GUEST OF THE NATION

By Frank O'Connor

An Everyman Palace Production
 

Directed by Patrick Talbot
Designed by Cliff Dolliver,
Costume Design by Sinead Cuthbert,
Lighting Design by Paul Denby
Sound Design by Cormac O’Connor.

Cast: Denis Conway

The Everyman Palace Theatre held the first ever theatrical staging of Guests Of The Nation, the classic War Of Independence story as part of the 2007 Cork Midsummer Festival. The production was directed by Patrick Talbot and performed by Irish Times/ESB theatre awards winner Denis Conway.

At a time when the gun seems to be finally removed from Irish politics, Frank O’ Connor’s iconic story recalls a period of violent self determination, on both personal and national levels. It is a compelling account of ordinary humanity under extraordinary stress.

Guests of The Nation was published in 1931 in Frank O’Connor’s first collection of short stories. Born in Cork in 1903, O’ Connor has produced a body of work which is in league with that of James Joyce, JM Synge and George Bernard Shaw in the canon of 20th century Irish literature.

 

"…This production’s fidelity to O Connor’s text also confirms just how brilliant and timeless a writer he was, and how his handling of Irish republican violence has never yet been battered"  Irish Examiner

"accomplished…… perfectly poised……"  Irish Independent

"Simplicity and sincerity are the touchstones of Denis Conway’s rendering of Guests of the Nation. The text is as austere as any of Frank O Connor’s stories, and Conway’s performance is equally spare and equally elegiac" The Irish Times

"This at once emotional and damning story is brought to dramatic life in a quietly commanding performance by Denis Conway"  Evening Echo