Author: The Reviews Hub - Ireland

Writer and Director: Michael Hartnett Dublin Region Touring Theatre, founded by Vinnie McCabe and Michael Hartnett, brings new play Bullied, to Dublin’s Viking Theatre. The play takes place in the living room of a grandfather’s house and the plot revolves around two characters- a grandfather, played by Vinnie McCabe and his granddaughter played by Áine Collier. A director’s task is to devise a framework wherein the story of the play is clearly communicated to the audience through continuity, flow, and pace; McCabe in the dual role of actor and director manages both superbly. McCabe plays the role of the grandfather…

Writer: Mary Lavin  Director: Joan Sheehy Not only does esteemed Director, Joan Sheehy bring Mary Lavin’s ‘In The Middle of The Fields’ to life, she also brings it home. In an almost sold out run, Geoff Gould’s ‘Blood in the Alley Theatre Company’ performs Lavin’s foremost ‘widow story’ in the shadow of her beloved Abbey Farm at Bective Mill on the north bank of the Boyne. This production is part of West Cork’s Fit-Up Theatre Festival 2023 and so, in the great tradition of small touring companies staging plays in country towns around Ireland on a wing and a prayer,…

Writer: Alice Malseed  Director: Emily Foran  The Half Moon is a one woman show performed that clocks in at a tight 60 minutes. Written by Alice Malseed it captures succinctly the resourcefulness of the feminine voices who have been voiceless throughout the generations in Northern Ireland. The writing tackles gritty life issues, layer upon layer from abortion to ‘absent men’ in the lives of working class Belfast women. The play creates the atmosphere, geography and the D.N.A. of Belfast in witty rhetoric that connects the generations from World War 2 to the present day. Ruby Campbell conveys beautifully each character and…

Writer: J.M. Coetzee Adapted by: Lara Foot Director: Lara Foot The generic sounds of war can be heard as figures run on stage, clearly fleeing gunfire, one of them holding a crumpled orange cloth seemingly containing a body. As she lays the cloth on the stage and the actors gather to open its folds, Michael K is first revealed to our gaze. He makes a poignant figure, thin, small and unmoving. He is then scoped up again and the set rearranges so that Michael may begin his perilous and epic journey through birth, childhood, and ultimately across a war-torn South…

Writer: Shomit Dutta Director: Bairbre Ni Chaoimh What would two Nobel prize winning playwrights talk about if they were watching a cricket game? Imagine Beckett and Pinter waiting their turn to take part in an amateur match in the depths of the Cotswolds and that’s the plot of ‘Stumped’ by Shomit Dutta. This premise on which the play is based is somewhat absurd, and therefore fitting for the playwrights involved whose works often highlight the absurdity of existence. Barry McGovern convinces as a slightly irascible Beckett who, nervy about his approaching batting role in the game, is simultaneously keeping a…

Writer and Director: S.D. Clifford With DARKK S.D. Clifford makes a study of discomfort for the audience. Clifford writes, directs, and stars as Terry, taking the viewer through one evening of isolation as he escapes from the world and contemplates the building of a flat-pack coffin. The atmosphere is building from before the performance starts; upon entering the Boys’ School the audience is met by a looping track of phone sounds and coughing that grates on the nerves. This builds in intensity as Clifford takes to the stage in the dark, muttering and shouting over the looping in of distorted…

Writer: Niamh McGrath Director: Seamus O’Rourke Niamh McGrath’s Gombean is a one-woman whirlwind, currently being hosted at Bewley’s Café Theatre for the Dublin leg of its national tour. Written and performed by McGrath, it’s the story of a woman wrestling with her past, her present, her community, and herself, all while gearing up for a real wrestling match in the hopes of saving her somewhat failing coffee van business. Grace O’Malley, or GOM as her initials spell, has arrived at a standstill in her life; disappointed with what she has achieved so far, disillusioned with her town and her prospects…

Writer: Paula Greevy-Lee Director: Gerard Lee A Rare Journey is a very intriguing piece of theatre, giving a new perspective on the very well known character of James Joyce, this time told through the words of his wife Nora Joyce. With the intimate setting of Smock Alley, this one woman play really shines bright. It is a particularly impressive feat for our solo actor, Paula Greevy-Lee, as it is a straight through piece,  however she never hesitates for a moment, and manages to really capture the audience through charm and wit. It is a very relaxed and calm play, which is…