Festival Line Up
Friday 4th March Mullingar Theatre Lab
ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO’S NEST
by Dale Wasserman CONFINED
Bluntly funny, often manic, and ultimately deeply moving, One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest tells the struggle of the Individual vs the Institution. McMurphy dodges a prison stint by committing himself to a mental facility. But who’s really insane and who has the power? A Native patient, named Chief, guides us through the mind in this dark tale of power and submission.
“Funny, touching, and exciting.”
Saturday 5th March Dalkey Players
EURYDICE
by Sarah Ruhl OPEN
In Eurydice, Sarah Ruhl re-imagines the classic myth of Orpheus through the eyes of its heroine. Dying too young on her wedding day, Eurydice must journey to the underworld, where she reunites with her father and struggles to remember her lost love. With contemporary characters, ingenious plot twists, and breathtaking visual effects, the play is a fresh look at a timeless love story.
“A moving theatrical fable about love, loss and the pleasures and pains of memory.” – The New York Times
Sunday 6th March Ballyduff Drama Group
Rabbit Hole
by David Lindsay-Abaire OPEN
Becca and Howie Corbett have everything a family could want, until a life-shattering accident turns their world upside down and leaves the couple drifting perilously apart. This play charts their bittersweet search for comfort in the darkest of places, and for a path that will lead them back into the light of day.
“Winner of the 2007 Pulitzer Prize, David Lindsay-Abaire has crafted a drama that’s not just a departure but a revelation—an emotional and insightful examination of grief, laced with wit, compassion and searing honesty.”
Monday 7th March Glenamaddy Players
THE CRIPPLE OF INISHMANN
by Martin McDonagh CONFINED
The Cripple of Inishmaan is set on the small Aran Island community of Inishmaan in 1934, where the inhabitants are excited to learn of a Hollywood film crew’s arrival in neighbouring Inishmore to make a documentary about life on the islands. “Cripple” Billy Claven, eager to escape the gossip, poverty and boredom of Inishmaan, vies for a part in the film, and to everyone’s surprise, the orphan and outcast gets his chance…. or so some believe.
‘Playwright Martin McDonagh is the master of the deepest, darkest and most powerful humour’
Tuesday 8th March Corofin Dramatic Society
BETRAYAL
by Harold Pinter OPEN
A sharp look into the nature of romantic relationships, Harold Pinter’s Betrayal starts in 1977 when long time lovers Jerry and Emma meet after her marriage to her husband Robert dissolves, and then backtracks all the way to 1968 when their affair first began. As the years spin backwards, a complex web of secrets about the trio emerges and calls into question the nature of their intimacy — as friends, as partners, as spouses.
“A play about love, lust, and time, Betrayal poetically explores the rift between memory and reality.”
Wednesday 9th March Ray Leonard Players
THE BEAUTY QUEEN OF LEENANE
by Martin McDonagh CONFINED
The Beauty Queen of Leenane is set in the mountains of Connemara and tells the story of Maureen Folan, a plain and lonely woman in her early 40s, and Mag, her manipulative, ageing mother. Mag’s interference in Maureen’s first and potentially last romantic relationship sets in motion a chain of events that are as tragically funny as they are horrific.
“This Tony Award-winning play contains the brash humour, rich language and inventive storytelling for which Martin McDonagh has been widely praised.”
Thursday 10th March Phoenix Players
THE COMMUNICATION CORD
By Brian Friel CONFINED
Brian Friel’s farce is set in a remote thatched cottage in Donegal which has been converted into a weekend retreat for the urban elite. Jack loans this cottage to his friend Tim, a shy linguistics lecturer, for one hour so he may impress his girlfriend’s father, a domineering senator, in order to secure tenure in a Dublin university. However, not everything goes according to plan resulting in complications, cover ups and confusion which is constantly hilarious.
‘A hilarious and biting comedy’
Friday 11th March Enniskillen Theatre Company
The Night Alive
by Conor McPherson CONFINED
Set in Dublin, this play tells the story of Tommy – a middle aged man just about getting by. He is renting a run-down room in his uncle Maurice’s house, keeping his ex-wife and kids at arms length and rolling from one get-rich-quick scheme to the next with his pal Doc.
Then one day he comes to the aid of Aimee, who has not had it easy herself, struggling through life the only way she knows how. Their past won’t let go easily but together there is a glimmer of hope that they could make something more of their lives, even something extraordinary perhaps!
‘“a comedy of desperation, in the gritty sanctuary of a Dublin flat”
Saturday 12th March Bunclody/Kilmyshall Drama Group
THE GOOD FATHER
by Christian O’Reilly OPEN
The Good Father is a warm, tender and funny love story about two people from different social backgrounds. Jane is a lawyer, and Tim is a painter, who meet at a New Year’s Eve party and reluctantly attempt a relationship after she becomes pregnant. Sarcastic, resentful and still trying to please her parents, Jane would prefer to go it alone but Tim’s open-hearted honesty and persistence gradually wears her down. As resistance turns to love, they begin to glimpse a bright future together, but Jane carries a secret that threatens to tear them apart.
“The Good Father is a play that will have you laughing one moment and crying the next.”
