Theatre Director Andrew Flynn has left a trail of beautiful work behind him.
From Martin McDonagh and Pat McCabe, to Frank O'Connor and Sean O'Casey, Andrew has directed work by some of the best names in Irish theatre and beyond. His fiercely praised adaptation of Donal Ryan's 2018 novel, From A Low And Quiet Sea, delivered a very affecting narrative, the kind that sticks around to haunt you for weeks to come. I originally saw it as part of last year's arts festival in 90-seater Nun's Island Theatre.
I couldn't imagine a better venue, tension from the stage spilling over until it was almost overwhelming (isn't a dramatic play doing its job when you realise your teeth have been clenched for over an hour? ) However, Andrew points out that the show's later performance in the Town Hall was just as good - maybe even better. "We weren't sure if it would work, but the larger venue gave the audience more room to relax and see the humour in the piece as well."
What is it like adapting a short story or novel for the stage? "It's a really difficult thing to do. That particular piece (From A Low And Quiet Sea ) was so well written - it was almost written as three short stories. So we just went about distilling them down, but that was actually the hardest part, because you're cutting stuff that's beautiful and brilliant," says Andrew.
Artistic Director of Decadent Theatre and Director of Galway Youth Theatre, Andrew has two projects running as part of the Galway Arts Festival this year - Every Brilliant Thing, a play described as 'heart-wrenching and hilarious' by The Guardian, and Meat and Salt, a fairytale based on King Lear written by Marina Carr. Andrew says: "Marina had to work collaboratively with the actors to develop the story as a play script. It's a lovely intergenerational production with live music and songs throughout."
And Every Brilliant Thing? "It's a fantastic play by Duncan Macmillan. When the character was small, her mother suffered with bad mental health, so to help her mother, she began writing a list of every brilliant thing. So the list began with things like ice cream, roller-coasters, things with stripes, being allowed to stay up late. Then, over the course of her life, the list is something she keeps adding to - as a teenager, when she's lonely, when she's in love, and so on. It's a magical piece of theatre."
Andrew doesn't want to give too much away, but there's also an interactive side to the play. Outside of the theatre too, there is a way for people to get involved. "We're actually trying to create a real list that we'd like everyone and anyone to contribute to. We're going to ask audiences to give us 10 things personal to them, that they love about the world. We're hoping to get as big a list as we can," says Andrew.
Any particular projects Andrew has in mind for the future? "We adapted another Donal Ryan novel, The Thing About December, in 2019. I'd love to bring that back again. We also took about five short stories from Kevin Barry's book, There Are Little Kingdoms, and put on a production in the Town Hall. It worked really well because the stories are all set in this one little town. It was very funny, I hope that will have a life again too."
If you want to contribute your brilliant things to Andrew's list, email them to [email protected]
Tickets for both shows available from giaf.ie
