Fishy Business at Galway’s Town Hall Theatre

 

Donal O’Kelly, celebrated playwright, performer and director, is bringing two of his acclaimed one-man shows to Galway’s Town Hall Theatre, along with a variety of associated public talks, discussions and debates, from Monday 13^th to Tuesday 14^th May.  

 

The theme here is Fishy business and both plays, Bat the Father Rabbit the Son and Ailliliú Fionnuala ask important, sometimes unsettling  questions that will matter to anyone concerned about Corrib, corruption and  the course of Ireland’s development.    Fishy Tales performances start at 8pm, and are preceded by free Fishy public talks at 6pm each evening.   Tickets for the Fishy Tale performances are €12 each, or €20 for both shows. Fishy Talks, at 6pm are free of charge.

These performances and talks are supported by Afri and by Galway One World Centre.

For more info & to book performance tickets,  please contact the Town Hall Theatre on 091-569777 or go to: http://tht.ie/may

The first Fishy Tale is preceded, and complemented, by a public talk with Dr. Conor Mc Cabe, author of ‘Sins of the Father, Tracing the Decisions that Shaped the Irish Economy’.  Conor has earned a reputation for a straight-talking, myth-busting approach to the economic crisis, bringing some inconvenient truths to light, and engaging the audience in questioning the narratives that legitimise and sustain the soaring inequality being experienced here.

Bat The Father Rabbit The Son. The selfmade haulage magnate Rabbit is haunted by his deceased father Bat, a Citizen Army volunteer and pawnshop assistant. They go on a demented voyage out of Howth and into Dublin Bay. First produced by Rough Magic, directed by Declan Hughes, in 1988. It transferred to New York, and toured widely thereafter. “A prose poem of magical beauties and plunging vulgarities .. friends, it is purely brilliant” New York Post. “One of the strongest dramatic conclusions I’ve ever seen” The Guardian..“Magnificent script and performance” The Scotsman..“Superbly written and performed” The Irish Times

 

 

On Tuesday, before the performance of the Corrib-based play,  Ailliliú Fionnuala, Professor Terry Mc Donough of NUIG will present a  public talk entitled, ‘Fishing In the Tsunami: Finding a Way Out for Ireland.’   In a world where ‘There Is No Alternative’ has become the dominant mantra, Terry is a rare breed of economist, offering refreshing, pragmatic, intellectually-solid alternatives to the failing policies of austerity.   This talk looks at a variety of ways out of the crisis, including a proposal to nationalise the Corrib gas field.

 

There will also be a post-performance discussion with Lorna Siggins (Irish Times correspondent and author of ‘Once Upon A Time in the West’) and Richie O'Donnell (director of award-winning documentary, ‘The Pipe’). 

 

Ambrose Keogh, who made his name as Rabbit’s go-for, works for Shell. When the Tunnel Boring Machine he named Fionnuala sinks into the bog in Co. Mayo, he is magically confronted by Fionnuala of the Children of Lir.  “Cuts a swathe through Shell/State propaganda” Hot Press

 

“O’Kelly performs superbly” Sunday Independent

“Digs for truth beneath the controversies” Irish Times

“A stirring piece of theatre” Irish Theatre Magazine

“Highly entertaining while packing a punch” Exeunt Magazine

 

“O’Kelly performs superbly” Sunday Independent.

 

 

For in formation on Fishy Talks: Vicky Donnelly:  087 2645344