New plays on big stages: Could this be a game-changing year for Irish theatre?

Promotional art for The Children. The Gate Theatre hasn't opened a new production in five months, but the wait was necessary to shore up its new play. 

Covering the Abbey complaints: Journalists need to get a grip when reporting on theatre

Newstalk's The Hard Shoulder showed poor research in its coverage but it did allow host Ivan Yates to interview a theatre worker as if greeting an old peacocking friend. Photo: Newstalk

The Cripple of Inishmaan review: Like watching Pulp Fiction without the brain-splattering gunshot

Martin McDonagh's dark comedy about an intolerant island community receives a tame production. Photo: Pat Redmond 

So Where Do We Begin? review: Wordy psychodrama flirts with big questions

A psychotherapist's patient is stealing memories in Seanan McDonnel's sharply clever play. Photo: Myles Shelly

The Ridleys review: Pushing two rapid monologues towards art-horror

Philip Ridley's companion plays Tonight with Donny Stixx and Dark Vanilla Jungle are staged in one sitting. Photo: Ste Murray 

Womb review: An old-school dystopian play with clear inspiration but misty results

Maud Hendricks's new play is set in Dublin 100 years from now, where a woman is granted asylum for being pregnant. Photo: Jeda de Brí

Nothing but a Toerag review: Witty prison comedy earning the trust of a therapy session

In Aisling O'Mara's new comedy a prisoner confides her problems in a cellmate. 

Abbey Theatre complaints: More in-house productions will clarify employment as well as artistic vision

The directors' artistic vision won't be revealed through the admirable benevolence of coproduction but through their in-house productions. Photo: Ros Kavanagh 

2019 theatre preview: 10 shows to watch out for

Promotional image for Citysong. A Thomas Kilroy adaptation, two Tennessee Williams dramas, and several new plays are on the way. 

The Signalman review: Another Charles Dickens ghost, another counsel

A spectre visits a signalman on the eve of disaster, in Charles Dickens's story. Photo: Alan Craig

Northern Lights review: A dusk-lit drama about two strangers, subtle and compassionate

Stephen Jones's new play brings together two strangers, each harbouring secrets.

The Best Theatre of 2018

My favourite theatre moments of 2018: The Lost O'Casey, Bluebeard's Castle, Orfeo ed Euridice, Asking for It, and Dolores

Before review: The familiar melody of Pat Kinevane's extravagantly intimate song

Pat Kinevane's new play follows a man reunited with his daughter after 17 years apart. Photo: Patrick Redmond 

Woman Undone review: A reimagining of Mary Coughlan's life, ethereal and terrifying like a nightmare

The singer watches her younger self suffer predatory attacks and downspins through addiction, in this avant-garde play. Photo: Simone Rudolphi

We Can't Have Monkeys in the House review: A dark surreal comedy about traumatised sisters

A woman is reunited with her sisters to fulfil their mother's dying wish in Ciara Elizabeth Smyth's affecting new comedy. 

Asking for It review: Home truths on rape culture in an outstanding production

Louise O'Neill's acclaimed novel moves to stage, and puts new shape on this essential era. Photo: Ros Kavanagh 

The Bystander review: A blurry dance about staying on the sidelines

Junk Ensemble's brooding production is driven by the shocking murder of Kitty Genovese, out in the open, in 1964 New York. Photo: Marco Novara 

Double Cross review: Thomas Kilroy's hi-tech play gets an analogue production

Kilroy frames Brendan Bracken and William Joyce as Cain and Abel-like brothers, forged together by one actor's performance. Photo: Melissa Gordon

Bluebeard's Castle review: A magnificent art-horror opera exposing a male monster

A woman throws open the doors of Bluebeard's Castle, bringing her closer to his crimes, in Béla Bartók's terrific opera.

The Fever review: Compassionate interactive theatre, recognising cries for help

In 600 HIGHWAYMEN's fascinating production, the audience play guests and neighbours at a house party. Photo: Waleed Shah

Company review: Samuel Beckett's life-retrospective is a big ask for the stage

Samuel Beckett's late novella about mortality receives a sombre adaptation by Sarah Jane Scaife. Photo: Futoshi Sakauchi