Paddy – The Musical at Cork Opera House

Following the phenomenal success of the show in 2015 and due to huge popular demand, Paddy The Musical returns to Cork Opera House in October 2016.

‘Paddy’ is the work of International singer Tommy Fleming, Midwest Radio’s Tommy Marren and Mayo-based songwriter Gerry Carney.

Paddy The Musical premiered in the Royal Theatre, Castlebar last September and was followed by a SOLD OUT Nationwide Tour through October and November 2015.

‘Paddy’ tells the story of emigration in all its shapes and forms. The two-hour production tells the story of a young Irish emigrant called Patrick Murphy (played by Tommy Fleming) who leaves Mayo in the 1960’s in search of fame and fortune. The show follows his life in both London city and Ireland over a 25 year period.

Tommy Fleming is one of Ireland’s most popular and successful artists and his involvement in ‘Paddy’ is seen as a natural progression in a career that has seen him perform sell-out solo concerts in Ireland, the UK, America and Australia as well as performing alongside artists like Phil Coulter, Kenny Rodgers and Elaine Page. The Aclare native is eagerly looking forward to performing brand new material and also playing the leading role in the show.

“I’m really looking forward to this project. It has been a long time in the making and now that we’re in full rehearsals I know it has the potential to be a massive success. Emigration has touched practically every family in Ireland and I think we’ve gone about putting on a production that deals with it in a very unique way. I’ve always wanted to act so to be able to mix both acting and singing is really exciting”.

For Director Tommy Marren, the project comes on foot of his hugely successful production of “It’s the Real McCoy” which toured Ireland, the UK and America over three years. He is confident that ‘Paddy’ will be equally as successful.

“People love a good story and I can promise them that ‘Paddy’ isn’t just a moving story but it also features some incredible songs. We’ve gone to great lengths to make sure that the drama and the music sit comfortably together. The whole show is charged with emotion, comedy and strong songs. Only time will tell but I’m really confident that if we can reproduce on stage what we’re doing in rehearsals this project will be magic.”

For singer/songwriter Gerry Carney seeing ‘Paddy’ hit the stage will be a dream come true. He wrote the song ‘Paddy’ a number of years ago and has seen it recorded by numerous artists in Ireland.

“The song ‘Paddy’ has been huge and people all over the world relate to it. Seeing it as an integral part of this project is wonderful but I’m equally pleased that all the other original songs are just as strong. To be able to premiere the show in Mayo is terrific and I know people will really enjoy it.”