‘Joe Prop’ On Its Way To Birr Theatre

By Justin Kelly

A one man show starring Fair City’s Maclean Burke will be staged at the Birr Theatre & Arts Centre on Saturday, February 28. The play is set in the bedroom of bullied 12-year-old schoolboy, Joe Kavanagh, who dreams of international stardom as the best tight head prop in world rugby. Burke is famous for his role as Damien in Fair City, but now the Dublin actor moves from the soap ensemble to the stage for this solo performance.

Joe Prop has been adapted to a full length play after a successful stint at the 'Undermybed2014' Barnardos Project in the Smock Alley Theatre in Dublin. Playwright Gemma Doorly, the same writer that brought the hugely popular show W.A.G to sold out audiences, has teamed up with Maclean Burke and Barnardos for this production. 10% of all tickets sold for Joe Prop across the country will go directly to Barnardos.

Burke in Joe Prop

The play’s central character is subjected to the scorns of his school’s bullies, and they have set up a ‘Fat Joe Kavanagh’ Facebook page to poke fun at him. Medication from a childhood illness has left Joe overweight, but he finds solace as a prop on the school rugby team. His school coach Mr. Murray says: “Some jobs are meant for big guys.”

A statement on the Joe Prop website says this is “Maclean Burke as you’ve never seen him before – leaping, jumping, tackling and scrummaging in a physically charged and powerful one man show.” Burke will be joined by voiceover cameos from a host of famous rugby personalities, and the statement says “it will have you laughing, crying, and most of all believing that anything is possible.”

The Irish Independent has written that this “is Maclean Burke in a moving and hugely energetic performance,” while the Irish Mail on Sunday called Joe Prop “funny, engaging, poignant and beautifully acted.”

On February 28, Joe Prop will begin at 8pm at the Birr Theatre & Arts Centre. Tickets are priced at €16. For more information or to book tickets, contact 057-9122911 or visit www.birrtheatre.com

Comedy GAA Play ‘The Pull’ Coming To Offaly

By Justin Kelly

The GAA based comedy ‘The Pull’ is being staged in two Offaly localities in March this year. On Thursday, March 5, Ferbane/Belmont Minor GAA club will host the production at Gallen Community School in Ferbane, while on Friday, March 27, Shinrone Drama Group and the Tidy Towns Committee will welcome the show to the Shinrone Community Centre. The show will commence at 8pm on both nights, and admission is just €10.

Half Solid Productions is the company behind the globetrotting show, and they are continually staging ‘The Pull’ in venues across Ireland, the UK, and America. Written by former Irish Independent GAA correspondent Liam Horan, and fellow Mayo writer and actor John Corless, ‘The Pull’ tells the story of the fundraising efforts of a hapless GAA club who have found themselves in €1,000 worth of debt. Liam was the creator of the popular 'Championship Man' series on RTE Radio One, while John is a well-known poet in the Connacht region. Both men have combined their experiences to create this popular show.

Based on the fictional Ballybore GAA club, the play follows the people involved in the club as they decide to pull a truck around their home town in order to raise funds and break a Guinness World Record. “Chaos ensues and they end up getting in way over their heads,” Liam Horan explained.
The club itself is an anomaly as it claims its foundation pre-dates the GAA organisation by some 130 years. Not to be undone by a ‘not-so-colossal’ debt of €1,000, which “feels like a million euro” to the humble Ballybore boys, a ‘thoroughly colossal’ fundraising effort is formulated in the shape of the ‘muck-shifting’ truck pull.

Instead of a collaborated club effort, the responsibility falls on “the usual one or two,” and the plan doesn’t exactly pan out as expected. “In fact, the plan itself is not the most convincing document ever produced,” Horan quipped. “In the midst of the panic and cack-handed attempts at fundraising, there are a number of sub-plots that arise to keep the crowd entertained,” he added.

Ironically, the play is now being used by GAA clubs throughout the country as a fundraising night, and it is receiving truckloads of praise along the way: “Through the chair, we would highly recommend The Pull. The talent and energy of the guys in Half Solid Productions is second to none,” James Deane, PRO of the Shannon Gaels club from Roscommon said. “If you’ve ever been to a GAA meeting, you’ll enjoy it – even if you haven’t, you will still recognise the characters from your local community. John and Liam brought us on a very entertaining journey without us ever leaving our seats,” Mike McMahon from Knockaderry GAA club in Limerick added.

Want to make some money for your club? How about hosting The Pull? For all bookings, contact Liam Horan at info@halfsolid.com or on 087-9185867. For more information on the Ferbane and Shinrone shows, visit www.halfsolid.com.

Offaly Youth Theatre Parody ‘What It’s Like To Be Irish’

By Justin Kelly

Inspired by the viral KSL video ‘What It’s Like To Be Black,’ which has over 12 million views, five members of the Offaly Youth Theatre have combined to create the Irish version. The video plays on the stereotypes that are the misconceptions of Irish people around the world. Think Guinness on the cereal, leprechaun heel-clicking, mammy, and plenty of spuds!

Jamie Nolan, Gemma Mallen, Aisling Walsh, Orla Sweeney and Gráinne Darcy were the quick-witted members involved. Under the watchful eye of their Offaly Youth Theatre facilitators, the five-piece scripted, recorded, directed, and edited the clip over a two day period. Offaly Youth Theatre facilitator and Youth Arts Co-Ordinator with Offaly County Council Maura Cunningham spoke to InOffaly this week: “It really was a quick masterclass in filmmaking for the group. They wanted to raise the profile of Offaly Youth Theatre in order to recruit new members, and they were inspired by the KSL video,” she said. “I think they are aiming for about half of their views,” Maura quipped.

Offaly Youth Theatre was established in Birr and Tullamore in 2011, and is run by a board of directors and three volunteer tutors. Following early success, the theatre decided to add a further branch of OYT in Edenderry in 2013. “The theatre is affiliated with the National Association of Youth Drama (NAYD) and we receive most of our funding from the Offaly County Council Arts Office, and this helps to keep the fees low for participants. We also have a relationship with Birr Theatre and Arts Centre for performances,” Maura Cunningham revealed to InOffaly. Offaly Youth Theatre receives an annual grant from the Offaly County Council Arts Office. The price for a 10 to 12 week term is as little as €60, and classes run for two hours each week.  The small entrance fees the theatre charge for performances and other fundraising ideas from members make up the rest of the running costs for the initiative.

The theatre is open to people aged 13-20 in Co. Offaly, and you do not need to have any previous acting or film experience to join. “In fact, OYT doesn’t have to be all about acting; if members are interested in writing, directing, filming, or other aspects of theatre and production, the facilitators will do their best to provide workshops in those areas too,” Maura told InOffaly. The theatre fosters young talent in the county, and some previous members have grown their love of film to go on and study the area at third level. Tullamore actor Sam Keeley, who is currently filming with Bradley Cooper and Jamie Dornan for new Hollywood movie ‘Adam Jones’, is on the record as saying: “I wish there was an Offaly Youth Theatre around when I was starting out.” “It encourages confidence building, communication, an open mind, a willingness to work as a team and participate, and as you can see from the video, an ability to think outside the box,” Maura Cunningham added.

All groups within OYT are working on performances at the moment which will take place around Easter. The groups will perform locally, and although nothing has been finalised for this year yet, keep an eye on their Facebook page for all upcoming events.

If you are interested in getting involved with the Offaly Youth Theatre, you can make contact on Facebook, email offalyyouththeatre@gmail.com, or phone 057-9357400.