Review: You’ll See, Polka Theatre

If ever there were a more unlikely combination of elements for a show it has to be these: James Joyce’s Ulysses and an audience of children, aged 8+. But my goodness, You’ll See is a stunning example of how it can work! Here performed at Polka Theatre, this understatedly gorgeous production from Irish company Branar meticulously extracts the essence of the 800 page, 100 year-old tome, with its opaque, stream of consciousness narrative, and forms it into a captivating, crafted performance that has children gripped and which even adults can understand.

Helen Gregg is the talented solo performer who, with a charmingly lilting Irish accent, explains the event for the young spectators and others unfamiliar with Joyce’s legendary work. We’re told this is one of Ireland’s most famous pieces of literature, of its global influence, and that the book is complex and difficult to engage with. Gregg then reassures us that we don’t need to struggle with it, because she already has. What follows is the purest, most exquisite storytelling, which sparkingly entertains even as it echoes Joyce’s eminent achievement. Using paper puppetry and huge pop-up books, it tells of a single day in the life of Dublin’s community while delivering a delicious flavour of quintessential humanity.

Maeve Clancy’s intricately cut and delicately painted pop-up books (of which there are three volumes, mapping the structure of the original novel) give presence on the tabletop to the streets of the Irish capital, where the characters’ lives progress during that day. There’s sorcery in the opening of each cover, the pages revealing visual beauty; surprise as each releases a scene in a different setting and imagination is activated. A manual, rolling backdrop gives additional life to the streets of the great city, each specifically named as buildings pass by. 

The young audience is invited to lean in and listen, to revel in the joy of language and in perfectly paced storytelling as Gregg delivers her abridged tale with warm attentiveness. They are never patronised and there’s no dodging of scenes about adult behaviours such as death, drinking or marriage in its telling: that’s part of this life. Each character is identified with a care that gives validity to the humble person on the street, value to everyday life events. From a wee in an alley to powerful emotional struggles, we are presented with routine reality made glorious in the juxtaposition of Joyce’s lyrically intoxicating language, which enchants the ear and makes the piece soar. 

Although the puppet figures are basic – literally flat cardboard cutouts on sticks – they are invested with rich characterisation as Gregg speaks their story, with space left for the audience to fill in gaps using their own imaginations. A silky smooth original score (composed by Michael Chang) enfolds the story in evocative, shifting moods, and gives substance to the townscape so animatedly described. The audience are equipped to really feel the tale, with poetry, music and sounds helping them comprehend the experience for themselves. Questions are additionally planted about historical practices – about the food eaten a century ago, about currency – which they might carry away for further exploration, and it’s an altogether interactive, inspirational practice.

It was fabulous to see the response to the show from today’s young audience. They sat entirely captivated throughout, then rushed up at the end to examine the set and eagerly ask questions about the production. In a world where computer-generated products are so very intrusive and at times artistically dulling, Branar’s You’ll See is an absolute triumph, offering a gift to our children not only of entertainment but of possibility. AI is dead. Long live traditional artistry.

A Branar production, kindly supported by Culture Ireland.
Adapted by March MacLochlainn and Helen Gregg
Director: Marc Mac Lochlainn
Producer: Joanne Beirne
Composer: Michael Chang
Book Design and Creation: Maeve Clancy
Lighting Design: Michael Foley
Sound Design: Adrian Ferry
Costume Design: Elaine Mears
Cinematography: James Ryan and StationHouse Media
Set Build: Ciaran Kelly
Paper Creation: Sorcha Ní Chróinín
Stage-Manager & Technician: Michael Foley
Line Producer: Niamh Ní Fhlatharta
Marketing: Noel Minogue
Production Assistant: Nóra Burke
Design Assistant: Oisín Parslow

You’ll See is aimed at ages 8+ and has now completed its run at Polka Theatre. You can find out more about the company on their website.