Irish Rep Announces THE ARAN ISLANDS: A Performance on Screen

Irish Repertory Theatre announced today that their next Performance on Screen digital production is The Aran Islands by J.M. Synge and adapted and directed by Joe O'Byrne. Starring Brendan Conroy, the virtual production of The Aran Islands will premiere on Tuesday March 16, 2021 at 7pm ET and run through Sunday March 28, 2021. For more information and to register for a performance visit IrishRep.org.

In the grey, sea-battered landscape of the Aran Islands, full of mist and wild rain, hearth is home and storytellers regale with tales by the fire. When John Millington Synge traveled to these remote islands upon the advice of W.B. Yeats in 1898, he discovered a bleakly primitive, mystical land that would inspire him for the rest of his life, leading to canonical works in Irish theatre, including The Playboy of the Western World and Riders to the Sea.

The Aran Islands: A Performance on Screen is a haunting and visceral experience built around "a hypnotic performance" by Brendan Conroy (Kings), one of Ireland's finest actors, as he captures the spirit of Synge in Joe O'Byrne's (The Picture of Dorian Gray) theatrical adaptation of Synge's early work, The Aran Islands. This play has been reimagined for digital presentation, transporting audiences to a distant world.

This all-new production was filmed in Ireland in early 2021 during the COVID-19 lockdown and made specifically for digital viewing. The Aran Islands: A Performance on Screen was filmed primarily at The New Theatre in Dublin, with additional footage from the Aran Islands and Dublin's Smock Alley Theatre. Irish Repertory Theatre presented the stage production of The Aran Islands in association with Co-Motion Media in 2017.

The Aran Islands: A Performance on Screen features music by Kieran Duddy, lighting design by Conleth White, camera & editing by Joe O'Byrne, and costume design by Marie Tierney. Original production set design is by Margaret Nolan.

Irish Repertory Theatre's 2017 production of The Aran Islands also featured set design by Margaret Nolan and Stage Management by Michael Palmer.

This production is sponsored in part by Aer Lingus.

The performance schedule for The Aran Islands: A Performance on Screen is as follows, all times ET: Tuesday March 16 at 7pm; Wednesday March 17 at 3pm & 8pm; Thursday March 18 at 7pm*; Friday March 19 at 8pm; Saturday March 20 at 3pm* & 8pm; Sunday March 21 at 2pm; Tuesday March 23, at 7pm; Wednesday March 24 at 3pm & 8pm*; Thursday March 25 at 7pm; Friday March 26 at 8pm*; Saturday March 27 at 3pm & 8pm; Sunday March 28 at 2pm*. *Indicates Open Captioned Performances

The Aran Islands: A Performance on Screen is free, with a suggested donation of $25. Advance registration is required. A viewing link will be emailed to all attendees prior to the performance.

Irish Repertory Theatre is committed to making theatre that is affordable and accessible. In pursuit of this goal, they have chosen to make this event free to the public. They ask that if you are in any position to support them, you might consider making a donation in conjunction with this digital event. Your contribution will ensure that they can continue to offer top-quality digital events, hire artists and actors, keep their staff employed, and be artistically and financially ready to reopen as soon as it is safe to do so.

The Theatre @ Home Winter Festival continues under its two-week extension, now through Sunday March 7. Irish Rep will also be donating 20% of suggested donations received (up to $5,000) to the Cultural Solidarity Fund, which directly supports unemployed artists who are overwhelmingly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Theatre @ Home Winter Festival includes Brian Friel's Molly Sweeney; Yes! Reflections of Molly Bloom, adapted from the novel Ulysses by James Joyce by Aedín Moloney and Colum McCann; Conor McPherson's The Weir; Love, Noël: The Songs and Letters of Noël Coward, written and devised by Barry Day; Belfast Blues, written and performed by Geraldine Hughes; Give Me Your Hand with poems by Paul Durcan performed by Dermot Crowley and Dearbhla Molloy; Eugene O'Neill's A Touch of the Poet; On Beckett / In Screen, an exploration of the works of Samuel Beckett conceived and performed by Bill Irwin; and Meet Me in St. Louis, adapted from the 1989 Broadway production and directed by Charlotte Moore. For more information on each production and to register for a free performance, visit irishrep.org/winterfest.

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