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Death of Mick Lally

A loss to Irish theatre

The death of actor Mick Lally comes as sad news, not only for his colleagues in Druid Theatre Company and the theatre world in general, but to viewers who felt they knew him, having watched him in the role of Miley Byrne in Glenroe on RTÉ television for many years. The founder member of Druid died on...

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Opera Theatre Company closure

Opera Theatre Company announces its final tour

For supporters of the work of Opera Theatre Company who gathered on Tuesday evening in Dublin for the launch of its latest production, the announcement that the company is to close down at the end of the year marked the end of an era. The final production,The Diary of Anne Frankby Russian composer Grigory...

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Critics' Forum 2010

ITM International Critics' Forum

The annual ITM International Critics' Forum at the Ulster Bank Dublin Theatre Festival takes place this year on Thursday, October 14th. Leading theatre critics from Ireland and abroad will analyse a selection of productions from the Festival's programme. The panel will be chaired by academic and critic...

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Balancing public and private funding

Balancing public and private funding

Traditionally in Irish theatre, the commercial and subsidised theatres have stood benignly apart. The subsidised sector prizes artistic credibility above the need for solid returns – “the freedom to fail” were once its watch words – while the commercial sector sought to give the...

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Nomadnotfunded

NOMAD not funded to tour

As the decisions for this year’s Arts Council touring grants filter out – applicants were notified by post this week – there has already been one surprising and high profile casualty. NOMAD, the north Midlands touring network set up to produce work and share it between seven venues,...

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Complex productions' base in Smithfield

Complex Productions in an empty space

Unusually for a theatre company these days, Complex Productions has actually benefited from the economic crisis. The building the group now occupies onSmithfield Square in Dublin was initially developed as a retail space, although having remained empty for seven years, it has recently been claimed by...

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Arts Council announces theatre project decisions

Arts Council announces theatre project funding decisions

A clearer picture of the Irish theatre enabled by the Arts Council’s new theatre policy has emerged with the publication of this year’s theatre project awards. Designed to directly support the development and production of work outside of a core-funded company model, these awards represent...

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A new policy for theatre: Theatre Forum responds

A new policy for theatre: Theatre Forum responds

At the end of March, the Arts Council quietly released its new theatre policy, a short but radical document that has redefined the landscape of Irish theatre. Responses from the theatre sector so far have been cautious, if not muted, largely because Supporting the production and presentation of theatre:...

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Werk season

Clock in, Werk out

Anyone passing the Abbey Theatre will notice a striking new poster next to the stage door: yes, that is Pope Benedict’s face propped up on a beefy torso, draped in gold chains, with the word WERK slashed through the centre in bright yellow. A programme of documentary theatre - last month’s...

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Actors resist pay cuts at the Peacock

Actors resist pay cuts at the Peacock

At a time of severe budget cuts across the theatre sector and tentatively proposed new models of making work, not all fee reductions are being readily accepted. In a letter to acting agencies this month, seen by ITM, Abbey director Fiach Mac Conghail referred to the National Theatre’s decline...

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