THE HOLLOW IN THE SAND

By Brendan Ellis

When Blue Raincoat Theatre Company showcased The Hollow in the Sand by Brendan Ellis in 2002 the play was described by one critic as ‘a whirling, tumbling ride through the history of civilisation’. It is all that and more besides. The play was revisited as Blue Raincoat Theatre’s first production of 2006. Whilst time and indeed civilisation have both moved on since it was first performed the themes explored by the work remained as relevant as ever.

The Hollow in the Sand is an absurd, funny and moving take on themes of change and resistance to change throughout history, and on what can happen to an individual who knowingly or otherwise winds up in the vanguard of progress.

The play follows the story of five lecturers attempting to set down the history of civilization told alongside the story of the life of a young French mathematician Evariste Galois who died in 19 th century France.

In Paris , on the morning of May 30, 1832 , near a pond not far from the pension Sieur Faultrier, Evariste Galois confronted an adversary in a duel to be fought with pistols, and was shot through the stomach. Hours later, lying wounded and alone, Galois was found by a passing peasant. He was taken to the Hospital Cochin where he died the following day in the arms of his brother Alfred. Had Galois lived another five months, until October 25, he would have attained the age of twenty-one.

Galois spent his last night on earth writing down his mathematic theories – which up until this point had been scribbled on pieces of paper. These theories later credited him as being the father of modern algebra. However, he had spent his short life up unto this point trying to have his theories accepted.

As the performance progresses, the absurd trials and tribulations of the lecturers develop alongside the comic tragic demise of the young mathematician. The lecturers bring us on a tour of history from ancient Babylon through Greece and ancient Rome, through the dark ages and on to the time of Copernicus and Galileo, right up as far as Evariste Galois himself, where we find our hero rushing against time to set out a lifetimes work before facing a fatal duel early the next day.

Beautifully realised and performed, beautifully directed – The Sunday Independent

Supremely orchestrated – The Sunday Tribune