Cornmarket's production Streetcar was the hottest ticket at the Dublin Fringe Festival of 1996, so when the company's new show, Baby Jane, opened in the Project @ the mint on Tuesday, you may be quite sure all invitations had been accepted. Cornmarket specialises in commedia dell' arte productions of what Annie Ryan, the artistic director, terms, "camp American classics" and this time it was the turn of the movie Whatever Happened To Baby Jane?
Annie herself took the Joan Crawford role while Cindy Cummings, the actor and choreographer, took to Bette Davis's part with almost uncanny aplomb. Meanwhile, that much loved renaissance man, Pat Kinnevane, played everybody else to great effect. Pat will be back at the Project in May but for a change, he won't be charming the crowds from the stage - he will be taking the playwright's role with his first play, The Nun's Wood, which will be directed by Jim Culleton of Fishamble theatre company.
Michael West was there wearing two hats, firstly to support his partner, Annie Ryan, and also as director of the film played during the play. Oh, and he's also working on a script for a play himself.
Another young director there was Paul Duane, who had just heard from writer Donald Clarke that their accomplished short, My Dinner With Oswald, had won an award at a film festival in Manchester. Choreographer David Bolger was looking very tanned but was positive that he is now back at work - he's delighted to be doing a project with Agnes Bernelle on a forthcoming Brecht piece. Artist Finola Jones came along with her friend Mary Fitzgerald and was chatting about her exhibition in Jerome O Drisceoil's Green On Red Gallery which opens next week.
Bedrock's Jimmy Fay was just back from opening Alex John- ston's new play, Deep Space, at the Adelaide Theatre Festival, while Loose Canon theatre company's Willy White and Gilly Clarke (moonlighting from her job in the Abbey) were looking forward to opening their production of Coriolanus, which will be directed by Jason Byrne at the Project. Other first-nighters included the Fringe Festival director, Ali Curran, accompanied by actor Felim Drew who had just finished his run in The Wake at the Abbey; actor Tony Flynn who was the star of Cornmarket's Streetcar; poet Micheal O Siadhail and his wife Brid, and actor Donal O'Kelly.