Kuwaiti Moonshine - The Story of A Well-Meaning Young Man
Kuwaiti Moonshine is a solid one-man show written by and starring Ottawa native, Tim Murphy. It tells the story of Andy, a well-meaning Canadian young adult, who after spending too many years in post-secondary education, having one too many failed relationships, and suffering one to many drinking binges accepts a job in a foreign country. He tells his parents he has decided on Kuwait because drinking is forbidden. He refers to it is a kind of self-proclaimed rehab.
This theory however, we discover, is untrue and through the course of the play the politics of bootlegged alcohol and home brew rum are revealed. Andy, dimwittingly gets caught holding a bag of the home brew and is thrown in jail. Held captive and not allowed to communicate with the outside world he is given an ultimatum: either he can remain in prison and accept punishment under Sharia Law, or he can be set free but only if he agrees to take another man’s life.
It is a deeply layered, insightful, and interesting story. Liberally adapted on the regions culture and very loosely based on Murphy’s own experiences (who himself has spent nearly 6 years teaching at an International School Kuwait) it explores the recent history of the region and how the effects of tyrannical leaders and the scars of the Gulf War affect the daily lives of the Kuwaiti people.
In Kuwait, as in much of the Muslim world, there is a saying, Insha’Allah, which means “God Willing”. The phrase, said often and with varying undertones, has a significant importance to Andy. He is constantly questioning how the choices we make are influenced by our intuition, specifically the daily routine ones, and how do those decisions shape our lives. In the final moment is Andy nothing but a victim of an unfortunate set of circumstances or is he the orchestrator who, by listening to his heart and his intuition, has created the events leading up to his potential demise.
The story is presented in an effective and straightforward manner. The stage is bare with the exception of two chairs and the straw-hat Murphy wears to distinguish between the characters he plays. His costume is comfortable: jeans, t-shirt, sandals with no socks. At moments Murphy’s delivery can feel a bit ‘lecturish’ but overall this is a powerful story worthy of checking out.