Plays and adaptations: Is the Abbey playing the Gate’s game?

An adaptation of Roddy Doyle's novella Two Pints plays the Abbey Theatre. 

Brendan Galileo for Europe review: A heartfelt comedy about a union in trouble

An independent candidate runs in the European elections in Fionn Foley's superb comedy. Photo: Cáit Fahey. 

Evening Train review: This dark barroom musical is staged as if it's already closing time

Life is a series of wagers in Mick Flannery's new musical, as its characters seek escape from a small town. 

Tall Tail review: An excellent Pixar-bright debut about a dog caught in the homelessness crisis

Al Dalton's play for young audiences finds a dog who takes us through life with his homeless master.

Midsummer (a play with songs) review: A romantic comedy where the characters spend more time talking to us than each other

David Greig's play follows two lovers on a dizzying weekend in Edinburgh. Photo: Keith Dixon 

Citysong review: Wordy play about a Dublin family misses its tragicomic notes

Dublin is a record in Dylan Coburn Gray's new play, and time jumps like a needle skipping backwards. Photo: Ros Kavanagh 

The Magic Flute review: Trying to make something of Mozart’s wild music

A prince accepts a mission to rescue a princess in The Magic Flute but not all of it is plausible. Photo: Pat Redmond

La Natura Delle Cose review: A dance masterpiece chronicling the life of one character

Dublin Dance Festival present Virgilio Sieni's dance inspired by a Lucretius poem. Photo: Paulo Porto 

A Streetcar Named Desire review: Tennessee Williams's masterpiece becomes an absorbing psychodrama

This revival of Williams's play about a woman visiting her sister shows the horrors of domestic abuse. Photo: Johnny Frazer

The Glass Menagerie review: Tennessee Williams's breakout play with a little too much polish

The Wingfield family of The Glass Menagerie are all left behind, in some respect, by the world. Photo: Ste Murray