REVIEW: LOVE AND CRAIC
Lost in Ireland. In love in Scotland. In trouble...everywhere. Award-winning storyteller Carlyn Rhamey (The ADHD Project) takes the audience on a Celtic adventure like no other. Featuring perilous cliffs, handsome rebels, Viking ghosts, heartbreak and underpants gone rogue, Rhamey’s Love and Craic is equal parts hilarious mishaps and vulnerable catharsis.
Rhamey regales the audience with her travels in the United Kingdom and her impeccable visual storytelling is on full display. Rhamey is animated, eager and captures our attention immediately. We are as invested in her lost luggage plight as she is and can see the conveyor belt full of her belongings clearly as described. Her struggles to navigate and understand thick Irish accents is something any traveler can relate to and her ability to use storytelling to keep history alive (both personal and cultural) is truly impressive work. The audience learns about “craic” (defined as a good time; fun; banter; mischief) and the various interactions with strangers who impact her life while traveling and in more personal settings. Rhamey’s asides and interrupted thoughts allows moments to acknowledge the live audience and are just as hilarious as her scripted sections; the mark of a skilled storyteller.
What I wasn’t anticipating in this comedic narrative was the vulnerability that Rhamey displays. Her descriptions of a troubled relationship were deeply felt. The catharsis near the show’s final moments was authentic and inspiring and like all of Rhamey’s previous productions, leaves the captivated audience wanting more stories of her adventures of self-discovery and acceptance. As she cheekily remarks, “people ask me if I have trouble finding stories for Fringe. NO. They find me.”
Love and Craic is a solo show that allows the audience to take a wildly funny trip with a remarkably talented storyteller. Carlyn Rhamey is an instantly likeable and inspiring addition to this year’s Fringe. If you like stories about travel, Murphy’s Law, bishops named Ledrede, the fast- paced history of King Henry VIII and taking a chance on adventure, then be sure to add this to your must-sees at Fringe.
