Waterford-born Deirdre Dwyer was Design consultant for Meridian Theatre Company’s production of a new play by a new playwright at Cork’s Granary Theatre at Mardyke. The writer is American, Thomas Hall, who lives in Dublin wrote this one-hander BOSS about property developer or builder who has helped create Ireland’s new wealth, but has become a tax exile in the process. He is isolated in Spain, his wife gone crazy, his children resentful and the voice of Charlie Bird is at the gate asking is he going to face the Tribunal. Images of Charlie Haughey, Liam Lawlor and Tony O’Reilly, fill the backdrop in an often distracting set of visual images.

At times I wished I could see the character so well played by Michael Loughnan and enjoy his acting but riots of colour kept washing over him. I’ve seen this type of total visual backdrop in art installations but this time it was too much.

A subplot of fathering a child by a black woman who rented an apartment seemed out of place and it seemed to take on too much diffusive significance at a stage in the eighty minute production without interval. I felt disappointed at the end but new work often works against the story as if trying to strike a new angle.

Johnny Hanrahan directed with passion and hopefully Meridian get the funding to tour this work later in the year.