By Victoria Roddam

Penned by the renowned Irish playwright and IRA activist Brendan Behan in 1954, The Quare Boy is a vivid recreation of life in Ireland's notorious Mountjoy Prison. Thirteen men await the execution of a notorious murderer with varying degrees of humour, melancholy and trepidation in an increasingly tense atmosphere.

Listen to the director Kathy Burke talking to BBC Oxford's Rory Barnett Free Real player

This long-overdue revival by the Oxford Stage Company is skillfully directed by Kathy Burke, whose affinity with the gifted yet ill-fated playwright clearly goes far beyond her own Irish roots. To have captured the intense emotions, intrigues and human interaction which pervade this play is her great achievement, particularly in light of the fact that, as Burke herself has said, nothing especially dramatic happens.

Unsentimental, yet in turns poignant and comic, Burke's assured direction is ably assisted by an extremely gifted supporting cast. Despite having few props and little to distinguish one man from another, each character lives their role fully, from the roguish and hilarious Dunlavin (Ciaran McIntyre) to the clearly traumatized Warder Regan (Sean Campion), whose job it is to sit with the condemned throughout his last night.

The muted set allows the actors a free rein to fill the stage with personality and presence, while Philip Chevron's haunting and resonant musical direction captures both the political spirit of Old Ireland and the complex emotions of life both in prison and at the end of the hangman's noose.

A spirited and profound mix of comedy and tragedy, this will prove a stimulating evening for any theatergoer - to be highly recommended.