Source Arts Centre presents Star Of The Sea

Award-winning Moonfish Theatre Company, are proud to announce the national tour of Star of the Sea after their global premiere and sold out run at the Galway International Arts Festival 2014. A co-production with An Taibhdhearc, Galway the play runs at The Source Arts Centre on Saturday 17 October after a successful start to its tour run where its has been garnering fantastic reviews at the Dublin Theatre Festival.

Star of the Sea, originally the international best selling novel by Joseph O’Connor, is set against the backdrop of the Irish famine. It was Moonfish Theatre Company with Galway’s An Taibhdhearc that first brought to life this theatrical reimagining of O’Connor’s historical writing. With the original cast the company are delighted to share this great piece of Irish theatre to wider audiences, this Autumn.

Star of the Sea is a sweeping story, set during the Famine, that moves between the wild landscape of Connemara, Co. Galway and the claustrophobic confines of a famine ship – the Star of the Sea. It is this ship that sets sail for the promised land and makes the journey from Ireland to New York, in 1847. Among the passengers are maidservant Mary Duane, the ruined Lord Meredith, and Pius Mulvey, a ruthless murderer. Their lives and fates are more connected than any of them know, creating a gripping story of revenge and forgiveness in this new piece of Irish theatre.

Moonfish Theatre’s production asks a number of timeless questions which not only straddle Irish history but are very pertinent to many other countries including the Ireland of today: what happens when a society is put under immense pressure? What are the ethical choices that face individuals at these moments in time? And what has been the Famine’s lasting effect on Irish culture, in particular, the Irish language and music?

Star of the Sea is a bilingual play that will be performed in Moonfish Theatre’s signature blend of Irish and English and will be accessible to audiences with little or no Irish. The show has been created for an adult audience, and is suitable for anyone over 16 years. This is a not-to-be-missed play, which tours nationwide this September and October.

What author of Star of the Sea, Joseph O’Connor, said about the show:

“…I found their version and their adaptation of it so moving and very emotional…and to hear those words spoken in the Irish language…was really something that I’ll never forget.”