Lorna Irvine reviews a production with a 'brilliant script' and 'three strong performances'.
Martin McCormick's incendiary play, his second for PPP, crackles with issues of homophobic violence, masculinity and religion. And it all happens in Croy in the early eighties.
Two seemingly ill-suited friends, handsome razor-cheeked punk Ranald (Nathan Byrne) and portly ned Barr (Keiran Gallagher) purest chip fat through his veins, hatch a plan to steal a holy chalice while the Pope holds court in Bellahouston Park, then run off to a squat in Newcastle.
Armed with bags of glue, weapons and delusions of anarchy, they sneak into a "churchy place". The laughs come thick and fast as our hapless pair sniff glue, banter and prove to be as punk as Playschool.
That is, until a shocking image of crucified Christ appears to them, in the form of young Chris (Sean Purden Brown) in female wig and white denim mini. And it's clear he is no hallucination.
Latent homosexual fantasies threaten to upend the pals' supposed platonic friendship, and then it all gets ugly. The glue has worn off.
Emma Callender's manic direction is true to McCormick's brilliant script, eliciting three strong performances which provide uncomfortable chuckles until the chilling, all too real conclusion.
The Day the Pope Emptied Croy is at Oran Mor until March 21 and at the Traverse from March 24-28.
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