Wonderful Tennessee (Lyceum Theatre)

If Sheffield Theatres' latest season has shown us anything, it is that Brian Friel is not afraid to tackle huge themes, complex ideas and deep philosophical enquiry into the human condition. In Wonderful Tennessee, he is no less ambitious, examining the place of awe and wonder in contemporary life. Yet this play does not have the lightness of touch he achieves in other work, and at times feels clunky and over-loaded.

When six forty-somethings are stranded for the night on a rural Irish pier, it is slightly too convenient that one of them is a classicist who can tell us about the Eleusinian Mysteries, another is writing a book about the effect of time-measuring devices on the human psyche, and a third has three months to live.

The production has a strong cast, with particularly notable performances from Cathy Belton, who is searing as the tense, unhappy Berna, and Melanie McHugh, as the firmly energetic Trish. Skilled accordionist Luke Carver Goss brings a touching likeability to George, a terminally-ill musician, who can remember all the words, but is no longer able to sing them. Music and song are worked effectively into the flow of the piece, but its overall rhythm misses the odd beat, and some sections just seem clumsily blocked.

Friel is not the first, nor, no doubt, the last playwright to explore what possibilities for engagement with the sacred and mysterious still remain open to us, but somewhere along the way this piece has lost the wonder it should be so ripe with.

Wonderful Tennessee continues at the Lyceum Sheffield until 8 March.