The Plough and the Stars // Irish Theatre Players, March 2016
“No welcome, genial or damnable, to a war. For we ourselves have had a bitter taste of what war is like."
- Sean O’Casey
After the spell has broken - Jack and Nora
The Irish Theatre Players present "The Plough and the Stars" by Sean O ‘Casey at The Irish Club of Western Australia.
Directed by: Hellie Turner
A dark - comedy come tragedy in 4 Acts, The Plough and the Stars is set in a Dublin tenement building where the vibrant characters created by O’Casey struggle to reconcile with the outward conflict of the rebellion and their own intimate relationships.
Arguably his best and most controversial play, The Plough and the Stars is centered on a young married couple, Jack and Nora Clitheroe, and those who live around them. O’Casey gives us a snapshot of Dublin in the lead up to and during the 1916 Easter Rising as Ireland and its people are torn apart by war. This provocative play caused riots in The Abbey Theatre, Dublin, during its initial run but was strongly defended by none other than W.B. Yeats. It is now widely regarded as a masterpiece.
The Plough and the Stars was the flag of the Irish Citizens Army (ICA). James Connolly, the co-founder of the ICA, said the Plough and the Stars, a prominent constellation in the night sky over Ireland throughout the year, were a symbol that a free Ireland would control its own destiny from the plough to the stars.
This is the inaugural presentation of The Plough and The Stars by The Irish Theatre players and is being presented in collaboration with ‘WA Remembers Easter 1916’ on the centenary of the Rising. It is being directed by established director and playwright Hellie Turner.
The Covey rises Uncle Peter, and the tea goes flyin'!
The Plough and The Stars plays at 8pm March 30, 31 & April 1,3,6,7,8,10,13,14 & 16 with a Saturday Matinee 16 April 2pm & Sunday 3pm matinees April 3 & 10.
Tickets are $25 & $20 concession
Bookings: CLICK HERE TO BOOK TICKETS
“You can die now, Fluther, for you’ve seen th’ shadow-dhreams of th’ past leppin’ to life in th’ bodies of livin’ men that show, if we were without a titther o’ courage for centuries, we’re vice versa now!” – Fluther
Irish Theatre Players is located at the Irish Club of Western Australia, 61 Townshend Road, Subiaco.
Website: www.irishtheatreplayers.com.au
Facebook: www.facebook.com/irishtheatreplayers
Cast:
Brian Donohue - Jack Clitheroe / Corp. Stoddart
Sandi Buckley - Nora Clitheroe
Joe Purcell - Peter Flynn
Stan O’Neill - Fluther Good
Rory Buckley - Covey
Charlotte Weber - Bessie Burgess
Siobhan Wright - Mrs. Gogan
Katie Toner - Mollser
Michelle Delaney - Rosie Redmond
John Flood - Bartender
Adrian Mills - Corp. Stoddart
Brian O’Donovan - Capt. Brennan
Aidan Murphy - Lieut. Langon / Sergeant Tinley