We all know the line, “Behind every great man is a great woman”, well here’s the story of unassuming Joan Castleman (Glenn Close) as she travels to Stockholm to see her gregarious husband Joe (Jonathan Pryce) receive the Nobel Prize for Literature. Based on Meg Wolitzer’s novel of the same title, I’m told she was meticulous with…
Fiction is my thing probably because I don’t ‘do‘ realism. I’ve read a few biographies over the years, mainly about writers, artists or actors and their journey to stardom, oblivion, wealth, addiction, obsession, madness and so on and often a nasty combination of all of the above. I have noticed that books labouring over one’s…
I’ve fallen in and out of love with Druid’s work over the years. I’m not overly fond of the Stage Oirish genre even if it’s written tongue in cheek by Martin McDonagh. Having seen ‘Whistle in the Dark’, one of the Druid Murphy productions during the Dublin Theatre Festival a few years ago, four of…
I’ve been stalking this man’s repertoire for over five years. One act, one man, minimal set, props or costumes; there is nowhere to hide beyond the physicality of the performance of his bitter-sweet stories. I first saw ‘Silent’, [“the touching and challenging story of homeless McGoldrig, who once had splendid things. But he has lost…
Many people complain about IMMA and its unimaginative use of space. I have fond memories of doodling in the response room with my toddler on rainy Sunday afternoons and playing chase in the formal gardens in the sun, our weekly escape from our tiny cottage a bicycle ride away. He called it the clapping hands…
Splendid. My colleague laughed at my choice of word to describe the view when you enter the grounds of Kilkenny Castle — acres of rolling hills and giant oak trees — amid the hustle bustle of the city. The Butler Gallery is located in the basement of this medieval castle and although the journey through…
What a versatile collection of work but with attention to detail carried through all the forms. RHA – Ursula Burke The Precariat Burke uses traditional, perhaps dated, art styles with an utterly modern take. Present day scenes of conflict within a conference room setting, knocked over chairs, suited and booted male aggression all grounded literally…
It’s good to have friends that know you. Friends that don’t humour you by agreeing to come to your boring hotel pool and jacuzzi but instead go ahead and plan an open water swim in the WhatsApp group despite the howling winds and lashing rain. Friends that know, before you know, that you’ll never turn down…
Here is a short film I made as part of the Gap Arts Festival Mobile Device Filmmaking Project – funded and supported by Wexford County Council’s ‘Artist in Community Scheme’. Intrepid local filmmaker Terence White presented several workshops on all aspects of mobile filmmaking from apps to turn your phone into a studio-quality video recorder,…
