FROM now until April, 7:84 are touring The Sash, Hector MacMillan's enduringly shrewd compounding of the ridiculous and the pathetic elements that so often attend vehement religious bigotry. The tour, which includes Dundee Rep, Edinburgh King's, ending at the Pavilion in Glasgow, should prove an interesting experience for the cast -- The Sash being one of those plays which are peculiarly vulnerable to audience reaction. More than once I've witnessed partisan feelings -- almost exclusively in support of Bill MacWilliam, that very pith of Orange manhood -- hijack the piece and misconstrue it as a celebration of what it in fact decries: the destructive divisiveness of blinkered prejudice.
Last night's opening in Irvine, however, allowed the production to prove its strengths. And they are considerable. For one thing, it's honest and fair in its presentation of the characters. They're not prejudged for us, or shoved into caricature, so as the ''message'' comes across in bold capitals. For another, the plentiful comedy is astutely guided by director Gerard Kelly so it fulfils its function -- mocking the petty, if pernicious, follies of the Protestant versus Catholic mythology -- without compromising the serious issues that shadow the loud-mouthed ritual taunts and marching shows of strength. Alexander Morton, as the swaggering and roaring Bill MacWilliam, gives a performance that is full-blooded yet intelligently subtle for he allows the man a measure of dignity that brings home the full tragedy of his narrow, fierce beliefs.
Bowler crammed on defiantly over bloodstained bandages, he will walk on the Glorious Twelfth and keep faith with his fathers, unlike his own son, Cameron (Douglas Henshall) whose widening perspective on past and present truths cause him to reject the rabid laws of the Order. Alyxis Daly, as a Catholic neighbour, provides a robust reminder that in-bred bigotry comes in shades other than Orange, while Clare Cathcart (her traumatised niece from Ulster) and Jenny McCrindle ( a hairy wee Orange girl) ably introduce the opposing experiences of those who have lived with the violent consequence of sectarianism and those who only know it as a reason to wave banners, shout slogans and march to good tunes.
MARY BRENNAN
27 Jan 1989 - The Herald