Write a comment
Newry Drama Festival will run this year from Friday the 15th of March to Saturday the 23rd of March. The Event was launched at a reception in The Quays today. The Quays are the main Sponsors of the event.
This years Festival has nine plays, seven of which are new to Newry including the local Newpoint Players who perform Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, Tom Stoppard's tragicomedy, a play which involves the misadventures and musings of two minor characters from Hamlet who are childhood friends of the prince. The focus is on their actions with the events of Hamlet in the background.
Castleblaney Players perform Song of the Yellow Bittern by Vincent Woods. Set in County Leitrim it covers seven generations over time linking events and people from a small rural community. Both a love story and a ghost story it in part is set against a background of a famous paternity lawsuit taken by a Protestant woman against a Catholic Priest in 1828.
The Festival concludes with Ballyduff Drama Group performing Dancing at Lughnasa, Brian Friel's classic set in a home in County Donegal where the five Munday sisters live through the challenges of love, unemployment, trust and trying to keep the family together. You can see details of each night's Play in the Events Section of Newry.ie
Gerry McNulty, Festival Chairman started by saying "The old adage states that "there's no new thing under the sun" but as this years FEstival enters a new decade after a very successful Diamond Jubilee season, it can boast of seven productions which are new to our audiences."
"The first 'new' production on stage is the very funny Moonlight and Magnolias which will take us back to Hollywood in 1939 and the script for Gone with the wind."
"Two plays The White Rose and Taking Sides take us to Germany in the 1940's and bring out the realities of survival during the Nazi dictatorship. Song of the Yellow Bittern takes us to County Leitrim while Dancing at Lughnasa transports the audience to 1930's Donegal."
Continuing he said "Philip Ridley's shocking but relevant view of th efuture will be explored in Mercury Fur which is set in a post-apocalyptic London where a client's wildest fantasy can be realised provided he can afford the price!"
"God of Carnage will demonstrate in a humorous way the chaos which parents can cause when involving themselves in their childrens squabbles while the play Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are dead, structured as the inverse of Hamlet, concerns the misadventures and musings of these two minor characters from the play."
Concluding he added "To complete the lineup will be Willy Russell's hugely popular play Blood Brothers telling the tale of two brothers in Liverpool."
Maureen Grant, Festival P.R.O told the Press that the 60th Newry Drama Festival held in 2012 had been a resounding success. Sponsorship and audiences were up and the event was a real Social Occasion.
Maureen began by thanking the Main Sponsor, the QUAYS Newry. She said "Through the good offices of Manager, Cathal Austin, the Festival continues to receive generous support. The Quays also provides three Special Awards for the Overall Winner, Best Actor and Best Actress."
"The Festival also has two major Sponsors – Newry Credit Union and Clanrye Abbey Development and to them, I say thank you. Thanks must also go to our Nightly Sponsors who assist with the Groups expenses."
"Last year a number of highly successful international companies came on board and the good news story is that, much to our delight, they have agreed to stay with the Festival. This financial assistance ensures that Newry Drama Festival can still live up to its high reputation as one of the best Festivals in Ireland. The Festival is renowned for looking after the visiting groups by way of expenses and hospitality."
Maureen also paid tribute to the Season Ticket holders and Patrons who attend the performances year after year and encouraged the public to come along to Newry Town Hall, sit back and enjoy the nine nights of Theatre.
A Season ticket for all the performances costs £40will be available at the Sean Hollywood Arts Centre this Saturday the 9th of March from 9.30am to 12.30pm and all Bookings can be made next Tuesday and Wednesday from 12pm to 2.30pm at the Desk in The Quays with nightly tickets costing £8 or £7 (Concession).
