Popular 'Cripple of Inishmaan' play finishes up at Visual Carlow tonight (May 28)

The run of a popular play written by the man behind The Banshees of Inisherin is set to finish up at Visual Carlow tonight (Sunday May 28). 

Martin McDonagh's 'The Cripple of Inishmaan' is a hilarious, multi-layered black comedy set on Inishmaan of the Aran Islands in the 1930s around the time that the famous 'Man of Aran' film was shot on a neighbouring island. 

It follows a character called Billy Claven (or 'Cripple Billy') who dreams of going to Hollywood to escape his dreary, mundane life on Inishmaan. However, it means leaving behind those on the small island that he loves, and also those that he loves to hate. 

The show began on Thursday May 25 in the George Bernard Shaw Theatre for a four night run, with curtains set to fall for the last time tonight. 

The amateur cast, who director Mark Cradock calls "really talented", includes Scott Cooper as 'Cripple Billy', Keelin McDonald, Pauline Hayes, Patrick O’Byrne, Zoe Hayden, Jack Lawlor Mason, Jamie Dockery, Julien Jully and Deirdre Fleming. 

Cradock, whose mother was a pioneer in the drama community in Kilkenny, believes there's a growing appetite for more and more Irish stories both at home and abroad. 

Speaking ahead of the first showing, he said, "When we write about Ireland, people from other countries find it interesting and relatable to their experience." 

He believes coming to the theatre to watch a play is a very different, intentional experience compared to streaming at home. 

"[With] modern streaming movies, people can lose the experience of sitting in a crowded room within a theatre with everybody laughing or everybody being moved by something happening on stage by the performer, and it's a much more powerful experience than sitting on your own in your living room watching something on the laptop. 

"There's a great buzz to it, and I'd certainly encourage people to come in and experience that feeling, just enjoying [the play] in a group situation." 

He continued: "I think people will find it even more powerful if they're out of practice of it, or even if they haven't experienced it before. After Covid we're still relearning certain things that we like, [like] sitting in a crowded room laughing away with 250 or 300 people laughing with you." 

Cradock said he was "delighted" to be able to present the play to the community to enjoy. 

He said, "It's a community production, it's a community experience." 

The final showing of the play begins at 8pm this evening. 

Tickets can be bought here for €21/€19.