Margaret McAuliffe, ‘The Humours of Bandon’: Bonaparte’s Retreat

Margaret McAuliffe takes us behind the scenes of an Irish dancing championship in an excellent drama about adolescence.

Bewley's Cafe Theatre @ Powerscourt, Tiger Dublin Fringe
Sept 14-24

A quick review of The Humours of Bandon by Margaret McAuliffe coming up just as soon as I trust what you say about my costume …

Dick Walsh Theatre and Pan Pan, 'George Bush and Children': The Talkshow Must Go On

Opinions collide in Dick Walsh's new play about talkshows. It's easy to laugh from a distance. Photo: Jaesin Yu. 

Project Arts Centre, Tiger Dublin Fringe

Sep 12-17

A quick review of George Bush and Children by Dick Walsh coming up just as soon as I remember having a good time being energy ...

Shannon Yee, 'Reassembled, Slightly Askew': On the Brain

 Stunning audio art recreates an artist's intimate story of survival. 

The Complex, Tiger Dublin Fringe Festival

Sep 13-24

A quick review of Reassembled, Slightly Askew by Shannon Yee coming up just as I go to town for toothpaste ...

Oona Doherty and Liz Roche Company, 'Hope Hunt' / 'Wrongheaded': In Search of Respect

Gender politics are unabashedly brought to the forefront in this dance double bill.  

Project Arts Centre, Tiger Dublin Fringe Festival

Sep 12-16

A quick review of the dance double bill Hope Hunt by Oonagh Doherty and Wrongheaded by Liz Roche coming up just as soon as I support Chelsea …

Umbrella Theatre Project, 'Glowworm': Bugged by Mediocrity

Can a shy schoolgirl discover her genius in this multidisciplinary send-up of Victorian society? Photo: Christopher Lindhorst

Project Arts Centre, Tiger Dublin Fringe Festival
Sep 11-16

A quick review of Glowworm by Tom Nieboer coming up just as soon as I go down to the elderflower thicket ...

Irish Theatre to See in 2016

Rehearsal image for The Casement Project by Fearghus Ó Conchúir, pegged to be a main event in the 1916 commemorations. Photo: Ste Murray.

  

Some dates for your calendar in 2016 …

More Irish Theatre Highlights of 2015

Still a lot of fun to be had at the cutting edge, as evidenced by Dead Centre's Chekhov's First Play. Photo: Jose Miguel Jiminez

Yesterday I posted my top 10 of 2015. Here are other highlights from the year:

Irish Theatre Top 10 of 2015

ANU Productions's Pals was a singular attempt to commemorate Irish involvement in World War I. Photo: Patrick Redmond.

Thinking back on 2015, I’m reminded of the mobilisation of artists around the Marriage Equality Referendum and the #WakingTheFeminists outcry over the Abbey Theatre’s male-mad 2016 season. I’m reminded of gutsy programming by Galway International Arts Festival to host Exhibit B, a controversial installation that internationally spurred the modern equivalent of a theatre riot, and by Tiger Dublin Fringe to take a chance on Kim Noble, a guerrilla-performance artist on a risky search for companionship.

In trying to narrow down my theatre-going (I wrote about 120 performances this year) to a list of ten, I’ve kept to the parameters of new productions by Irish/Northern Irish companies, or co-productions where the creative half is Irish. This leaves out Andrew Scott’s seamless performance in the Paines Plough production of Sea Wall, co-produced by Dublin Theatre Festival, though it was probably my favourite performance this year. I’ve also left out the Gate Theatre’s production of The Gigli Concert because Denis Conway had performed the part before, and I figured I could make room for something else, though that doesn’t excuse the omission of Sinéad McKenna, who gave the best lighting design this year.

Whenever I’ve written an end-of-year list, I’ve tried to keep to the idea of ‘best’ as moments in the theatre when I felt a significant shift in my thinking, when I’ve registered a change in my biology: the welling of emotion, the howl of laughter or a menacing discomfort.

(Finally, thank you to readers who followed me this year from Musings In Intermissions to A Younger Theatre and Broadway World, and most recently Exeunt Magazine and The Stage. Keep an eye out for me in the two latter publications in 2016).

Where you can find my reviews ...

Writer Donal Davoren (Mark O'Halloran) clearly swamped in The Shadow of a Gunman.

It's about time I posted something on the blog, even if it is just an update. 

I think 2015 has seen some promising steps on my path towards sustainable Critic-hood. I began writing for two online publications, Broadway World and A Younger Theatre, and while neither come anywhere close to paying my rent (yet), I have enjoyed the magic in seeing my name appear in (digital) print. 

When Irish Theatre Magazine ceased its regular publishing last year, I was writing solely here on Musings In Intermissions. While I recognised the importance of upping my game (especially outside of Dublin, where critical outlets aren't as common), I also realised the limits that come with a blog. 

Academics wanted to reference me in articles but ultimately couldn't because a blog is subject to editorial concerns. Theatre promoters wouldn't take my quotes and hang them in fairy lights because Musings In Intermissions wasn't the Irish Independent. When I applied for jobs, I felt silly for jotting down "blogspot.ie" in applications, and cursed myself for not choosing a shorter, catchier title when I impulsively set up MusingsInAreYouStillListening? while mulling over The Rehearsal, Playing the Dane five years ago.

However, I couldn't have made any progress without this blog, and I encourage all rising critics to have one. I haven't decided what to do with this platform yet. I'll likely use it to ponder more personal thoughts as I have done here, and roll it out when it comes to posting shorter, more time-sensitive pieces, as during Dublin Fringe.

Meanwhile, you can stay appraised of my BroadwayWorld pieces here and A Younger Theatre here. 

Cheers,

Chris 

  

Re/Minding Your Step

Poised for another phase of redevelopment, Dublin’s Docklands becomes a mise en scène in an initiative bringing together choreographers and urban planners (Photo: Marcel Bassachs).

What activates a space? For Italian translator and dance curator Giulia Galvana, it’s a single step. Her initiative Mind Your Step, a two-day event involving a performance trail and a symposium bringing together choreographers and urban planners, is based upon a singular principal: movement creates centres of activity. Now brought to Dublin in collaboration with dance managers Eleanor Creighton and Argyris Aryrou, its arrival is timely. With the Docklands poised for another phase of redevelopment, this provides an opportunity to explore how public spaces are explored and presented.