The Drama League of Ireland's latest newsletter is packed with news on the Athlone All-Ireland Festival and on Dundalk Drama International. Also, there is an interesting interview with Andy Doyle, director of Enniscorthy's Esso Award-winning Moonshine by Jim Nolan.
Enniscorthy Drama Group seems to be blessed with directorial talent. From having just one director in its formative years, it now has up to five. They try out their talents on non-competitive presentations, then move to directing for the One Act circuit. Finally, they take on a full-length play. During the course of his interview with Karen Carleton, Doyle mentions enthusiasm, commitment and passion. It is apparent that Enniscorthy gets results because its members are dedicated. Absence from rehearsals is not a problem. No "Thursday night a friend sets my hair" on Slaneyside! Doyle believes a director must interpret a play, decide on its ultimate shape and pace, but "within that context the actor must have freedom to express himself . . . It is beyond my comprehension how a director can block a play before rehearsals. Where is the actor's contribution? Where is the creative effort? If it lacks passion, heart, guts, it is nothing."
Enniscorthy faces with pragmatism the old question of whether, on the festival circuit, a group should accede to an adjudicator's suggestion for change. Andy Doyle points out that after five months working on a production, they believe in what they are doing and in what, as a unit, they are attempting to achieve, so there is little they would change at the behest of an adjudicator. The One Act Festivals for 1977 begin in Naas, from October 23rd to 25th. There will be action in 27 venues before the National Finals at the Belltable Arts Centre, Limerick, from December 5th to 7th. Michael Vernon will adjudicate the finals. Feile Luimni will host the event, sponsored by AIB Bank. The competition will be conducted under the auspices of the Drama Federation of Ireland, a combined ADCI/DLI grouping. West/North West Radio has considerable drama programming. There, over the past seven years, 120 plays have been produced. Some 53 of these were written specially for their drama competition. Geraldine Lavin, assisted by Padraic Walsh, Austin O'Callaghan and Andy Matthews steered the 1997 broadcasts over a number of weeks before the winners were announced by adjudicator, Myles Purcell. Purcell is a former All-Ireland Best Actor Award-winner and former chairman of the Association of Drama Adjudicators. Award winners, announced in this column last month, were selected from 20 productions.
Winners of half-scholarships at the DLI Summer School in Maynooth are: Seamus McNabb, St Dympna's Drama Society (Ulster), Patricia McMahon, Lough Gill Drama Society (Connaught) and Marie Carpenter, Skerries Little Theatre (Leinster). Magpie Theatre Company's production of Brian Friel's Lovers was so successful that its run at the New Orleans Cafe, Dublin was extended by six days.
