Director: Jeda de Brí
Original Text: Ultan Pringle
Translator: HK Ní Shioradáin
Muicín, is the first Irish-language production from LemonSoap Productions. Muicín is HK Ní Shioradáin’s Irish translation of Ultan Pringle’s acclaimed 2023 play Piglet.
Siofra Ni Eili portrays Mercy Monroe, a lost soul working in a fish shop in County Offaly after suffering a breakdown in college. Her past comes back to haunt her in the form of two of her old best friends, Clara and Siobhan, and later on her ex-girlfriend Gemma. The first half of the play sees Ni Eili alone on stage, adeptly playing out the excruciating encounter with her best friends, along with her mother’s voice haunting her mind. It could’ve been the influence of the music playing before the show began (beauty school drop out from Grease, among others), but it was no surprise to see the musical theatre bursting out of Ni Eili. She gives Mercy boundless energy that manages to feel desperate and emotionally empty. There is a tragic quality to the performance that reminded me of Liza Minelli in Cabaret.
The tragedy and isolation that Mercy experiences is keenly felt upon Gemma’s arrival into the piece, who clearly doesn’t understand what Mercy goes through. The interaction between the two actors doesn’t quite work, which may be due to Jeda de Bri’s direction – actors standing facing the audience and talking to each other breaks the truth of most pieces – or the somewhat cliched writing, particularly the fond reminiscence of a date. There’s no sense of history between them. It may have been a stronger piece if Ni Eili was alone for the entirety. Though it is important to highlight the lack of understanding around mental health which is easier to do with the presence of another actor. Ni Eili brings such truth to the role that I genuinely believed it was her life on the stage – jumping from delightful to disturbing with ease. Her performance is outstanding.
Before entering the theatre, audience members are presented with the possibility of accessing subtitle technology via their mobile phones. The visible presence of mobiles during the performance didn’t sit well: theatre is usually a welcome break from technology. However, it was a delight to hear Irish being performed on stage, bhí mo chroí ag canadh, but the subtitling was a distraction and negated the element of escapism that is such an important part of theatre. Despite this issue, Muicin is well worth seeing, particularly for Ni Eili’s performance.
Reviewed 26th February 2026.
