In Tioslámh Mibhais (sic), Polish Theatre Ireland presents six characters not in search of an author - but still very much in search of a play.

Against a backdrop of social media projections and six trees with fragments of poetry fashioned into leaves, the skilled troupe establish their characters quickly and efficiently: the Activist, red star on her t-shirt, has a megaphone and something important to say; red-robed Lust is diverting; the silk-scarfed Poet compelling; the Healer earthy; the Prisoner gloomy; and the Witch somewhat ambiguous. What follows is a succession of short scenes devised around Polish poet Czesław Miłosz's work involving one or two characters, shifting between six (yes, six) languages.

Poetry in translation is problematic, and poetry translated into a theatre space, presented across six languages to an audience which is likely to speak only two or three at most, is a huge undertaking for what is only the company’s second production. (Imagine trying to do this with Yeats?) The result is unclear – we need more signs to support us through those passages we cannot access, and any dramatic arc is difficult to follow. Where the company loosen themselves from Miłosz's words to slam vodka or gather under a spotlight to sup soup, we get a glimpse of what they can do – but in its reliance on his words rather than the essence of his work, the poet here remains all too elusive.

Fíona Ní Chinnéide