Inspired performance of Eva Gore-Booth's 1916 play 'The Death of Fionavar' features on RTÉ's Century Ireland

3 Feb 2016

Play staged in Cork City Gaol and produced by the School's Dr Maureen O'Connor becomes part of this important archive

The Death of Fionavar was published in late 1916, and is Eva Gore-Booth’s response, through the medium of Irish folklore, to the events of Easter week 1916. The book is dedicated ‘To the Memory of the Dead, The Many who died for Freedom and the One who died for Peace’. The book was illustrated by Eva’s sister Constance who at that time resided in a British jail for her part in the Rising.

In 2015, The Irish Research Council funded a public presentation of the play. The play was directed by Julie Kelleher, artistic director of Cork's Everyman Theatre, and the roles played by both UCC students in Drama and Theatre Studies, as well as professional actors, Mary Lou McCarthy and Niamh Linehan. The event was staged in Cork Gaol, and the initiative was spearheaded by Dr Maureen O'Connor of the School of Engish and Dr Marie Kelly of Drama and Theatre Studies.

The performance can be viewed here