The Corn Exchange, 'A Girl is a Half-formed Thing': Pieces of a Whole

Eimear McBride's boldly original novel has become a literary phenomenon. How can The Corn Exchange adapt it for the stage?

Samuel Beckett Theatre, Dublin Theatre Festival

Sept 28-Oct 5

My review of A Girl is a Half-formed Thing, adapted from the novel by Eimear McBride, coming up just as soon as I fight for opera tickets and drink schnapps ...

ANU Productions, 'Vardo': Do Not Pass Go, Do Not Collect €200

The concluding chapter of ANU's Monto Cycle brings 100 years of history full circle. Photo: Patrick Redmond.

Oonagh Young Gallery, Dublin Theatre Festival
Sept 25-Oct 12


A few weeks ago I talked to ANU director Louise Lowe about Vardo and the Monto Cycle as a whole. My review coming up just as soon as I count backwards from one hundred ...

Claire & Leah & Dylan, 'B(r)itches': Do Brecht

A satire of the industry and its treatment of women takes the form of improvisational theatre. The problem is that its clearly pre-scripted. 

Project Arts Centre, Dublin Fringe Festival
Sept 17-20


My review of B(r)itches by Clare Galvin, Leah Minto and Dylan Coburn Gray coming up just as soon as I can't play the boat ...

Gentle Giant Theatre, 'Whichever1uFeed': Pal, You're a Lamb

Christ admits his violent fantasies in this biblical retelling. What meaning then is given to his temptations?

The Stables, Dublin Fringe Festival
Sept 15-20

My review of Whichever1uFeed by Ross Gaynor, Neil Watkins and James O'Driscoll coming up after the jump ...

15th Oak, 'Reckoners': Welcome to the Stra

There is something off about The Stra - the fictional town in Ross Dungan's new play. In a town without order, the structure feels forced.

The Lir, Dublin Fringe Festival
Sept 16-20


My review of Reckoners by Ross Dungan coming up just as soon as I'm unaware of the grenade that I've rolled into the centre of the room ...

Druid, 'Bailegangaire': Drawing Wisdom From the Fire

The 1984 premiere of Bailegangaire has been passed on like a folktale by those who saw it. Alongside the new prequel Brigit, will Garry Hynes' revival be as momentous?

Town Hall Theatre, Galway

Sept 14, 17, 19, 20, 21

My review of Bailegangaire by Tom Murphy coming up just as soon as great rumbles start risin' in the barrel of my chest ...

Druid, 'Brigit': What the Oak Meant

30 years ago Tom Murphy conveyed the mythic timelessness of Irish storytelling in Bailegangaire. The new prequel Brigit sees the playwright tracing our traditions back further than before. 

Town Hall Theatre, Galway

Sept 14, 16, 18, 20, 21

My review of Brigit by Tom Murphy coming up just as soon as I hang my cloak on a sunbeam ...

Little Wolf Productions, 'Eating Seals and Seagulls' Eggs': Showwomen of the Blaskets

The begrudged Peig Sayer would probably appreciate Ní Mhurchú's spiny and unsentimental tribute.

Project Arts Centre, Dublin Fringe Festival
Sept 15-20


My review of Eating Seals and Seagulls' Eggs by Caitríona Ní Mhurchú coming up just as soon as I scratch my retina with a rusty nail ...

John Doran, 'The Centre Of The Universe': Cult Status

In asking us to join his cult, John Doran deconstructs the influence of exploitative institutions. What's unsettling is that he's immensely likeable along the way.

Bewleys Cafe Theatre, Dublin Fringe Festival
Sept 11, 12, 14, 17, 19, 20 


My review of The Centre Of The Universe by John Doran coming up just as soon as I treat you like my best friend ...

Gonzo Theatre, 'Pilgrim': Irishman Abroad

Can Rex Ryan pull off playing a violent, drinking, pregnant woman-beating misogynist who the audience can laugh at?

Sept 11-14 and 16-18, Dublin Fringe Festival

Smock Alley Theatre

My review of Pilgrim by Philip Doherty coming up just as soon as I have an octuple whiskey ...

Niamh Shaw, 'To SPACE': Where There's a Will, There's a Whey

Scientist/performer Niamh Shaw wants to go to space. Becoming increasingly smaller in an expanding universe, what does it take to realise your dreams?

Dublin Science Gallery, Dublin Fringe Festival

Sept 9-14 

My review of To SPACE by Niamh Shaw coming up just as soon as I accidentally discover a constellation while feeding my dog ...

Company SJ, 'Fizzles': Standing at Western Window

Beckett's short prose are adapted for performance within a crumbling townhouse. From Sarah Jane Scaife's scrupulous installation, we get the sense that lives didn't turn out the way they should have. 

14 Henrietta St, Dublin Fringe Festival 

Sept 11-17

My review of Fizzles by Samuel Beckett coming up just as I anticipate some degree of starlight ...

Just The Lads, 'At Sea': The Ocean of Our Minds

An old man's youthful imagination runs riot as he sinks further into dementia.

The New Theatre

Sept 9-13

My review of At Sea coming up just as soon as my dulcet tones are popular with the ladies ...

Rough Magic, 'How To Keep An Alien': A Glance Across a Ballroom.

The intelligently wry Sonya Kelly plays a blinder in this memoir about love and separation. Photo: Anthony Woods. 

Project Arts Centre, Dublin Fringe Festival
Sept 6-13


My review of How To Keep An Alien by Sonya Kelly coming up just as soon as a moist pearl of midlife crisis drips down my forehead ...

Talking Shop Ensemble, 'Advocacy': From a Distance

Telling their stories from a distance, can Talking Shop Ensemble bring us closer to the reality of disability services in Ireland? 

Project Arts Centre, Dublin Fringe Festival
Sept 7-13

My review of Advocacy by Shaun Dunne coming up just as soon as I prevent the shady shopkeeper from selling me something I don't want ...

Dowager, 'Bernarda's House': Women in the Villages in Spain

Clown is a remove from reality. Where then does Veronica Coburn's red nose retelling of Lorca's tragedy bring us?

Project Arts Centre, Dublin Fringe Festival 
Sept 7-13

My review of Bernarda's House coming up just as soon as the future and the past photobomb the present ...

Ulysses Opera Theatre, 'HARP | A River Cantata': Bridging Centuries

Reclaiming the Harp of Daghda becomes a spectacular celebration in Ulysses' opera. 

Samuel Beckett Bridge, Dublin Fringe Festival

Sept 6

My review of HARP | A River Contata coming up after the jump ...

The Company, 'The Rest Is Action': Victory With a Twist

Getting inside the Oresteia is hard work. For The Company, the challenge is getting out.

Project Arts Centre 

Sept 6-13

My review of The Rest Is Action coming up just as soon as I have sacrificial victims on the altar bleeding all over my house ...

Ruairí Donovan, 'ZOMBIES': Night of the Living Dead

This all-nighter polemic seeks to open our eyes to the collapse of Capitalist culture. Keeping our eyes open is another story.

D-Light Studios, Dublin Fringe Festival
Sept 6-7, 13-14


My review of ZOMBIES; why death is dying or are you working hard enough? coming up just as soon as I distrust a poem that introduces itself as a poem ...

Painted Bird Productions, 'Between Trees and Water': Visions of the Past

How do you find the right way to tell a story that has gone untold for 75 years? With sensitivity and discretion.

Unitarian Church, Cork
Sept 1-6

My review of Between Trees and Water coming up just as soon as I give you 10 pounds to buy a cap and stockings ...

Stepping Out From Under Destiny

Promotional art for The Rest Is Action. How do you present the world without denying that it is completely manufactured? The Company talk about their reinvention of The Oresteia. 

"Maybe I'm older now and bitter" says Jose Miguel Jiminez, theatre director and co-founder of The Company, "but the idea I had when I was younger was that my theatre practice, to a certain extent, had to do with changing the world".