LAUNDRY & BOURBON

by James McLure / directed by Damian Punch & Marcus Bale

Granary Theatre | 06 October - 11 October 2008 | 8pm | €12/€8

Director´s Note
Laundry and Bourbon is the sister play of McLure´s "Lonestar". He wrote it as a response in terms of performance, where 3 actresses would have the chance that before he gave 3 actors. And in the writing of this play, he -in our opinion- went beyond the first one, in quality, humour and depiction of human nature and the quirkiness of people, in this case, women. Cyclone´s Repertory Company produced, a few months ago, Lonestar and it was a successful production. It was on the cards to complete the cycle of McLure´s plays by tackling Laundry & Bourbon. Our inexperience as directors was more a challenging teaser than anything and we embarked upon the journey. We hope you enjoy it as much as we have in the process of putting it together!

POOL (NO WATER)

by Mark Ravenhill / directed by Mark Rogers

Granary Theatre | 13 October - 18 October 2008 | 8pm | €12/€8

Directors Note
Pool (no water) is a contemporary piece based on the life of four constantly struggling artists.  There is unity and balance in their situation but this equilibrium is thrown off when one of the members of their group becomes hugely successful as a result friendships turn bitter. The characters directly address the audience informing them exactly where it all went wrong speaking freely without consequence. Watch as these characters explain how they reclaimed their balance through unorthodox methods.

SOMEONE WHO'LL WATCH OVER ME

by Frank McGuinness / directed by Katie O'Farrell

Granary Theatre | 20 October - 25 October 2008 | 8pm | €12/€8

Directors Note
Someone Who’ll Watch Over Me is an examination of the psyche under pressure, based on the experiences of Brian Keenan and John McCarthy; two innocents taken hostage in Lebanon for almost four years in the 1990s. Upon first reading the play, I was immediately struck by the complexity of the characters and the wonderful leaps between optimism and despair. Rather than being a plot-driven play, it is an intense study of the relationship between the three men held captive by unseen tormentors.

How can one human put another through such an ordeal? The word 'inhuman' to describe such an act is incorrect, as the actions are perpetrated by a human; therefore they are human. So how is a sense of what we perceive as 'humanity' to be maintained? Through communication, McGuinness tells us, and imagination, and a constant terrifying strain against the darkness that threatens to engulf the men.
This is what I hoped to explore: the switches between raucous humour and energy and the sudden grip of something so cold and penetrating it stills the body but definitely not the mind.

DUCK

by Stella Feehily / directed by Laura Daly

Granary Theatre | 24 October - 01 November 2008 | 8pm | €12/€8

Director’s Note
I first discovered Duck in a Drama and Theatre Studies lecture hall. Its potential immediately struck me. I was thrilled to get the opportunity to direct it for The New Director’s Festival. It is a hard-hitting, unapologetic piece that is crammed to the brim with every social and cultural problem imaginable that is coming to the fore in a post Celtic Tiger Ireland. My approach to the work has been to focus on the characters. At times their circumstances may seem unreal or inaccessible to a theatre going audience but my aim has been to offer an image of fully developed, deep characters that the audience is forced to identify with as their realities are portrayed with truth and honesty. Cat and Sophie strive for something more in their lives but they are caught in a cycle that is endlessly turning and though they attempt to start a new and to take their first flight it seems that the cycle will simply start to turn again and Cat and Sophie will remain forever two ducks out of the water. This play will slap you in the face, unsettle and unnerve….but sure why else would you go to the theatre?!

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