ONE man show is something of a misnomer when it comes to American actor Jay Sefton’s performance in Unreconciled at the Lyric Theatre.
He brings to the stage over a dozen characters from his past to retell the true story of his 13-year-old self who was cast as Jesus in a school Passion play directed by the local parish priest who would sexually abuse him during rehearsals. The brutally honest solo performance chronicles the adult Jay’s journey to confront his past and navigate a Catholic Church reparations program.
Written by and starring Jay, Unreconciled was co-written with Mark Basquill. It opened at the Stranmillis theatre on Friday night and runs until Sunday as part of the Belfast International Arts Festival. The play is directed by West Belfast actress Geraldine Hughes who met Jay over 30 years ago as part of a theatre group when she first moved to the States.
Set in the Catholic suburbs of Philadelphia in the 1980s, it begins as a typical teenage American story. Sport, music, annoying friends; a crush on a girl in school. And it will strike a chord with anybody from a Catholic background who grew up in the same era with the Church playing a major role in the school and neighbourhoods.
Easter 1985 and Jay lands the role as Jesus in the school’s Passion play. He’s both petrified and delighted to have been chosen. The annual Passion play is a big deal in the parish. He’ll go on tour around other parishes in Philadelphia, and his parents can’t contain their pride. But most importantly for Jay is that the most beautiful girl in eighth grade is playing Mary and she’ll have to cradle him when he is taken down from the cross at the end of the play.
And 1985 promises a host of possibilities for Jay. Everything’s on the up that spring. Philadelphia’s Villanova basketball team are even winning championships. Yet there’s always that inner voice that makes him second guess every decision he makes and celebrates when he quits.
Jay’s transformation into Father Tom – the priest who abused him during the Passion play rehearsals – goes beyond imitation. He tries to get into the soul of a man who preyed on young people while befriending parents and teachers, putting them at ease with his collar half opened and his sleeves rolled up.
Jay Sefton in Unreconciled (Photo by Andrew Greto)
The stage consists of Jay, a table, a chair and a bottle of water. But the list of characters from teenage friends to family brings the play to life. And then there is the large screen behind him where images and videos flash up throughout the one hour twenty minute production. Incredibly this includes footage and photos from the actual Passion play. Watching the adult Jay on stage and looking at the screen, the audience is well aware of what has happened to that child behind him.
Years later when his parents discover that Jay had been abused by the priest they had invited into their home for dinner, his mother reflects that everyone wants to be a victim these days. His father, on the other hand, goes on a crusade against the Catholic Church asking one priest, what’s it like working in a crime scene?
Although this is Jay’s story by the end of the play the audience realise that this is just as much his father’s story as he takes on the Catholic Church in Pennsylvania and battles with his own guilt: The guilt of a father who trusted a man with a collar and a cross; a father who spent all his time working to bring money into the house and to put money in the plate.
One of the most poignant scenes is when Jay relives the moment at the end of Passion play when he is outstretched at the foot of the cross. The pieta onstage is matched by the real-life image of the 13-year-old Jay behind him.
An incredible performance from an incredibly honest actor.
Unreconciled runs at the Lyric Theatre until Sunday. Tickets available here.
