ESTUARY TAKE ALL-IRELAND TITLE

It was not entirely unexpected when the adjudicator of the 55th All-Ireland Amateur Drama final, Scott Marshall announced Estuary Players as this year’s winners of the RTE All-Ireland Perpetual Trophy with their wacky take on ‘The Last Days of Judas Iscariot’ by Stephen Adly Guirgis.

The adjudicator was clearly taken with this play which was set in ‘Downtown Purgatory’, with witnesses ranging from real-world figures like Mother Teresa and Sigmund Freud to biblical players such as Simon the Zealot, Pontius Pilate and old Satan himself.

While it was a very challenging piece that was, in the main, very well staged, one would have been forgiven for thinking that the lighting (or lack of it at times) might push it down to second or third place, but no, it was in fact nominated for ‘best lighting’.

This writer had the pleasure of seeing seven of the nine plays, missing out on Silken Thomas’s ‘Equus’ on Tuesday night which was placed second and Balally Players’ ‘The Great Hunger’ (Wednesday) which didn’t make the frame.

Judging from reports, Sean Judge had done his homework and made some very significant improvements from the ‘Equus’ that was seen on the circuit. Those who did see Balally’s performance said it received a very favourable adjudication. T

here was some joy for Cork with the ‘best actor’ award coming to Shoestring’s (Charleville) William Lyons. This was one of the most popular decisions on the night, greeted with spontaneous applause from a packed Radisson function room.

Indeed, as was usual on the circuit, William received a standing ovation for his solo performance on the Friday night as Kenneth McAllister in ‘A Night In November’.

It was clear however from the adjudicator’s remarks following the performance that this was not going to be the winning play and it must be said that some of his comments on the play (which in my opinion were more than biased) were not at all well received by the Athlone audience.

West Cork hearts stirred somewhat when Tim Coffey was nominated for ‘best director’ but their ‘Kings of the Kilburn High Road’ was not to make it on this occasion.

Full results as follows: RTE All Ireland Drama Festival Perpetual Trophy - Estuary Players, Dublin for ‘The Last Days of Judas Iscariot’; Miniature Festival Trophy For Best Director - Myra Maguire, Estuary Players; Best Actor (Miniature Festival Trophy) - William Lyons (Shoestring Theatre Company) as Kenneth McAllister in ‘A Night in November’; Best Actress (Miniature Festival Trophy) - Elaine Jordan - Bunclody/Kilmyshall as Vera O’Toole in ‘The Wake’; Best Supporting Actor (Aileen Coughlan Memorial Award) - Brendan Hughes (Estuary Players) as Sigmund Freud/St Peter in ‘The Last Days of Judas Iscariot’; Best Supporting Actress (Joan Walsh Memorial Award) - Josephine Byrne (Bunclody/Kilmyshall) as Mary Jane in ‘The Wake’; Best Stage Setting (Colm Kelly Memorial Award) - Silken Thomas Players - ‘Equus’; Best Lighting (ESB Award) Silken Thomas Players’ ‘Equus’; Best Stage Management (Brendan O’Brien Memorial Award) - Bunclody/Kilmyshall DG - ‘The Wake’; Drama League Of Ireland Summer School Scholarship - Judy McKeever (Balally Players ‘The Great Hunger’); Gormanstown Summer School Scholarship - Colin Malone (Silken Thomas Players’ ‘Equus’).

CLANCY BROS TRIBUTE THIS THURSDAY IN KILWORTH

If you are in singing mode, then you will want to join in with Dan O’Sullivan and Pat Kelleher when they present their tribute to The Clancy Bros and Tommy Makem on this Thursday night in The Village Arts Centre, Kilworth at 8.15pm.

If you are not in singing mode, then you may well be after ten or fifteen minutes in the company of these lads. All their well known numbers will be belted out by Dan and Pat who have stamped their own mark on this particular tribute.

An added bonus will be the guest appearance of a young lady who has plied her talents all over the world in ‘Rhythm of the Dance’ and who just recently performed for American president, Barack Obama.

Maggie McCarthy is a multi-instrumentalist and an accomplished dancer who can marry the two with spectacular results.

Starts 8.30 sharp and tickets are just €15 with concessions for students and old age pensioners at €12.50. Details from 087-6492514.

‘I MISS COMMUNISM’ - SIMPLY NOT TO BE MISSED!

When ‘I Miss Communism’ played the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2005/6 it made a huge impression. The show received four or five-star reviews and was sold out for the last three weeks of the run. No wonder then, that it is seen as somewhat of a coup for The Village Arts Centre to have secured this piece for staging on Thursday, May 21.

The show was nominated for the Amnesty International Award, as well as the Writers Guild award for new writing.

‘I Miss Communism’ by Ines Wurth and Mark Soper won the award ‘Best of the Best of Edinburgh Festival’ as the best touring show of 2006 in the UK, leading to another tour from April to October 2007 in Europe including the run at the Hackney Empire in London for a month.

The piece has been described as ‘an incredibly powerful piece of theatre - hilarious, moving and downright disturbing . . . frighteningly honest, remarkably insightful and expertly paced.” The list of plaudits is remarkable.

“A spellbinding one-woman show . . the piece does get quite intense, with more than a few people wiping away tears. . . a very powerful theatrical experience, a real roller-coaster ride, as moving as it is educational.” (Struan MacKenzie, The Evening News UK).

‘SPITTING LOVE’ AND ‘LIPSTICK’

Roundhouse Theatre Company, who have secured a year in residency at the Granary Theatre, launched its first summer season in Cork on Tuesday night, Dr Ger Fitzgibbon, head of Drama and Theatre Studies at UCC doing the honours.

‘Lipstick’ by Rachel Yoder, previews on Saturday, 30th May, opens on June 2nd and runs until June 6th. ‘Spitting Love’ by Jennifer Rogers, previews on 8th June, opens on June 9th and runs until June 13th.

Both plays have been performed in the past; however this is their first professional production. Both writers will direct their shows.

‘Lipstick’ explores the absurd world of Jane and Archibald, a newly wed couple, who despite both traditional and modern pressure find a way to express their love. It comically describes the situations young lovers can find themselves in when the communication cord gets tangled with an interfering mother-in-law!

‘Spitting Love’ is a dark comedy about the trauma of losing a child. The play shifts through the inner world of Harry, as he tries to make sense of his loss. It portrays the transformation that takes place between the inner thoughts of Harry and the perception of the outer world.

‘NOT NOW DARLING’

An evening of non stop laughter is promised at the theatre, Haulbowline Naval Base on Friday 22nd to Sunday, 24th May at 8pm nightly with Ray Cooney and John Chapman’s hilarious farce, ‘Not Now Darling’.

Set in an elegant fur salon ‘Not Now Darling’ is a typical British farce where the hilarious permutations and entanglements reach a point of hysteria before everyone gets their just desserts. Tickets from 086-338 8942.

Launch leaves Naval Pier at 7.30pm sharp. Vehicular traffic via Ringaskiddy over the Irish Steel bridge.

LOUDEST WHISPER BIG BAND CONCERT IN ST COLMAN’S COLLEGE HALL

Loudest Whisper Big Band will play a special concert in St. Colman’s College Hall, Fermoy on Thursday, 21 May at 8.30pm.

The legendary folk/rock band led by their indomitable guitarist, producer and songwriter Brian O’Reilly have just played two hugely successful concerts of their highly acclaimed 1975 ‘Children of Lir’ album in The Cork School of Music as part of their 40 years on the road celebrations.

The line-up for the this concert will include Brian O’Reilly (guitar/vocals), Paul McCarthy (bass), Melaine O’Reilly (vocals), Frances Foley (vocals), Paud O’Reilly (drums) and ace saxophone/clarinet Barry Cluskey. A 6 CD de luxe boxset of their earlier records is proving to be a huge success.

The concert is part of the 150 anniversary celebrations of St Colman’s College.

Booking – 025-31622. Tickets also available from The Bookshop, 2 Pearse Sq., Fermoy 025-31599. Tickets €15 and €10 (concessions - o.a.p.s and students).

‘JUST PADDY’ AT THE EVERYMAN

The Everyman Palace Theatre presents ‘Just Paddy’ - an evening of fun and memories with Cork’s best loved entertainer, Paddy Comerford, from Thursday, May 21 to Saturday, May 23 directed by Michael Twomey.

The legendary Paddy Comerford has been entertaining Cork audiences for decades in pantomimes, musicals, revues and variety shows.

He now stars in his first ever solo show, which features his unforgettable Uncle Peter creation and also Paddy’s own hilarious reminiscences of his long showbusiness career. 8pm, tickets €20, booking:021-4501673 or online at www.everymanpalace.com