A Play, a Pie and a Pint: Divided @ Oran Mor

Ian Pattison’s taut drama Divided makes for a fascinating dissection of one period in the life of famous Glasgow psychiatrist R D Laing.  Stripping the public persona to reveal the private man it shows that Laing, made famous by his writing on family and mental health, was a terrible father.

There’s a bit of the messianic complex to Laing.  Hiding behind his own importance, he fails to live up to his own responsibilities. So when his daughter calls to talk about her sister who’s just been diagnosed with leukaemia you’re left hoping he’ll do the right thing.

The acting is spot on.  Billy Mack’s R D Laing is larger than life and wired with energy, physicalising every moment as if he’s on show.  His daughters Karen (Rebecca Elise) and Susie (Gemma McElhinney) are almost shadows in comparison.  Their emotional containment, however, hides both resentment and an acceptance of their father’s emotional immaturity.

While the swearing is a bit jarring, Divided is funny, fast paced and moving, particularly in its testimony to the positive power of treatment.  Laing’s face twitches with awe when describing two cases where connection is made with patients and trust is built, paving the way for healing. It highlights the responsibility and position of power of those whose remit it is to heal mental illness. The moments where Laing saw and heard his patients where others had failed to listen is truly inspiring and all the more heartbreaking because he couldn’t extend the same privilege to his own family.