Goodman Theatre presents ST. NICHOLAS Review

“But, that was before I met the vampires.”

For this writer, there was something funny sitting in a room full of press folks as the unnamed narrator stood on the stage describing the loneliness and dissatisfaction of a theater critic’s lifestyle. The room filled with laughter as the narrator described the complicated balance of watching a piece of art, knowing that his opinion as the primary theater critic of Dublin could influence countless readers. If he hated it, the play was done, and he knew that there were few things he did not hate. Just when one might think this would only be a play about reviewing theater, the narrator said:

“But, that was before I met the vampires.”

The story took a drastic turn into the mystical, and Playwright Conor McPherson invites his audience along for a ride full of dark twists and turns.

Goodman Theatre presents Donmar Warehouse’s Production of St. Nicholas

Written by Conor McPherson and directed by Simon Evans, St. Nicholas follows a burned-out theater critic (Brendan Coyle, best known for portraying Mr. Bates in Downton Abbey). While his opinions and reviews are widely read, he feels something is missing, and has always secretly wished he too could create something rather than simply write about what already exists.

When this narrator decides to run away from his dead-end marriage and unfulfilling career in pursuit of a beautiful actress, his entire life changes before his eyes. Inspired by a dream McPherson experienced in which he was bitten by a vampire, St. Nicholas details the story of what happens to this jaded critic once he encounters a vampire and walks the dark path that follows. Suddenly life is not so ordinary, and the critic who always wanted to create something of his own might have finally found his inspiration. McPherson creates a metaphor for what it feels like to lose one’s way, and asks the audience to consider their own lives in the process, urging us all to find a little hope amidst the darkness.

Transporting the Audience

Helmed by Evans, the artistic team transforms the space into the narrator’s grungy workspace, which in this writer’s opinion, acts as the perfect backdrop as Coyle details the low points and dark, loneliness of his life.

At the center of Set Designer Peter McKintosh’s stage is a desk with a typewriter, and throughout we see piles of papers and books, as well as chairs turned over on their sides. On either side of the stage rests two buckets full of water, which seem to be meant for catching rain water through a leaky roof. In addition to furthering the overall theme of abandonment that fills the space, they also creatively serve the purpose of re-filling Coyle’s water glass throughout the production – which, at least for this writer was shocking to see at first, but soon became a useful part of Coyle’s animated storytelling.

Matt Daw’s lighting design compliments the darkness of the stage – particularly in the second act. While the first act rests in the more “realistic” side of the story, Act Two takes place after Coyle’s character meets the vampires, and the overhead lighting is replaced with candles placed throughout the space. Vampires live in the supernatural world, and Evans and Daw collaborate to bring that quality to life in a stunning manner, increasing the tension of the storytelling along the way through the soft glow that accents Coyle amidst the surrounding darkness of the stage.

Creative Staging

The play details the narrator’s journey towards finding some sense of hope in his life, utilizing a metaphor of paths of light and darkness, and Evans finds some exciting moments to make use of that contrast on the stage – starting at the very beginning.

When the lights dim signaling the start of the play, all quiets down. After some time, a figure slowly emerges out of the darkness on stage, and as the lights slowly come up, Coyle walks about the space, staring down the audience. We live in complete silence as the minutes tick by and only when the tension rises to what feels like an impossible level, Coyle finally speaks. The one-actor show requires a relationship with the actor, and Evans and Coyle collaborate to create that connection from the moment he enters the space. The longer he stares us down, the more it feels like we are a part of his story, and Coyle continues to utilize the audience from that moment forward.

Brilliant acting and a striking stage design make St. Nicholas, in this writer’s opinion, a fascinating event to watch unfold.