Bar, beginning of the pub crawl

Trinity College, discussion about Oscar Wilde and his time spent at Trinity College

O’Neils Pub, stopping for a quick drink

During our studies in Dublin, Erika Ayres and Michelle Barry are the students who will be covering the Theater beat.