 Outstanding... Michael Gupta & Maggie Blinco Photo - Fiona King Just when independent theatre was looking jaded along comes this little gem of a production. It's an auspicious debut for the newly formed Wildfire Theatre, which has opened with the kind of taut theatre we would all love to see more often. In the hands of director Maeliosa Stafford and four terrific actors, The Beauty Queen of Leenane reminds us of the sublimely penetrative and poignant work of playwright Martin McDonagh. The lonely Maureen (Sandra Stockley) lives with her manipulative mother, Mag (Maggie Blinco), making her endless servings of the drink Complan (the lumpy nature of which is an ongoing issue in the household), tea and porridge. Their relationship is full of petty bickering. Mag is only seemingly helpless, and exploits her seniority for al it's worth, while Maureen reluctantly follows orders. When Pato Dooley (Patrick Connolly) comes into Maureen's life on a romantic level, the spinster dreams of a new life; one that can only work without her mother. Pato's younger brother Ray (Michael Gupta) flits in and out as a kind of messenger boy for the family. Blinco's ageing matriarch Mag, all long-held grudges and bitter insults, is a wonderful portrayal and Stockley plays the initially dutiful but later brave and independent daughter with relish. Gupta's young larrikin Ray is a quirky source of much of the play's humour. | 
