BREAKING BOUNDERIES
Introduction
In this book are seven plays, original works, which had their premieres at the Focus Theatre, and which grew out of the history, the artistic aims, and the personalities of the Focus Theatre. There have been many others, too many to cram into an anthology intended as an introduction to the styles and artistic voices that have been and continue to be found in this theatre company, voices such as Mary Elizabeth Burke-Kennedy, Declan Burke- Kennedy, Michael Harding, Elizabeth Moynihan, Brian McAvera, Mike Poblete, and Aiden Harney. Let me explain.
In 1963 the 23-year-old Deirdre O’Connell, child of Irish immigrants to New York City in the United States, became an immigrant herself when she moved to Dublin, determined to bring the ‘new’ theatre of Konstantin Stanislavski to the Irish theatre. She had been a Wunderkind at the Actors’ Studio, which had been co-founded and run by the late Lee Strasberg, who was perhaps the most famous acolyte of Stanislavski in America. Admitted when she was eighteen, Deirdre made her mark very early with her superb acting and singing talents, and within a couple of years was teaching at the studio. From all accounts Deirdre had a bright future ahead of her as an actress, as talented as any of the other young actors making their way to the Studio (as it came to be called) in the late 1950s and 1960s, including Julie Harris, James Dean, Geraldine Page, Rod Steiger, Ben Gazzara, Rip Torn, Lois Wilson, Paul Newman, Dennis Hopper, Jo Van Fleet, Martin Sheen, ... Read more....
In this book are seven plays, original works, which had their premieres at the Focus Theatre, and which grew out of the history, the artistic aims, and the personalities of the Focus Theatre. There have been many others, too many to cram into an anthology intended as an introduction to the styles and artistic voices that have been and continue to be found in this theatre company, voices such as Mary Elizabeth Burke-Kennedy, Declan Burke- Kennedy, Michael Harding, Elizabeth Moynihan, Brian McAvera, Mike Poblete, and Aiden Harney. Let me explain.
In 1963 the 23-year-old Deirdre O’Connell, child of Irish immigrants to New York City in the United States, became an immigrant herself when she moved to Dublin, determined to bring the ‘new’ theatre of Konstantin Stanislavski to the Irish theatre. She had been a Wunderkind at the Actors’ Studio, which had been co-founded and run by the late Lee Strasberg, who was perhaps the most famous acolyte of Stanislavski in America. Admitted when she was eighteen, Deirdre made her mark very early with her superb acting and singing talents, and within a couple of years was teaching at the studio. From all accounts Deirdre had a bright future ahead of her as an actress, as talented as any of the other young actors making their way to the Studio (as it came to be called) in the late 1950s and 1960s, including Julie Harris, James Dean, Geraldine Page, Rod Steiger, Ben Gazzara, Rip Torn, Lois Wilson, Paul Newman, Dennis Hopper, Jo Van Fleet, Martin Sheen, ... Read more....
Stanislavski in Ireland
In 1963 Deirdre O'Connell, an Irish-American actress all of twenty-three years old, came to Dublin to begin a school (the Stanislavski Studio) and acting company (Focus Theatre) based on the principals of Konstantin Stanislavski, whose theories about acting had created a revolution in the theatre world. In 2013 her company, in spite of financial hardships which had sundered many other groups,celebrated its fiftieth anniversary. This book, co-edited by Brian McAvera and Steve Burch, combines historical narrative with interviews with many of the principle players, designers, and directors, and looks at the Deirdre years (1963-2001) and the subsequent life under new artistic director Joe Devlin.
Read the Lineage chapter |
InterviewTelevision interview at the publisher's book launch in Dublin, Ireland, Oct 1, 2013.
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