Description
Aisling Ghéar – the Irish language theatre company in Northern Ireland. Established in 1997, its’ mission is to contribute to the development of Irish Language Theatre and the very vital contribution it can make in expanding and enriching the vibrant cultural experience of this country’s unique heritage. It aims to produce Irish Language Theatre at its’ very best and to promote and perform the work of the Company both at home and internationally.
The company’s wide ranging work to date has included 26 Irish premieres and extensive tours throughout Ireland and Scotland with quality productions in translation, from playwrights as diverse as Flann O’Brien, Samuel Beckett, Eoghan Ó Tuairisc, Brian Friel, Dario Fo, Marie Jones and Willy Russell. As part of the company’s 15th Anniversary year we produced a host of new commissions from award winning writers and 2013/14 produced yet another excellent crop of new writing. Nollaig Mac Aodha gave us ‘Seo Robert- the search for Robert McAdam’- a fascinating insight into the world of a successful industrialist, composer, eminent Irish language scholar and a member of a remarkable generation of Northern Presbyterians, in Victorian Belfast. Our new comedy sketch show ‘An Aisling’ - a collection of bespoke comedy sketches written and devised by the company ‘succeeded in the challenging task of writing good quality comedy in Irish’. Our children’s show ‘Caoimhe and the Midnight Visit’ was a gorgeous Christmas offering and we were delighted with our first ever site-specific show ‘The Fadgies’ by Nuala O Neill - native Irish speakers from Omeath who moved to Belfast in the 19th century working as fish and fruit sellers, who then settled in Smithfield and created Belfast’s first Urban Gaeltacht. Oscar nominated writer Dave Duggan has been commissioned to write a ‘powerful sci-fi drama as Gaeilge’ - ‘Makaronik’ which sees the company’s first time participation at the Ulster Bank Festival at Queens and finally our inspiring disability project – ‘The Wheelchair Monologues’ written and performed by Gearóid Ó Cairealláin on the ups and downs of life in a powered wheelchair since his stroke in 2007. The company’s highly regarded schools’ production of ‘An Triail’ by Máiréad Ní Ghráda, now going into its’13th annual tour in Ireland, continues to provide excellent support for teaching staff while offering students the opportunity to experience a quality theatrical production of a timeless Irish language drama. The company offers live translation into English for each and every performance, available by personal headset.
Cultúrlann McAdam Ó Fiaich, 216 Falls Road,Belfast BT12 6AH,Co. Antrim