Is The Monk a play, a pity party or PR spin for Gerry Hutch?

What started as a one-man play about the life and times of Gerry Hutch became a two-hander this week when, in a curtain-raising surprise, Hutch himself appears on stage to deliver a prologue.

Rex Ryan premiered his play The Monk – called after the widely used nick-name of his subject – last summer but for its second outing it moved to a much larger Dublin venue, The Ambassador, for a weeklong run.

Ryan, who produces, stars and directs The Monk is, says Irish Times crime and security editor Conor Lally, a powerful presence on stage.

Hutch, adds little says Lally – except audience pulling power. He went along to a performance to see how Hutch, whose career he has followed closely, is portrayed. He gives his plain-speaking review here.

Lally found the section on the murder of journalist Veronica Guerin deeply distasteful and the extent to which RTÉ journalist Paul Reynolds lives rent-free in Hutch’s head simply bizarre.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey.

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