THE CO. TIPPERARY DRAMA FESTIVAL

HOLYCROSS

www.tipperarydrama.ie

    Festival Director : Donal Duggan,  Holycross, Co.Tipperary

    Phone: 086-257 5159  Email: donal@dugganvet.ie  Fax:0504-43147

Adjudicator:  MICHAEL POYNOR 

   

2024 Festival Plays:

Friday 15th of March – ( Open ) – Dancing at Lughnasa – Holycross / Ballycahill – By Brian Friel

Saturday 16th of March – ( Confined ) – Stolen Child – Moyne – By Bairbre Ni Chaoimh & Yvonne Quinn

Sunday 17th of March – ( Confined ) – On Raftery’s Hill – Wayside – By Marina Carr

Monday 18th of March – ( Open ) – The Ferrymann – Ballyduff D.G – By Jez Butterworth

Tuesday 19th of March – ( Open ) – Antigone – Brideview D.G. – By Don Taylor

Wednesday 20th of March – ( Confined ) – Same Old Moon – Sliabh Aughty D.G.

Thursday 21th of March – ( Confined ) – Drama at Inish – Rearcross D.G.

Friday 22th of March – ( Open ) – The Lonesome West – Kilmeen D.G.

Saturday 23th of March – ( Confined ) – Now and Then – Harvest Moon D.G.


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Fri. 15 March (Open) Dancing at Lughnasa – Holycross/Ballycahill D.G.

Synopsis of Play: It is 1936 and harvest time in County Donegal. In a house just outside thevillage of Ballybeg, live the five Mundy sisters, barely making ends meet, their ages ranging from twenty six to forty. The two male members of the household are brother Jack, a seven year old child of the youngest sister. In depicting two days in the life of this ménage, Brian Friel evokes not simply the interior landscape of a group of human beings trapped in their domestic situation, but the wider landscape, interior and exterior, Christian and pagan, of which they are nonetheless a part.

Group Information: Following our win on the 2019 Confined Festival Circuit, this is the group’s second outing on the Open Festival Circuit and we are really looking forward to it!!

From our home on the banks of the River Suir in the beautiful village of Holycross the group stage performances every winter and participate in the All Ireland Festival Circuit every spring. We have been together for over fifty years and we still enjoying treading the boards together and performing to our loyal audiences!


Sat.16 March (Confined) Stolen Child – Moyne D.G.

Synopsis of Play: Humorous yet moving, stolen Child tells the story of a women : birth who enlists the help of a colourful private detective to search for her mother and uncover the secrets of her family history. What begins as a personal odyssey for Angela Tiernan to discover the secrets of her family history soon becomes a fascinating exploration of one of the darkest chapters in the history of modern Ireland.

Group Information: Moyne Drama Group was founded in 1978 and performs one full length play in January each year.The group has previously taken part in the festival circuit on two occasions with “Kings of the Kilburn High Road” in 2014 and Sive in 2013, the latter reaching the the All Ireland Finals in Rossmore.


Sun 17 March (Confined) On Raftery’s Hill – Wayside Players

Synopsis of Play: Set on an isolated midlands farm, On Raftery’s Hill looks at the ties that bind a family together even as each member attempts to escape their destiny. It is the story of a family at war with itself.

Group Information: The group has been in existence for many years, competing in the One and Three Act Festival circuit over the years. We are delighted to be bringing a great Wexford play to audiences throughout Ireland. Wayside are well known for the summer pub theatre season, which brings great enjoyment to locals and visitors to the seaside town of Blackwater,


Mon.18 March (Open) The Ferryman – Ballyduff D.G.

Synopsis of Play: Northern Ireland, 1981. The Carney farmhouse is a hive of activity with preparations for the annual harvest.  A day of hard work on the land and a traditional night of feasting and celebrations lie ahead. But this year they will be interrupted by a visitor.

Group Information: Ballyduff Drama Group has been performing on the Three-Act Circuit for over forty years. In that time they have won the RTE All Ireland Finals in Athlone on two occasions, in 2004 & 2022. Their repertoire is extensive and has included work across the whole spectrum of dramatic endeavour. Productions like “Albertine in Five Times”, second-placed “The Welkin” (2023), “Of Mice and Men” (2010) and “Caught in the Net” (2008) and the All-Ireland winning “On Raftery’s Hill” (2004) and “Rabbit Hole” (2022) represent just some of its array of achievements. Our group promotes the ethos that is Ballyduff Drama Group – one of inclusion, determination, cooperation and pride.


Tues.19 March (Open) Antigone – Brideview D.G.

Synopsis of Play: Antigone is an Athenian tragedy written by Sophocles in (or before) 441 BC. The play is about Antigone’s disobedience of Creon’s rules when she insists on burying her brother, Polyneices. Antigone, Haemon, and Eurydice die at the end of the play, to Creon’s great distress. The play addresses themes of civil disobedience, morality, loyalty, authority, and gender.

Group Information: Brideview Drama are based in Co. Waterford. The group was formed in the late 1980s and began competing in the early 90s, winning the confined 3Act in 2005 with Moonshine. By Jim Nolan.

They qualified for the Open All-Ireland Finals for the first time in 2018 with ‘Stolen Child’, finishing in second place. They reached the finals again in 2019 with ‘Philadelphia, Here I Come’ finishing in 3rd place


Wed.20 March (Confined) Same Old Moon – Sliabh Aughty D.G.

Synopsis of Play: Same Old Moon shows us scenes in the life of Brenda Barnes, the aspiring writer. We follow her from age nine to fortyish, and see through her eyes her eccentric and sometimes fiery Irish family – her wilful and self-destructive Dad, her put-upon, sometimes hot-tempered Mum and many others.

Group Information: Sliabh Aughty DG was formed in 1989. Our first production was “The Field” by John B Keane, which was very successful, and a great building block for the group. We have performed on the drama circuit for many years with plays including The year of the Hiker, Sive & Moonglow , reaching the All Ireland on each occasion.


Thur 21 March (Confined) Drama at Inish – Rearcross D.G.

Synopsis of Play: The play was originally set in the 1930’s but has been updated to the early 1960’s for this production, just before the arrival of TV. The play’s action takes place in the Seaview Hotel in the small sleepy town of Inish on the south coast of Ireland.Nothing much has ever happened in Inish until the arrival of the De La Mare acting troupe for the summer season. The locals take so much to the plays being performed that they act out the various plots in their own lives.Chaos Ensues.

Group Information: Rearcross has a long tradition in Amateu Dramatics stretching back to the 1940. The Group was active on the festival circuit in the 1960’s and 1970’s. for a number of years the group was not active but was revived in 2008 and annual productions have been successfully staged every year since. The group is looking forward to paticipating again in Co. Tipperary Drama Festival.


Fri 22 March (Open)The Lonesome West – Kilmeen D.G.

Synopsis of Play: Valene and Coleman are two brothers who have lived together for years with constant petty squabbling. Now after their father’s death, and following the exhortations of the local priest, a new understanding could develop. Could, that is, if the two brothers could stop arguing over crisps, ornaments, who left the top off Valene’s pen and whose turn it is to read a magazine.

Group Information: Kilmeen Drama Group Kilmeen Drama Group, based in Rossmore, West Cork, are one of the longest established drama groups in the country, regularly competing on the 3 Act and 1 Act circuits.


Sat 23 March (Confined) Now and Then – Harvest Moon D.G.

Synopsis of Play: Sean Grennan’s play, ‘Now and Then’ was originally set in an Irish bar in Chicago in 1981. A young barman, Jamie, is closing up one night, when an older man comes in for a quick one. What happens that night, may, or may not, change the course of Jamie’s life. This is a story about love, following your dreams (or not) and the costs of the decisions we make. Harvest Moon’s presentation is an Irish adaption of the play by John Corless.

Group Information: Harvest Moon Theatre Group is a small group based in Claremorris, Co Mayo, with members drawn from all over Connaught. This is their second year on the circuit. The group likes to introduce new plays, or re-imagine well-known plays, for audiences around the country, and is delighted to be at this festival this year.



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