Coming Up: Brassneck's Man In The Moon at the Belfast Waterfront

Man in the Moon brings captivating local theatre to Belfast Waterfront’s Studio from Wednesday 19 to Saturday 29 March.  (No performance on Sunday 23 March).

“A brave and stirring piece of theatre… marvellously engaging.”

(Irish Theatre Magazine)

Written by acclaimed playwright Pearse Elliott and starring Ciaran Nolan - one of Ireland’s most gifted young actors - this one man show is brought to you by Belfast's Brassneck Theatre Company, the producers of smash-hit shows The Sweety Bottle and A Night With George.

“Funny, fast-paced and unexpectedly poignant.”  

(Culture NI)

Powerful, poignant and funny, this darkly comedic roller-coaster is the tender story of one man’s resolve to overcome the worst that life has to throw at him.  Sean Doran has recently been fired from his dead-end job. To make matters worse, his girlfriend has left him, taking their child, and the bank has just repossessed his house.

And so, we find Sean alone by the Half Moon Lake, a natural lagoon in the middle of Lenadoon Housing Estate in West Belfast, which although beautiful is known as a place of tragedy.

“Belly laughs, scene after scene.”  

(Irish News)

Over the course of one moonlit evening he takes us on a soul-searching journey through life, love and death, via his past, present and future.  He takes us on a ghost hunt of some of the funny people he has known and hilarious situations he has experienced in his life, whilst trying to fashion sense of his recent run of bad luck.

“Brassneck have pushed their creative boundaries with this play, which although comedic in many senses, deals with deeply serious and relevant subject matters.”

Writer, Pearse Elliott

“I have drawn parallels with the classic movie, ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’. Sean is our George Bailey and throughout Man In The Moon he talks and tries to make sense of his life and all the bad events that have come his way.  Reflecting on the people he has lost to suicide, Sean looks for a way to deal with everything and troop on. This is a story of survival, choices and how we can make a difference in this world.”

Director Tony Devlin

Man in the Moon is recommended for ages 15+ and contains strong language.

Tickets for Man in the Moon are available at www.waterfront.co.uk

Penny Arcade at Outburst Arts Festival

Described by Outburst Queer Arts Festival as a 'one woman queer revolution' and a 'bona fide cultural icon', Penny Arcade had a lot to live up to. As a specially devised show for Outburst, 'The Woman who Knew Too Much' samples work from Arcade's past performances.

After a glowing introduction by Cian Smyth, Arcade bounded into the room through the audience, her personality shining as she danced her way to the stage. She proceeded what was to be a whirlwind introduction to her world. Her crazy existence was replicated on the Black Box stage, her performance chaotic from the outset. Despite the disarray, which made me nervous at times, she settled into what would become a beautiful and charming performance.

She told stories of her own life, interspersed with monologues of people such as her aunt in Soho, a homeless girl suffering from Aids and drag queen Dame Margo Howard Howard. These characters were at times amusing, at times heartbreaking and acted as an illustration of the times Arcade lived through; times of gay liberation, the cultural Renaissance of the sixties and the NEA Culture Wars of the nineties. Associations with cultural icons such as Quentin Crisp and Andy Warhol are discussed in the rundown of her rollercoaster life, as are her dealings with prostitution, rape and drugs.

Peppered with references to Northern Ireland, Arcade grounded herself well to the locality. In particular a reference to veteran gay rights campaigner P.A. Mag Lochlainn who died last week was met with a loud cheer from the audience. She thanked all the barmen and technicans by name which was a lovely touch. 

Penny Arcade was courageous, honest and enlightening, nostalgic and enchanting. She believes that if you tell the truth in Ireland and are funny then it's hard to go wrong. And she was right.

Karen

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