From 5th-18th May, Dublin plays host the very best in gay-themed theatre around the world - check out the full programme here!
Venues: Various, City Centre
LAUNCH - 1ST MAY IN THE FRONT LOUNGE CAPEL STREET
Launched in 2003 to commemorate the 150th Anniversary of Dublin's greatest theatrical son, Oscar Wilde, The Dublin Gay Theatre Festival is the world's festival dedicated to solely to gay theatre. And this year's festival promises to be bigger and better than ever, with over 35 production in 10 venues around the city centre. There's a whole fortnight of drama, comedy, tragedy, musical theatre and opera from America, Canada, South Africa, Mexico, Italy, Brazil, The Netherlands, Britain and - of course - Ireland.
This year's Festival see the return of youth theatre, the women's programme, the nightly festival club and the Trinity College academic seminar. There'll also be a brand new series of FREE drama at The George every Sunday afternoon, and a very special guest appearance from multiple Tony and Emmy Award winning playwright Terrence McNally, whose controversial hit 'Corpus Christi' runs from May 12th to 18th at Smock Alley Theatre.
And, of course, don't miss the festival's Absolute Drama Queen launch on 1st May in the The Front Lounge!
For full details of all the plays and events in this year's festival, check out the listings below - then book your tickets online, by calling 01-677 8511 or in person from the Temple Bar Cultural Information Centre.
EVENTS
ABSOLUT DRAMA QUEEN FESTIVAL LAUNCH PARTY
VENUE: The Front Lounge, Parliment Street
DATE: 1st May
TIME: 20.30
ADMISSION: FREE - All Welcome
Celebrating the launch of the Fifth International Dublin Gay Theatre Festival with a free cocktail, goodie bag and loads of entertainment at the Absolut Drama Queen Festival Launch Party!
GAY POSTER ARTWORK EXHIBITION
VENUE: The Front Lounge, Parliment Street
DATE: 1st - 30th May
TIME: 20.30
ADMISSION: FREE
Visit the 'walk though billboard' of posters and artwork of almost forty plays that can be seen in this year's Festival.
DANCING WITH THE MINOTAUR
VENUE: The Geroge, George's Street
DATE: 5th May
TIME:15.00
ADMISSION: FREE
The gripping tale of a confused husband who leads a secret online life.
THE EYES OF BABYLON
VENUE: The Cube, The Project Arts Centre
DATE: 5th - 10th May
TIME: 15.00 (10th only)/ 19.45
ADMISSION: €14/€12/€10
Lance Corporal Jeff Key came out on CNN's Paula Zahn Now on 31st March 2004. This one-man play tells the story of the US Marine's struggle to come to terms which he starts to realise is an illegal and immoral situation in Iraq.
KNOTTY TOGETHER
VENUE: Smock Alley (studio)
DATE: 5th - 10th May
TIME: 20.00
ADMISSION: €14 / €12
Boy meets boy, boy marries boy - then they sing about it, in this hilarious opera from Canada.
LIGHTNING STRIKES
VENUE: The Project Arts Centre (Space Upstairs)
DATE: 5th - 10th May
TIME: 15.00 (10th only)/ 20.00
ADMISSION: €16 / €14 /€10
Has the passage of time changed the meaning of gay love? That's the question Tom finds himself asking when his intensely real dreams reveal a beautiful young man from a time when being gay was a drime.
TRUMAN CAPOTE
VENUE: The New Theatre
DATE: 5th - 10th May
TIME: 15.00 (10th only) / 20.00
ADMISSION: €14 / €12 / €10
No one looked, or sounded, like Truman Capote - the brilliant, tortured, adorable and wicked writer of Breakfast At Tiffany's and In Cold Blood. This legendary award-winning production gives audiences one last chance to share in a unique, bitchy, chic and heart-breaking evening with the man himself (sort of)!
YESTERDAY, WHEN I WAS YOUNG
VENUE: Theatre@105 Capel Street
DATE: 5th - 10th May
TIME: 15.00 (10th only)/ 20.00
ADMISSION:€14 / €12 / €10
The outragous and real-life story of Josie Pickering's journey from back street housewife to lesbian dominatrix.
BIG SISTER
VENUE: The Teacher's Club
DATE: 5th - 10th May
TIME: 15.00 (10th only) / 20.00
ADMISSION: €14 / €12 / €10
A funny, cutting and incisive sideswipe at reality TV and the reality of media feminism - a fresh insight into the broadcasting industry's hunger for glory at all costs.
BED DEATH
VENUE: The Cobalt Cafe
DATE: 5th - 10th
TIME: 20.00
ADMISSION: €14 / €12
Four lesbians get a lot more than they bargained for when the drama of a murder mysetery weekend gets a bit too real.
NIJINSKY'S LAST DANCE
VENUE: The Project Arts centre
DATE: 5th - 10th
TIME: 16.30 (10th only)/ 21.30
ADMISSION: €14 / €12 / €10
The tale of tragic Russian ballet dancer Nijinsky's sweeping rise to fame and his ultimate decent into madness.
BURYING YOUR BROTHER IN THE PAVEMENT
VENUE:Smock Alley (Studio)
DATE: 5th - 10th
TIME: 15.00 (10th only)/ 21.30
ADMISSION: €14 / €12 / €10
A film noir style show with wacky musical numbers, exploring a young boy's reaction to his brother's murder, and the questions it raises.
SHACKLED
VENUE: The New Theatre
DATE: 5th - 10th May
TIME: 16.30 (10th only)/ 21.30
ADMISSION: €14 / €12 / €10
Black comedy about Stu and Alex, straight strangers who wake up shackled together. Which would be funny, only there's no key - and it soon becomes obvious that one of them knows a LOT more than he;s letting on.
THE NIGHT FAIRIES
VENUE:Theatre@Capel Street
DATE: 5th - 10th
TIME: 16.30 (10th only) / 21.30
ADMISSION: €14 / €12 / €10
A heartbreaking tribute to 250,000 gays killed in Nazi concentration camps, this play focuses on real-life student Dirk whose torture and humiliation that of so many others.
BUTCH - A Queen's Struggle To Become King
VENUE: The Teacher's Club
DATE: 5th - 10th
TIME:21.30
ADMISSION: €14 / €12
Menno falls head over heels for a closeted, black, ultra-masculine, straight-acting army captain who hates anything camp or even slightly gay. Fed up being "I'm so girly, I nearly have periods", he decides it's time to 'butch up' and get in touch with his masculine side. If only his feminine side didn't keep bursting out in song ...
THE GIRLY SIDE OF BUTCH
VENUE: The Project Arts Centre
DATE: 5th - 10th May
TIME:16.30 (10th only)/ 21.45
ADMISSION: €16.00 / €14.00 / €10.00
'Priscilla' comes to Dublin in this hilarious cabaret show starring Australian TV icons Rochelle, Fifi and Vonni.
THE IRON EYELASHES
VENUE: The Cobalt Cafe
DATE: 8th - 10th May
TIME: 21.30
ADMISSION: €14 / €12
Travel back to 1962 with Berlin's hidden legend, drag queen Pieter Stiller via Paris, London and New York through countless dresses, drunken parties, smudged lipsticks and laddered tights, to the moment when Pieter makes a choice that changes his life forever.
MEMOIRS OF A GAY SHOW
VENUE: Smock Alley Studio
DATE: 9th & 10th May
TIME:21.30
ADMISSION: €14 / €12
West End star Paul Monaghan (Phantom of the Opera/Les Mis) joins up with Eoin Cannon and Musical Director David Wray for an evening of music and theatre from these celebrated gay artists.
CULTURAL SEMINAR
VENUE: Samuel Beckett Theatre
DATE:11th May
TIME: 12.00
ADMISSION: FREE
(booking essential. Email seminar@gaytheatre.ie ) Chaired by Dr Eibhear Walshe, proceedings include the Dr Aiden Rogers Memorial Lecture, papers on Eva Gore Booth by Dr Sonja Tiernan and by Professor Roy Sargeant, Artscape New Writing Programme, Cape Town.
THE CROWN JEWELS
VENUE: The George, George's Street
DATE:11th May
TIME:15.00
ADMISSION: FREE
2007 Oscar Wilde winning playwright Shawn Sturnick and Christiaan Feehan premiere their first collaboration. It's an outrageously funny gay play, it's true - it is gayer than the crown jewels!
THE STORY OF ZRAZY
VENUE: The George, George's Street
DATE: 11th & 18th May
TIME: 14.30
ADMISSION: FREE
Performing in The George, Ireland's leading lesbian duo Carol and Maria give an insight into their successful careers as jazz musicians.
BEST MAN
VENUE: The New Theatre
DATE:12th - 17th May
TIME: 15.00 (17th only) / 20.00
ADMISSION: €14 / €12 / €10
Childhood friends Eoin and Michael haven't seen each other in seven years when an unexpected invitation to Michael's engagement party drops through Eoin's letter box. How much have they and their lives changed, and how do they reconcile their past with who they are now?
CHRISTMAS IN BAKERSFIELD
VENUE: Theatre@Capel Street
DATE: 12th - 17th May
TIME: 15.00 (17th only) / 20.00
ADMISSION: €14.00 / €12.00 / €10.00
It's a case of "Guess Who's Coming to Brokeback Mountain" in this real-life one-man tale of a man bringing his perfect, black boyfriend home to meet his white, ultra-conservative in Bakersfield - the Californian headquarters of the KKK!
SOME ARE PEOPLE
VENUE: The Teacher's Club
DATE: 12th - 17th May
TIME: 15.00 (17th only) / 20.00
ADMISSION: €14.00 / €12.00 / €10.00
Beautiful and mysterious Lydia arrives at gay summer resort mecca Provincetown, and soon bumps into Miss Fitt (aka Tommy) hostess of drag karaoke at the "Gay Bouy" and Anna, the landlady, a massage therapist/tattoo artist who nurses her own wounds.
CORPUS CHRISTI
VENUE:Smock Alley (Studio)
DATE: 12th - 17th May
TIME: 15.00 (17th only) / 20.00
ADMISSION: €18.00 / €16.00 / €14.00 / €12.00
A revival of Terrence McNally's controversial play, which sets the story of a (gay) Jesus in 1950's Corpus Christi, Texas.
SHORT SHORTS AND VERY SHORTS
VENUE: The Cobalt Cafe
DATE: 12th - 17th
TIME: 20.00
ADMISSION:€14 / 12
A new innovation of short pieces from Ireland and around the world, including:
BLIND DATE (IRELAND) by Vickey Curtis
EMILY BREATHES (USA) by Matt Casarino
TUMBLING DOWN (IRELAND) by Brian Merriman
MAMMY'S BOY (IRELAND) by Suzanne Lakes
TOM CRUISE GET OFF THE COUCH (USA) by Kevin Brofsky
CONNUBIAL CELTS (IRELAND) by Shawn Sturnick
THE COUNTESS & THE LESBIANS
VENUE: Liberty Hall, Smock alley
DATE: 12th - 17th May
TIME: 15.00 (17th only) / 21.00
ADMISSION: €15.00 / €14.00 / €12.00 / €10.00
Irish Revoluntionary Countess Markiewicz, her pacifist sister Eva Gore-Booth and Eva's girlfriend Esther rehearse a play based on Eva's writings while tensions between the three threaten to disrupt the production.
CONFESSIONS OF A MORMON BOY
VENUE:The New Theatre
DATE: 12th - 17th May
TIME:16:30 (17th only)/ 21:30
ADMISSION: €14.00 / €10.00 / €12.00
Steven Fales autobiographical play tells how, after excommunication, divorce, prostitution and drugs,the sixth-generation Utah Mormon reclaimed more than his kids and a 'Donny Osmond' smile.
LOVE SCENES
VENUE: Theatre @ 105 Capel Street
DATE: 12th - 17th May
TIME: 16:30 (17th )/ 21:30
ADMISSION: €14.00 / €10.00 / €12.00
A sexy, touching, laugh-out-loud funny one-man show about the love lives of six very different gay New Yorkers.
DALLIANCES
VENUE: The Teacher's Club
DATE: 12th - 17th May
TIME: 16:30 (17th )/ 21:30
ADMISSION: €14.00 / €10.00 / €12.00
The lives of three men and one women intertwine in a love quadrangle with very unexpected results.
DOWN DANGEROUS ROAD PASSES
VENUE: Liberty Hall, Smock Alley
DATE: 12th - 17th May
TIME: 16:30 (17th )/ 21:30
ADMISSION: €15.00 / €10.00
Three brothers at very different points in their love lives drive to the spot where their father died fifteen years earlier. Could they have prevented his death? And what secrets are they hiding from eachother?
SLIPPING
VENUE: Smock Alley Studio
DATE: 12th - 17th May
TIME: 16:30 (17th )/ 21:30
ADMISSION: €15.00 / €10.00
Gay high school senior Eli gets a fresh start in Iowa, after his father dies and his abusive lover abandons him - but will he seize it or continue his emotionally destructive ways?
A CONVERSATION WITH TERRENCE MCNALLY
VENUE:Project Arts Centre
DATE:15th March
TIME:18.00
ADMISSION: FREE
(Booking essential - Email: bookconversation@gaytheatre.ie) Four times Tony Award Winner, Emmy Award Winner, Double Guggenheim Fellowship, Vice President of the US Council of Dramatists Guild and playwright Terrence McNally in conversation with double IFTA Award Winner Mark O'Halloran.
SINGING OUT FIVE
VENUE: Cobalt Cafe
DATE:16th & 17th May
TIME: 23.00
ADMISSION:€14.00 / €12.00
What is it about gays and musical theatre?. Festival Director Brian Merriman returns in the fifth is a series of gay interpretations of music, with special Guests Mark Power and Thomas Creighton as they lift the veil and finally answer what lies 'over the rainbow' in a late night show of music, comedy and theatre.
A STINT IN YOUR SPOTLIGHT
VENUE: The George, George's Street
DATE:18th May
TIME: 15.00
ADMISSION: FREE!
Ex-boybander Jack is now a 28 year old semi-recluse with a drug habit and a failed marriage. When he's approached by three drama students who want stage a play about his life, he's forced to face a whole heap of home truths - including his enduring love for premiership footballer Danny.
GALA CELEBRATION & AWARDS
VENUE: The Button Factory
DATE: 18th May
TIME:19.30
ADMISSION: €14
Join the stars of this year's festival for two hours of music, dance, comedy and drama, plus the announcement of six major awards for excellence. Dress to impress and celebrate this special evening. Wrap Party to follow!
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