1981 Channel4 doc Field Day in Troubles Derry - Stephen Rea 💙 Brian Friel - Chekhov’s Three Sisters

1981 Channel4 TV-documentary
Field Day Theatre Company in Derry at the height of the Troubles
- Stephen Rea 💙 - Brian Friel - Chekhov’s Three Sisters 🎭

the most Remarkable documentary I’ve ever seen! Derry in 1981*, at the height of the *Troubles*! with a *bomb scare mid-rehearsal (!!) everyone being hastily ushered out of the Guildhall (… which looks exactly the same now as then, the exact same wooden staircase that you can walk on today! they were rushing down to reach safety cos of a bomb scare! 🤪) outside, in the streets, fully armed British paratroopers running around, saracens, fire engines … but the Field Day rehearsals continued … en plain air! 😳 Stephen Rea on the pavement, giving helpful hints and instructions to his actors (he was directing this play), actors chatting about how everybody got used to bomb scares by now and ‘oh where you at the Belfast bomb scare at the Lyric Theatre?’ 😱 then, mid-sentence, the bomb actually goes off! on the other side of the square next to the Guildhall! everybody cranking their necks to see what the damage was… and then it’s all over…. all clear and back inside to continue rehearsals … 🤯 can you fecking believe this?!
plus poet Seamus Heaney closeups at the opening night, Colm Meaney (who was in this play!) walking around smoking 🚬 “this is my warmup” 😄 and a couple scenes that resemble scenes from The Crying Game… very bizarre 🤔
also the late Eileen Pollock who played Masha in this production (fyi she later rejoined Field Day to play opposite Stephen Rea in ‘Pentecost’ (by Stewart Parker, 1987) and as Lady Wilde in ‘Saint Oscar’ (by Terry Eagleton, 1989)).

and no voiceover to the doc, no director, no smart-a*** expert mansplaining away … only the raw actual events as they unfolded in front of the camera 🎥
so refreshing!
Bring Back docs like this pls!

Stephen Rea elaborates on the necessity of returning to Ireland for theatre 🎭 🇮🇪
incl the quote about being asked to put on an English accent to play a Russian character (in Anton Chekhov’s play The Seagull) 😵‍💫

back in Ireland he and playwright Brian Friel founded the Field Day Theatre Company and toured (mostly) Brian’s plays all round Ireland but always after their world premieres in Derry 🎉

In 1981 Field Day were producing Anton Chekhov’s ‘Three Sisters’ 🎭 in a new translation by Brian Friel,
its world premiere was at the Derry Guildhall
8-Sept-1981

‘The Seagull’ video edit voiced by Stephen Rea 1978 as character Constantin (in play of the same name by Anton Chekhov) audio originally recorded for the BBC / two short monologues
with engl accent: 👉    • *The lament of Constantin* 😥 voice St...  

#stephenreaforever
#brianfriel
#fielddaytheatrecompany
#derrylondonderry
#englishaccenttoplayarussianwtf
#everybodylookedcutein1981
#stephenrea
😍