Theatre Review: Witness

Everyman, Cork

This intense, disturbing play about sexual abuse within a family is short, sharp and brutish. Written and directed by Carmel Winters, it is a retelling of her film, Snap. Kate Stanley Brennan’s performance is excellent; she seamlessly inhabits both the roles of Shannon and of her 14-year-old son, Stephen.

The dysfunction of this working class Dublin family is in-your-face. Shannon, pitted against a social worker, fears that the official has made her mind up about the case, before considering the facts.