upstate live
Past productions:
SUBMARINE MAN
The little-known life of John P Holland
Captivated by the allure of the sea, man has always been intrigued by underwater exploration and the mysteries of the deep. The year is 1873. Dundalk-based, noviciate Christian Brother, John Philip Holland is obsessed with his design for a bizarre, submergible craft. He soon finds himself caught up in the frantic, international race to tame 'the Mistress of the Sea'. Infused with the inventiveness of the eccentric genius, this true-story drama tells the little-known tale of 'the father of the modern submarine' and one of Ireland's greatest, unsung naval heroes.
"Genuinely gripping - there is no doubting that Harney is a real talent." Irish Theatre Magazine
THE ENEMY WITHIN
by Colm Maher
A site-specific history play
Performed at two sites either side of the Boyne river, The Enemy Within was a tense human drama of intrigue and betrayal, set in the period covering the O’Neill siege of Drogheda in 1641 and the sacking of the town by Cromwell’s forces in 1649.
The theatre piece was designed to complement activities to celebrate the ‘Walled Towns’ Day’, a feature of Heritage Week and was commissioned by the Old Drogheda Society with support from The Heritage Council and Louth Local Authorities.
AT PEACE
by Declan Gorman
National Tour 2007
A cast of seven Irish, African and Eastern European actors, bring to life Gorman’s multi-layered drama of life in a peacetime border community.
"An amazing theatrical experience - mix of nationality and content thought-provoking and deeply moving"; "I found it powerful and universal"; "Great to experience something so rich, real, relevant and moving - miraculous how you managed to weave all the threads, (cultural, political & artistic) together"; and "I found it a very moving play, we need to embrace all."
Audience Survey
TWO HOUSES
by John McArdle
A play for children
Tour Louth and Down 2005
John McArdle's celebrated 1984 play for children revived by Upstate. The contrasting lives of landlord and tenant families in pre-famine Ireland.
“Upstate live has come up with a typically creative show. The four
characters, beautifully acted, engage directly with the audience and with
each other. The complexity of the wider world comes through with force.
Declan Gorman conducts with a sensitive baton.”
Irish Times
THE GREEN FOOL
by Patrick Kavanagh
adapted for the stage by Declan Gorman
National tour 2004-2005
Kavanagh at 50 returns to the room where he wrote his memoir 20 years earlier and spends a night of mixed emotions, remembering a popular book he now disowns and a life marked by artistic and personal frustrations.
“Bravura performances from a cast of six bring Mucker (Kavanagh’s
homeplace) to life with skill. There are so many wonderful performances
here… nobody misses a beat. The stage is constantly transformed…
the drama builds up at an almost dizzying pace. This is a truly brilliant
production and one not to be missed”
Sunday Business Post
EPIC by Declan Gorman
National tour 2001
Two boys witness a criminal act near a remote sacred mountain. A virus spreads across Ireland. A collision of ancient myth, modern fiction and documentary.
“Declan Gorman has put every aspect of contemporary Irish life
into it… It is so well staged, such a wonderful use of theatre as
a space for the potential of the imagination, and for the mythic and the
real to collide - so contemporary and very exciting”.
Rattlebag: RTE Radio
THE COUNTRYWOMAN by Paul Smith
adapted for the stage by Elizabeth Kuti
Drogheda and Civic Theatre, Tallaght 2000
Liz Kuti's imaginative adaptation of Smith's powerful, social novel, set in the Dublin tenements between 1920 and 1950.
“Ms Kuti has fashioned a skilful conversion, a tragedy of place
and time that seizes the emotions”
Irish Times
“The Countrywoman is funny, tragic and touching. A professional
and seamless production.”
Entertainment Ireland
MACBETH by William Shakespeare
Drogheda 1999
A version of the Scottish play set against the backdrop of war in the Balkans and Middle East and uneasy peace in Ireland.
“There is much to enjoy…in Upstate Live’s Scottish
play. Keith McErlean plays Macbeth with force and presence. A full frontal
attack!”
Irish Times
HADES by Declan Gorman
National tour 1999 (Revived 2006)
Life in a small border town in the months following the Good Friday peace agreement. Dozens of characters caught in a place that may be real and may be mythical.
“Hades is a stunning piece of writing, showing Gorman’s mastery
of the vernacular language and his innate knowledge of theatre”
Irish News
“A highly perceptive comic tragedy”
Irish Times
THE WEAVERS by Gerhart Hauptmann
In a new translation by Declan Gorman (1997)
Strong expressionist staging of Hauptmann's classic, rarely seen in Ireland, in a new translation referencing the dialect and history of the North East of Ireland.
“Upstate has opened its account with a play by Gerhart Hauptmann,
the great German playwright. In its day, “The Weavers” was
regarded as highly subversive... Today, it still has echoes, and some
of that relevance comes through in this gritty production. Declan Gorman
directs with considerable flair. A promising debut by a welcome new group.”
Irish Times