IN THE MIDDLE OF THE FIELDS is Touring to West Cork, Dublin, and Meath

Immerse yourself in a ground-breaking production of "In The Middle of The Fields" by Mary Lavin, brought to life by acclaimed director Joan Sheehy and a talented, award-winning creative team. This powerful and evocative story will take you on a journey of emotions, leaving you captivated from start to finish.

This July and August, Joan Sheehy, in association with Geoff Gould of Blood in the Alley Theatre Company, will present Mary Lavin's “In The Middle of The Fields”.

Touring as part of the West Cork Fit Up Festival from July 11th to 15th, to Dublin's Richmond Barracks from July 18th to 29th, and finally to Mary Lavin's own home place, Bective Mills, Co. Meath from August 1st to 5th.

Starring Kathy Rose O'Brien, Mark O'Regan and Seamus Moran, this ground-breaking production is directed by Joan Sheehy who will be joined by a talented, award winning, creative team:  Paul Keogan, lighting and set, Colin Dunne, movement direction, original music by composer Tom Lane, performed by virtuoso accordionist, Dermot Dunne. 

Joan says “In The Middle of The Fields by Mary Lavin is a powerful story and in 2021 I created a dramatic re-imagining of the story under a large, stretchy tent so that performers and audience experienced a unique, atmospheric, encounter literally in the middle of a field. I wanted to stay true to Lavin's writing so we present the story word for word in an innovative staging with live music. I am delighted to be bringing this production to fresh audiences in West Cork, Dublin, and Bective, Co Meath. I am a country woman from Co. Limerick and this evocative rural story has haunted me for years. Making this great text come alive in front of an audience gives me such creative satisfaction. It takes many elements to work together to tell a story simply. I am so happy we have achieved that in this exquisite production.”

Audiences can expect a unique atmospheric experience that harks back to the theatre fit-up tradition of the 1940s and 1950s, but with a vivid, contemporary staging.

The evocative story centres around a young widow who displays a strong, independent spirit in running her farm. An encounter one night with a neighbouring farmer becomes emotionally charged and unsettling, posing provocative questions about past passions in a shifting and surprising story that will leave you captivated.   

Writer, and granddaughter of Mary Lavin, Kathleen McMahon, says, “I'd like to add my voice, and that of the Mary Lavin Estate, to Joan Sheehy's efforts to bring her extraordinary production of Mary Lavin's story In the Middle of the Fields to a wider audience this summer.

I saw the production in Kilmallock, County Limerick in 2021 and thought it was absolutely stunning. What Sheehy managed to do was convey the relevance and modernity of the story, something I'm struck by every time I read it. This is not a period piece, but a timeless encounter that has huge resonance in the light of the Me Too movement. 

The outdoor staging of this production is what makes it really special. It's a story that lives and breathes its surroundings. To see it performed, literally, in the middle of the fields was magical.  It will be just amazing to see it travel to County Meath, where Mary Lavin lived and wrote, and where the story is set.”

“I want the audience to have an adventure” says Sheehy. “An atmospheric and dramatic encounter in magical surroundings. And I want them to enjoy the power of a great, rural story.”

Tickets are available via Eventbrite. Touring as part of the West Cork Fit Up Festival from July 11th to 15th, to Dublin's Richmond Barracks from July 18th to 29th, and finally to Mary Lavin's own home place, Bective Mills, Co. Meath from August 1st to 5th.

Ticket link: https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/bringing-mary-lavin-to-life-in-the-middle-of-a-field-tickets-649140485667

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