There’s an inherent challenge in making theatre about sport—that it only ends up looking like a shallow imitation of the actual sport—which is mostly avoided in Janine Watson’s energetic and highly physical production of John Breen’s Irish rugby play, Alone it Stands.

Written in 1999, about the true story of a regional Irish Munster Rugby club beating the All Blacks in 1978, Breen’s story is a cheerful crowd-pleaser. A cast of six—Tristan Black, Ray Chong Nee, Briallen Clarke, Skyler Ellis, Alex King and Anthony Taufa— play an ensemble of over sixty characters, with accents spanning from New Zealand to South-West Irish.

Breen’s script moves quickly, pumping through a series of short scenes which capture the mood of both teams, as well as the broader Limerick community, before, during and after the match. Lighting design by Matt Cox helps the story move quickly, snapping between different locations and characters, while Jessica Dunn’s sound design and composition sets the tone of levity and tension at different moments.

On a writing and directing note, it did feel that the momentum stalled at interval (which was fittingly the game’s ‘half-time’). We know how the game ends—the entire marketing revolves around Munster’s historic win—so to inject a moment of pause and tension when we already know the result felt unnecessarily. The only thing that made the interval noteworthy was it marked a neat costume change (designer Emma White had the cast wear both All Black and Munster uniforms), but ultimately wasn’t necessary, and Watson would have been better off pumping through the play at 100-minutes straight through. Additionally, a side-plot about a group of local ten-year olds making a bonfire felt like a distraction from the main event of the rugby game.

As a director, Watson leans into the rough and energetic physicality of a rugby match, drawing out exuberant performances from the ensemble, despite the relatively small stage and cast size. Aided by Fight Director Tim Dashwood and Intimacy Coordinator Chloë Dallimore, the cast perform a series of highly choreographed moments, recreating the macho physicality of a rugby game with less bodies. The ensemble felt very in tune with one-another, and found joy in the big comedic moments, particularly Taufa, King and Black.

Both in writing and performances I was reminded of Come From Away, another sweet story about a small-town community. Alone it Stands is a real crowd-pleaser, and the most enjoyable show I’ve seen at Ensemble in years.

Jo Bradley