Ulster American 2019

Ulster American 2019 description

Belfast-born playwright David Ireland’s career may not have reached the stratosphere yet, but with four smash hits under his belt, it has taken off like a Saturn V. Comparisons with Martin McDonagh are obvious, as both combine an extraordinary gift for comedy with a fascination for studies of appalling behaviour: satires so black that outrage and discomfort eventually choke the laughs. Trouble is, audiences love to laugh, and Ireland hates to disappoint. So he goes further and it’s funnier, and you think, ‘surely he can’t go there’. And indeed he does.

In this play, an Oscar-winning actor, an up-and-coming English director and a Northern Irish playwright meet to rehearse a new West End play. The stage looks set for success. But when personal ambitions and explosive opinions meet, a line is crossed and their debates spill into something much more dangerous. Fresh from the 2018 Edinburgh Fringe, where it had the whole city talking, caught (as one critic put it) between “gasps, guilty guffaws and the urge to storm out” and an “exhilarating wave of taboo-breaking wildness” it’s not for the faint of heart – and not to be missed.

It’s rare for the Festival to present work that’s bound for the West End and Broadway but this scintillating production is best served hot. If you miss it in Adelaide, expect a very long flight followed by a very long queue for cancellations.

For the audio version of this event page, click here.

a satire as timely as it is riotous…If Jacobean tragedies were played as uproarious comedy they’d look like this

The Guardian

Even the first lines of this outrageous and uproarious new play arrive with the vroom vroom of a Ferrari.

The Times, UK

Event additional information

Participants

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Cast

Jay Conway Darrell D’Silva

Leigh Carver Robert Jack

Ruth Davenport Lucianne McEvoy

 

Creative Team

Writer David Ireland

Director Gareth Nicholls

Designer Becky Minto

Lighting Designer Kate Bonney

Composer & Sound Designer Michael John McCarthy

Fight Director EmmaClaire Brightlyn

Assistant Director Kolbrún Björt Sigfúsdóttir

 

Production Team

Production Manager Kevin McCallum

Chief Electrician Renny Robertson

Head of Stage Gary Staerck

Lighting & Sound Technician Dave Bailey

Lighting & Sound Technician Joe Davis

Company Stage Manager Gemma Turner

Costume Supervisor Sophie Ferguson

 

Supported by Creative Scotland and The City of Edinburgh Council. Tour assisted by the Made in Scotland Onward Touring Fund. With additional support from the JMK Trust.

 

 

 

 

Resources

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Read and download the daybill here (PDF 1.3MB)

Teachers resources for the show can be found here (PDF 4.6MB)

Additional resources:

Review Writing Tips (PDF 290KB)

Theatre Etiquette (PDF 115KB)

Links to Curriculums for Education Resources (PDF 215KB)

Partners

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