Cork Opera House and UCC announce the appointment of the inaugural Theatre Artist in Residence

3 Aug 2018

Cork Opera House and UCC are delighted to announce that Cork playwright and actor John McCarthy has been selected as the inaugural Theatre Artist in Residence.

The Theatre Artist in Residence is part of the partnership between Cork Opera House and UCC that was put in place earlier this year. The new relationship between the two Cork institutions formalised their already close relationship. This partnership established Cork Opera House as a Learning Theatre and provides UCC with the opportunity to engage in the professional performing arts sector. These two organisations will work together to educate and inspire the next generation of arts managers, creative practitioners and professionals. A key feature of the new partnership is the appointment of a Theatre Artist in Residence.

John McCarthy will work with both institutions to develop his capacity as a Theatre Artist. He will contribute to teaching on the new MA in Theatre and Performative Practices within the School of Music and Theatre in UCC. He will work closely with the senior team at Cork Opera House to identify and develop initiatives that will enable his professional development, having access to facilities, artists and staff alike. 

John has recently completed work facilitated by an Arts Council Theatre Bursary for playwriting and was a mentor on the Young Playwrights Programme 2018. Finished Once, and Ready, directed by Caitriona McLaughlin, was performed in Cork (CIT School of Music) and Dublin (Irish Theatre Institute) in development (Arts Council project funding).

Speaking about his appointment, John McCarthy said, ‘This year-long residency is an incredible opportunity to showcase my work, to be drawn in new directions by the Opera House & UCC and to share, interrogate and rigorously underpin my theatre-making practice.’ 

CEO of Cork Opera House, Eibhlín Gleeson said ‘I am thrilled that John McCarthy will join us as our inaugural Theatre Artist in Residence. John is a very exciting Cork based artist, who has already established himself as an innovator and an exceptionally bright talent in the theatre world. We hope that this opportunity will offer John every opportunity to develop his practice and support his work. I look forward to seeing what we can achieve together over the course of the year.’

Professor of Creative Practice at UCC, Jools Gilson added ‘we are very excited to welcome John McCarthy as the inaugural Theatre Artist in Residence to UCC and Cork Opera House. John is an artist of exceptional calibre, who understands theatre as an intelligence and way of engaging with the world, as well as a product. His presence at UCC will empower students to think and make theatre in new ways, and elaborate further the collaboration between ourselves and Cork Opera House. We very much look forward to his presence in our corridors and studios.’

For more on this story contact:

Professor Jools Gilson

Contact Email : jgilson@ucc.ie

Contact Number : +353 21 4904535