Events List for Balally Players and Other Groups
Productions that are running now, planned for the future or that have been on stage recently are listed on this page in two sections. The first section covers Balally Players events. The second section below that, Other Events, has information on plays and events presented by other groups and organisations.
To have an event included here, send details to the Committee using the form on the Contact page.
The Members' Area has a Balally Players Calendar of Events that covers a period of six months from and prior to the current month.
The Mai by Marina Carr
Mill Theatre Tuesday 27 to Saturday 31 March 2012
'The Mai', by Marina Carr, directed by Jean Monahan and Oran O'Rua will be performed in The Mill Theatre, Dundrum, from 27 to 31 March 2012.
The Mai, first performed in 1994, won Best New Play from the Dublin Theatre Festival and marked a shift in Carr's writing style. Though it is not an adaptation of a Greek play, it has distinct classical resonances, rising from questions of truth, legacy/heredity, and fate.
"The Mai" is the moving story of four generations of women in one family in the midlands. An accomplished, beautiful forty-year-old woman, The Mai has always sought an exceptional life. We enter the world of The Mai on the day of her husband's return after an absence of four years. In the midst of their troubled reunion are the idiosyncratic and comical characters that comprise the family. Irreverent and unapologetic, the opium-smoking, 100-year-old matriarch, Grandma Fraochlán, presides over all. The "Spanish Beauty", as she is known, reminds us that the past is looming ever present. Rich in comedic performances throughout, "The Mai" explores how history is inexorably bound to repeat itself - no matter how tragic the results.
Aristocrats - in the Mill Theatre, first week of November
Mill Theatre Tuesday 1 to Saturday 5 November 2011
The O'Donnell family gather in their crumbling Georgian mansion Ballybeg Hall for the wedding of Claire, the youngest daughter.
In the course of the story that follows, the past constantly intrudes on the present highlighting in turn the fragility of the characters and their relationships.
'Aristocrats' is regarded as one of Friel's finest plays. It won the Evening Standard Best Play Award in 1988 and in the following year the New York Drama Critics Circle Award.
This Balally Players production was directed by Joe Jordan and was on stage in the Mill Theatre from Tuesday 1 November 2011 until Saturday 5 November.
More background information on the play and pictures taken at one of the performances, are on the page for the play in the 'Productions' section.
Tyranny in Beckett
Mouth on Fire Theatre Company in Smock Alley Theatre Tue 15 to Sun 20 Nov 2011
'Tyranny in Beckett' is a collection of four short works by Samuel Beckett and includes the Irish premiere of 'Rough for Radio II'. It opened in the theatre space at the old Smock Alley's The Boys' School on Tuesday 15 November. The production was by Mouth on Fire Theatre Company, which was set up in 2010 by Cathal Quinn and Melissa Nolan to perform the shorter plays of Irish playwright Samuel Beckett. The company presents Beckett's work in conventional, unconventional and site-specific locations and aims to bring Beckett to a wide audience and make his work accessible to those who may never have had a chance to experience it before. The approach is to use the playwright's texts to bring awareness of the human condition, to entertain, but also to highlight social issues. In the first year since its formation, the company has brought Beckett's work into homeless shelters, care homes, psychiatric hospitals and atmospheric theatres.
After the success of Silence and Darkness: Beckett x 4 at the Focus Theatre in April, this latest Mouth on Fire production at Smock Alley's The Boys' School brings 'Catastrophe', 'As The Story Was Told', 'Rough For Radio II' and 'What Where' under the general title 'Tyranny in Beckett'. The work presented earlier this year addressed Beckett's humanity and now Mouth on Fire scrutinises the inhumanity in his work. While each piece in this presentation is autonomous, collectively they speak of humiliation, sensory deprivation, dehumanisation, beatings and cycles of tyranny. They are perhaps Beckett's most blatantly political work and are certainly linked by tyranny of many kinds; psychological, physical, institutional. The order, venue and the date chosen are all attempts to bring this tyranny to the fore.
On opening night Emer Liston, the Chairperson of Writers in Prison Committee of Irish PEN (Poets, Essayist, Novelists) will talk briefly to commemorate Nov 15th - International Day of the Imprisoned Writer.
This is the first time 'Rough for Radio II' has been staged in Ireland, perhaps in Europe. The company secured permission from the Beckett Estate to transpose this radio play. This is also the first time the prose piece 'As the Story was Told' has been staged, and a rare chance to see Beckett's last play 'What Where'.
DIRECTOR: Cathal Quinn
PRODUCER: Melissa Nolan
STAGE MANAGER: Sophie Flynn
LIGHTING DESIGNER: Becky Gardiner
CAST: John Cullen, Nick Devlin, Jennifer Laverty, Melissa Nolan, Colm O'Brien, Cathal Quinn
A Christmas Carol
Mill Theatre Productions from 8 to 20 December 2011
The wonderful Charles Dickens story 'A Christmas Carol', produced by Mill Productions, was on the Mill Theatre stage for eleven performances in December.
This show for all the family, from 'the writer who invented Christmas', is sure to be a great evening's entertainment. The famous tale of redemption brings the audience through Dickensian London in the company of a large cast of characters including the Crachits, Tiny Tim, phantoms, ghosts and of course Ebenezer Scrooge.
The magical environment was created with a set designed by Gerard Bourke, lighting by Barry Donaldson, costumes by Dave Houghton and musical direction by Jacqueline Wall. Director, Geoff O'Keeffe, has assembled a great cast to tell the story and keep audiences enthralled throughout the evening.
The show ran from Thursday 8 to Saturday 10 December and again from Tuesday 13 to Tuesday 20 December 2011.
Move Over Mrs Markham
Sean O'Casey Community Centre from 8 to 12 November
This farce by Ray Cooney and John Chapman was in the Sean O'Casey Community Centre from Tuesday 8 to Saturday 12 November.
Like most plays in this genre, it has mistaken identities, titillating situations and risque remarks. Relationships and the opportunities for mayhem that infidelity offers is inevitably interrupted just in time to restore domestic peace and quiet. If you like the genre, you'll love this play.
Raymond George Alfred Cooney, OBE (born 30 May 1932) is an English playwright and actor. His biggest success, Run for Your Wife, lasted nine years in London's West End and is its longest-running comedy. He has had 17 of his plays performed there.
For booking contact:
Pat on 087-677 3322 or
Cora on 087-683 8842
The Hen Night Epiphany
New play by Jimmy Murphy in the Focus Theatre
This new play, written by Jimmy Murphy opened in the Focus Theatre in September. It was directed by Joe Devlin and the cast included: Sinead Hackett, Lisa Harding, Ann Kent, Deborah Wiseman and Margret Toomey.
It is a touching and funny new play about love and family.
A week before the wedding of her dreams, a woman wonders if some secrets should never be kept no matter what the cost. "The Hen Night Epiphany" is a heart lifting tale of five women who take to the countryside for a night of fun and laughter that leaves their lives turned upside down.
The world renowned Focus Theatre is one of Ireland's best known producing houses with a reputation for new and classic plays. This is their first collaboration with Jimmy Murphy who is one of Ireland's leading playwrights with a national and international reputation.
'The Hen Night Epiphany' promises to be an emotional evening of laughter and tears with a hen night you will never forget. Sounds like a great night in the theatre!
The production is design by Sonia Haccius with lighting arrangments by Moyra D'Arcy. The photograph above shows the producers, Michal Leman-Lemanski (left) and Joe Devlin (right).
Touring September and October 2011 to Ranelagh, Focus Theatre, Mermaid Arts Centre, The Draiocht, The Helix & The Civic Theatre.
Details on the Focus Theatre website.
Airfield House, Gardens and Farm
"Fresh air, freedom and a little flower" as Hans Christian Anderson almost said!
Airfield House and Gardens is currently closed to the public for renovations to the house, part of the gardens and to upgrade the visitor facilities. The plan is to reopen in Spring 2013.
Airfield is a 35 acre estate with working farm, formal gardens, café and shop situated in Dundrum, Dublin. It is a non profit Charitable Trust set up for educational and recreational purposes.
Visit their website airfield.ie for full details on their range of activities and events. They cover active learning, cultural experiences, entertainment and the chance to relax in wonderful surroundings.
Airfield has also been home to Balally Players Summer Shakespeare and Christmas at Airfield for many years.
Mill Theatre, Dundrum Town Centre, Dublin
Visit the theatre website for details on all shows
Please note that the Mill Theatre website has a new 'dot-IE' address: WWW.MILLTHEATRE.IE
The Mill_Theatre_website has all the information you need about the theatre as well as a comprehensive list of all the shows coming up.
The theatre Box Office is open from Monday to Saturday between 10am and 6pm and the theatre re-opens at 7pm when there is an evening performance. You can also phone 01-296 9340 to make a credit card booking.
To book tickets online...
On the theatre website click the button beside your chosen performance and follow the instructions. You should note that there is a €1 booking fee per ticket and you cannot choose your seats online, you are automatically allocated the next available seat.
To book tickets at the theatre...
Call in to the Mill Theatre Box Office, which is open from Monday to Saturday, 10am to 6pm. The theatre re-opens at 7pm when there is an evening performance.
To book tickets over the phone...
The telephone number to call is 01-296 9340. The information needed is the date and event you wish to attend, and how many tickets you require. If booking by credit card, you will need to give your card number and expiry date, your name and address. You should have an alternative date in mind, just in case your first choice is not available.
The theatre Box Office is open from Monday to Saturday between 10am and 6pm and the theatre re-opens at 7pm when there is an evening performance. Alternatively, you can phone 01-296 9340 to make a credit card booking.
To book tickets online...
On the theatre website click the button beside your chosen performance and follow the instructions. You should note that there is a €1 booking fee per ticket and you cannot choose your seats online, you are automatically allocated the next available seat.
To book tickets at the theatre...
Call in to the Mill Theatre Box Office, which is open from Monday to Saturday, 10am to 6pm. The theatre re-opens at 7pm when there is an evening performance.
To book tickets over the phone...
The telephone number to call is 01-296 9340. The information needed is the date and event you wish to attend, and how many tickets you require. If booking by credit card, you will need to give your card number and expiry date, your name and address. You should have an alternative date in mind, just in case your first choice is not available. There is no booking fee for telephone bookings.
