Fringe Talk: Oonagh Murphy and Shaun Dunne

Shaun Dunne and Talking Shop Ensemble are teaming up once again, this time to consider the revelations and disillusionments of contemporary Ireland. Dunne himself has been going to psychic mediums for answers, which we will learn all about at their ABSOLUT Fringe show Do You Read Me?. I talked to Dunne and TSE’s Oonagh Murphy about their friendship, their work, and my obvious despondency from pop cultural references.

Fringe Talk: Richard Walsh, Zita Monahan and Martin Sharry

In the first of two ABSOLUT Fringe interviews published today, Richard Walsh, Zita Monahan and Martin Sharry of Side-Show Productions discuss their melodramatic soap opera Dreams of Love, their favourite love stories, and whether or not “true love” exists.

Fringe Talk: Sinéad O'Loughlin

Next in a series of interviews: Sinéad O’Loughlin talks about setting up Rampant with her best friend Katie Holmes (not Mrs. Cruise), the assault on feminism that led to their ABSOLUT Fringe debut Amy, I want to make you hard, and stealing Brokentalkers' production crew. 

Fringe Talk: Nyree Yergainharsian

The countdown to ABSOLUT Fringe 2011 is on, and in anticipation of its arrival you can find a new interview with a featured artist posted here each day.

Today it is Nyree Yergainharsian, member of 21^st century theatre pioneers The Company and one of the country’s most charming performers, now running solo in search of her place in the world in Where Do I Start? (I reviewed an earlier incarnation of it –beware of spoilers! – here). I caught Nyree on the lunch hour of her nine-to-nine day where she was eating the most impressive sandwich I had ever seen.  

Yaysterday, Tomorrow, Today

In my write-up on Theatre Forum’s conference in June I mentioned briefly that I talked with social media guru Darragh Doyle, who being the hilarious gent that he is was kind enough to answer what blog-related queries I had. In the last few weeks I have been talking to Darragh again, and he has since asked me to write about theatre for his arts and culture site www.yay.ie.

Established by Doyle, Stephanie Francis and Niamh Smith six months ago, Yay.ie has become a comprehensive guide to contemporary Irish theatre, music, film, and visual arts events, as well as a variety of other things (if you haven’t already, check out Doyle’s interview with Neil Watkins here). Being part of that coverage is incredibly exciting for me.

This won’t change anything on Musings in Intermissions, which continues to grow and engage beyond what I expected. In fact, what I write for both sites will be practically identical, if not entirely in many cases (just in case you think a mimic is out there impersonating me). Though I will reserve most of my venting rights for Musings.

I set up this blog to stimulate discussion on Irish theatre, and now I have not one but two platforms for me to do so. Go check out www.yay.ie ! I’ll see you over there (once I figure out all their technical doohickies).

Musings Listings: September 2011

Strap in folks. We’re about to head into the busiest time of the Irish theatre calendar. And there is a LOT on offer.

September is Fringe month as ABSOLUT Fringe 2011 takes over Dublin city with 82 different shows. Won’t be going too much into that here (consult my guide), but suffice it to say that the three shows I’m most excited about are The Corn Exchange’s Man of Valour, THISISPOPBABY’s The Year of Magical Wanking (its beau poet pictured above), and José Miguel Jiménez’s Jumping Off The Earth (now confirmed with action man Brian Bennett attached). Shows I neglected in that post which deserve more mention than I gave them include Tim Watt’s The Adventures of Alvin Sputnik: Deep Sea Explorer, now regarded a gem at last month’s Edinburgh Fringe; Junk Ensemble’s Bird With Boy in Kilmanham Jail (you’ll understand why when I post my interview with them); and Maurice Joseph Kelliher’s dance/theatre culprit Criminal Queers and Veronica Dyas’ site-specific In My Bed for their suspected daring and noble use of subject matter. For all information on ABSOLUT Fringe 2011 go to: http://www.fringefest.com/ .

Pan Pan, ‘All That Fall’: Picture Yourself On A Train In A Station

Project Arts Centre, Dublin

Aug 23-Sept 2

My review of Pan Pan’s All That Fall by Samuel Beckett coming up just as soon as you shed light on my lifelong preoccupation with horses’ buttocks ...

Town Hall Theatre Galway, ‘Faith Healer’: Testimonies

Town Hall Theatre, Galway

Aug 25-Sept 3


My review of the Town Hall’s production of Faith Healer by Brian Friel coming up just as soon as I measure my progress by the number of hours I sleep and the amount I drink and the number of cigarettes I smoke ...

A Guide to Ulster Bank Dublin Theatre Festival 2011

Finally diving into the programme for this year’s Dublin Theatre Festival. Last year, as evidenced by the reviews I wrote, I took a particular interest in the postdramatic segment of the schedule, seeing Ontroerend Goed, Tim Crouch, Pan Pan.  It probably was a gamble on festival director Loughlin Deegan’s part to give weight to such unconventional theatre. Not only were many of these productions deemed popular and critical successes, but the gesture of programming them shows that Deegan would sooner overestimate the ‘performance’ of the Irish audience before underestimating, as members of the public were made sit and chat with neighbours and whisked away into booths with strangers.

What is of most interest to me in this year’s festival, and what you’ll see written about around here, is the strong Irish involvement. In his fifth and final instalment, Deegan is focusing on our home-grown artists. Many past participants of Theatre Forum’s ‘The Next Stage’ development programme, which runs in tangent to the festival, are now featured artists. If this year’s festival is to be remembered for anything it will probably be for opening the golden gates to the next wave of Irish theatre makers.

But for now let’s focus on the present and dive right in. Find below my thoughts on this year’s programme and observe as I – like in my guide to the Fringe – try to narrow these choices down to my six must-gos.

Mephisto, ‘The Honey Spike’: Signs

Town Hall Theatre, Galway

Jul 9-13

I already wrote about Mephisto’s road to The Honey Spike. My review coming up just as soon as I show you the alphabet ...