As one festival comes to a close, another dawns on the horizon. Beginning September 27th, the Dublin Theatre Festival will plunge the city into a playground of theatrical brilliance. From new plays to revivals, rediscoveries to works-in-progress, the festival aims to appeal to the diverse communities that make up the city. With dozens of shows programmed within the short three week timeframe, there are plenty of must-see shows of this year’s promising programme.
Opening this year’s festival is one of the most anticipated shows of the year. Hamlet, featuring Ruth Negga in the titular role, assembles women in theatre at the top of their game. Helmed by South African director Yael Farber, she described Negga as the “Hamlet for our times”. Speaking to The University Times earlier this month, Negga teased readers with the depths of the extremes of the production whilst also commenting on the Gate’s new found vibrancy. The play will run until October 27th.
Nannie’s Night Out by Seán O’Casey has not been performed since 1924. In a collaboration between ANU Productions and the Abbey Theatre, this lost work is being thrown out to the streets of Dublin. Literally. With four performances a day, The Lost O’Casey will take place on the city streets as Nannie is is thrust into 21st century Dublin. The play will feature a multi-strand narrative featuring those who are homeless and struggling with addiction, voices too seldom heard on the Irish stage. With a limited capacity for each performance, booking in advance is highly recommended. The run will finish on October 13th.
Following the success of The Second Violinist, Enda Walsh returns to direct the festival’s sole opera, Bluebeard’s Castle. Based on the French folktale of Bluebeard, the opera follows a newly wed couple as long held secrets are ushered to the forefront. The second opera that Walsh has brought to the Dublin Theatre Festival, Bluebeard’s Castle is sure to receive Walsh’s avant-garde touch as it arrives at the Gaiety Theatre to round out the festival. With only three performances from October 12th to 14th, advanced booking comes recommended.
Based on the acclaimed French novel En finir avec Eddy, The End of Eddy perfectly encompasses the aim of the festival in giving voices to to all. A play about adolescence, sexuality, class and violence, the production follows the story of a young man raised in poverty, coming to terms with his identity in a heteronormative world. Based on the autobiography of French author, Édouard Louis, The End of Eddy presents a narrative that remains all too real in our present society. Transferring from London’s Unicorn Theatre, it plays a limited run from October 9th to 13th at the Project Arts Centre.
Alongside the programmed productions of this year’s festival runs a series of works that are currently in development. A change from the previous festival’s lineup, this year’s ticketed developmental works will be open to all at no cost, which is sure to make tickets a hot commodity. Among the developmental workshops is an adaption of Colm Tóibín’s The Blackwater Lighthouse. Helmed by director David Horan of last year’s hit CLASS, the workshop aims to present excerpts from the work-in-progress. Another exciting addition is The Devlin Project. Revolving around around civil rights activists Bernadette Devlin and Angela Davis, the piece seeks to explore the role of militancy in activism today. Relying mainly on documentary footage, the developmental workshop is poised to push the envelope.
