Theatre Review: The Fall of the Second Republic at Abbey Theatre, Dublin

[rating]3[/rating]

The starting point for Michael West’s new play, in this joint production by Corn Exchange and the Abbey, is an alternative, though highly familiar, 1970s Ireland. You know, elections every few weeks, bad suits, wide ties, and a seedy nexus of politics and property development. His plot points echo planning tribunals, the phone tapping and ‘calls to the Aras’ scandals,and our national disdain for builtheritage and culture in general.