Magical mystery tour in Castlebar gets the disabled on to the stage

FOR thousands of football fans the hangover formerly known as Mayo will not be a nice sight this morning

FOR thousands of football fans the hangover formerly known as Mayo will not be a nice sight this morning. For another group of Mayo people, however, today is a special day for reasons that have nothing to do with the All Ireland.

To most people, an evening at the theatre represents a night out that can entertain, stimulate or bore the pants off you, depending on the fare on offer. But if you are unfortunate enough to suffer from a learning disability - what used to be called a mental handicap - most plays or films are simply out of reach.

In an effort to confront this problem, the Linenhall Arts Centre in Castlebar and Macnas in Galway have come together to produce an arts experience that is the first of its kind in Ireland. It's called Mise Freisin, and a lucky group of about a dozen people will get to see it today.

To call it a "play" is a bit of a misnomer, as I discovered when I arrived on set in St Mary's Hospital in Castlebar last week.

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It's a magical mystery tour which includes a stormy sea voyage to Clare Island and tells the story of Redhead Eileen who is engaged to Seamus, the lighthouse keeper.

It starts off in the offices of Seafarer's Ltd., where a slightly wacky couple (Imelda and Christy) give a slide show presentation about the island and the trip, and introduce the main characters.

If that sounds dull and pedestrian it's not everything is geared towards getting the audience to respond and take part, with things to touch, songs to sing and questions to answer.

News comes of an impending storm just as the group is about to set sail for the island. "Now how are we going to deal with this?" asks Imelda. "Ask the Lord above," suggests Kathleen in the audience. It's a completely unrehearsed and spontaneous reaction.

"The Lord above? Well if I had a telephone number for him I'd certainly give him a call," replies Imelda.

The actors succeed in creating so convincing an illusion of a real trip that by the time the weather forecast is over - strong Gaels sweeping in from the west - the man from The Irish Times is looking under his seat for a life jacket. Then the group moves on to the boat, where Captain Greybeard is asked to sing a song.

Before he has a chance to start Kathleen jumps in with a few bars of The Fields of Athenry. The play changes to accommodate the improvisation.

It moves through a succession of elaborate sets as the story, builds. At each stage there are reminders of key elements the names of the main characters are repeated again and again, and the plot is reinforced in lots of deliberately unsubtle ways. It becomes very clear just how inaccessible to disabled people most plays are.

The rewards are different, too. The audience reacts with unrestrained hilarity at the funny bits, makes helpful suggestions at every turn, and is involved in the action in a way few conventional theatre audiences are nowadays.

By the time the play reaches its inevitable happy ever after ending it is clear that most of those watching have had the time of their lives. Equally important is that some have been provoked or stimulated to attempt things their carers scarcely believe they can do. One visually impaired woman plays a key role in the rescue.

What does it all mean? According to Marie Farrell from the Linenhall Arts Centre, the question of arts for people with disability is just beginning to show its head above the parapet.

The Arts Council has set up a sub committee to study the issue.

"We're just now beginning to realise that we have a responsibility to provide an arts service for the whole community which would include people with disability," she says. "It's a little bit more difficult to provide the arts service for them. It requires a bit more imagination, but also more funding." The total cost of the Mise Freisin show, including wages for FAS workers for a year and the value of enormous lengths of canvas donated by Macnas, is about £80,000. Providing valid arts experiences for people with disability is expensive. The show's success is partly due to the small numbers at each performance, which allow the actors to engage on a one to one basis with their audience.

"You can bring people into an exhibition but it mightn't be a real arts experience for them, or a valuable arts experience for them, because of the nature of their disability," says Farrell.

"You're talking about more money and imagination because you have to work with smaller numbers. You have to create whole environments and think of stimulating the senses rather than just providing a narrative."

Cathal McCarthy is a graduate of the training scheme set up bye Macnas called MacEolas. He wrote the script and worked with Paraic Breathnach of Macnas on the design for the various sets.

"It's trying to communicate through as many senses as possible - the sound effects, the lighting, the smells and the story as well," he says. "Even if someone is blind they should hopefully get a good lot of the narrative. Betty, who got the key for the castle has a visual impairment. She got "into the story quite well and knew exactly what was happening. That for us means it's working."

Some people might consider the question of arts for people with disability as a luxury in a country which often fails to provide basic services for them.

McCarthy points out that people with poor verbal skills often respond well to other stimuli such as the large visual gestures in mime. Far from being a luxury theatre can break the wall of silence and help them enjoy a basic right - the right to communicate.

In the Great Southern Hotel in Galway on Friday, Michael D. Higgins is talking about a forthcoming meeting of 26 EU culture ministers in the city.

They will discuss a draft resolution promoted by the Irish Presidency which aims to strengthen what Michael D. describes as the "flowery" and "fairly weak" references to culture in the Maastricht Treaty.

One of the areas for discussion is the right of all citizens to have access to the arts. There will be a number of high profile events organised around the debates, including a concert of traditional music in the Town Hall Theatre.

Mere's a suggestion for Michael D. Forget about the Town Hall gig. Bus them to Castlebar instead. They will learn more there in half an hour than in a month of EU seminars.