Results from the 66th Ballyshannon Drama Festival

And the Winners are… THE PATSY CROAL BLUE RIBAND: ‘Sylvia’ by Prosperous OPEN FIRST PLACE (Maureen Gallagher Award): ‘Sylvia’, Prosperous SECOND PLACE (C. J. King Award): ‘Beneath An Irish Sky’, Letterkenny THIRD PLACE (Jim Flynn Award): ‘Dancing At Lughnasa’, Lifford Players BEST PRODUCER (John Stephens Cup): Lurleen Duggan, Prosperous BEST ACTOR (H.J. Travers Award): Robert Massey, Prosperous BEST ACTRESS (Eoin Carney Award): Ashleigh O’Neill, Prosperous CONFINED FIRST PLACE (Commercial Hotel Cup): ‘Buried Child’, Phoenix Players, Tubbercurry SECOND (Catherine Breslin Award): Sillan Players, ‘Una Pooka’ THIRD: Newtownstewart, ‘Meeting at Menin Gate’ BEST PRODUCER (Hugh & Mary Daly Cup): Peter Davey, Phoenix Players, Tubbercurry BEST ACTRESS (Kathleen Fagan Award): Rebecca Farrington, Kiltimagh BEST ACTOR (Saimer Cup/Paddy Mc Loone Award): Pat Feeley, Phoenix Players, Tubbercurry BILLY MYLES AUDIENCE AWARD: Prosperous, ‘Sylvia’ BEST SET (Mary…

Sunday Night at the Drama Festival: Prosperous present ‘Sylvia’ (7.30pm)

Sunday 18 March is the concluding performance of the festival and Prosperous Dramatic Society will present ‘Sylvia’ by A R Gurney. It is a smart, playful, sophisticated and occasionally gritty comedy about relationships, nature and growing older. A lovable dog changes the lives of a middle-aged couple who have entered the empty nest time of life and have moved to Manhattan after twenty years in the suburbs. Greg is dissatisfied with his job but Kate is excited about her new teaching opportunities and new-found freedom. Sylvia challenges everything and everyone in the relationship. Prosperous Dramatic Society first won the 1 Act Open All Ireland finals in 1995 with ‘Faint Voice’ by John MacKenna. They won the 1 Act All Ireland finals in 2012…

Saturday Night at the Drama Festival: Bradán Players present ‘Conservatory’

On Saturday 17 March the Bradán Players will present ‘Conservatory’ by Michael West. In the play you will hear: ‘I wasn’t throwing up. I was dying. I was very ill… And do you know what? In the middle of all that… malaise. I remember thinking “This is what it’s like to be married” But I’ll do it again.’ An elderly couple sit in a dark room in their house, doing the crossword, taking their tablets and knitting, all the while raking over a traumatic past that has all but destroyed them. Conservatory is a compelling play about loss and family which shows that happiness is not a necessary condition of togetherness. It premiered at the Abbey Theatre, Dublin in March 2014. Founded in…

Friday Night at the Drama Festival: Phoenix Players present ‘Buried Child’

‘Buried Child’ by Sam Shepard will be performed on Friday 16 March by the Phoenix Players, Tubbercurry. One of the oldest drama groups, they have been performing since 1945. They are regularly involved with Community Theatre and have often qualified for the All Ireland Finals. Sam Shepard’s Pulitzer Prize winning play, with its surreal dark humour, explores universal themes which are taboo within society. Vince returns to find the degradation of this once noble farm family in Illinois. One catastrophic event is the root cause of the degradation of a once proud family, caused by a secret buried in the dark. Has Tilden’s persistent search enabled his family to emerge like a phoenix from the ashes?

Thursday Night at the Drama Festival: Lifford Players present ‘Dancing At Lughnasa’

Thursday 15 March sees the production ‘Dancing at Lughnasa’ by Brian Frielperformed by Lifford Players. They have been actively participating in the Amateur Drama Circuit since they were formed in the early 1950’s by Donegal County Council and Lifford Post Office. Their most successful decades have been the 1980’s and 2000’s with their most recent productions being ‘A Crucial Week in the Life of a Grocer’s Assistant’ by Tom Murphy in 2016 and ‘Abigail’s Party’ by Mike Leigh in 2017. ‘Dancing at Lughnasa’ depicts two days in the lives of the Mundy sisters living in poor circumstances outside the village of Ballybeg, County Donegal during harvest time in 1936. Their brother Fr. Jack a missionary priest is sent home after twenty five…

Wednesday Night at the Drama Festival: Clann Machua present ‘The Cripple of Inishmaan’

Clann Machua Drama Group, Kiltimagh present ‘The Cripple of Inishmaan’ by Martin McDonagh on Wednesday 14 March. The inhabitants of the Aran Island Inishmaan of 1934 are excited because a film crew from Hollywood is expected to arrive soon in the neighbouring island of Inishmore to begin a documentary about life on the Aran Islands. Crippled Billy Claven, eager to escape gossip, cruelty and boredom of Inishmaan is determined to be part of the film. Clann Machua Drama Group was formed in 2010 to revive the amateur dramatics in Kiltimagh and hosts the annual ACDI one act festival every year in November. The group narrowly missed out for a place in the confined finals in 2017 with ‘Juno and The Paycock’ by Sean…

Tuesday Night at the Drama Festival: Letterkenny present ‘Beneath an Irish Sky’

On Tuesday 13 Letterkenny Music and Drama Society present ‘Beneath an Irish Sky’ by Kieran Kelly. This is set in Letterkenny between 1914 and 1924 and shows how Brendan McDevitt was affected by World War 1, the War of Independence and the Civil War propelling him from peaceful Nationalism into militant Republicanism leading to far reaching implications for himself and his family. Formed in 1991, the Letterkenny Music and Drama Society has produced 24 plays and 24 musicals appearing in festivals in Derry and Bangor and runners up in AIMS All Ireland finals in 2007 with ‘Children of the Dead End’. They reached the All Ireland Confined Finals in 1999 and 2000 winning in 2012 with ‘The 39 Steps’. With the same play…

Monday Night at the Drama Festival: Sillan Players present ‘Una Pooka’

‘Una Pooka’ by Michael Harding will be presented on Monday 12 by the Sillan Players, formed in 1982 by Fr. Patsy Young. They have performed many productions since then and have qualified for the confined finals on many occasions and they were runners up in Tubbercurry in 2017. Una Pooka is the fantasy of a single woman Una Kevitt who has travelled up to Dublin to visit the Pope. Would the Pope condemn communion in the hand? Would he put a halt to the gallop of well-heeled women? Why was Una’s brother being force-fed on muesli and lentils? And why did Fr. Simeon want to join the circus in Rio de Janiero? Come along and find out.