An Abbey Theatre production

The Quare Fellow


24 November - 27 January 2024

Written by Brendan Behan

Directed by Tom Creed

Booking Information


Dates: 24 November  – 27 January 2024
On the Abbey stage 

Times: Mon – Sat 7.30pm
Sat matinees 2pm
Wed matinees on 13 and 20 Dec, 3 and 17 Jan, 2pm
Thurs matinee on 28 Dec, 2pm

Tickets:  €15 – €45 

Running time: Approx. 2 hours, plus a 20-minute interval

Content advice: Please see here if you would like information on the themes in this production

Sign language interpreted performance: Wednesday 17 January, 2:00pm

Sign language interpreted performance: Friday 19 January, 7:30pm

Captioned performance: Saturday 20 January, 2:00pm

Audio-described performance: Saturday 20 January, 2:00pm

Touch Tour of Stage and Set: Saturday 20 January, 12:15pm

Final Week Of Performances - Don't Miss Out On This Irish Classic!

★★★★ The Irish Times ★★★★ Irish Examiner ★★★★ Financial Times

 

To celebrate a century since Brendan Behan’s birth, the Abbey Theatre is proud to present a modern take on The Quare Fellow, directed by Tom Creed. 

To the tune of ‘The Auld Triangle’, the play centres on the arrival of a condemned murderer to Mountjoy Prison, whose diverse inhabitants offer a darkly comic mirror to life outside its walls. In this exciting new production, the traditionally all-male cast will be played exclusively by female and non-binary actors. 

Having premiered at the Pike Theatre in 1954 under the direction of Alan Simpson, this modern classic was first produced at the Abbey in 1956 and had its most recent production at the National Theatre in 1984. 

This new production offers a new generation an opportunity to discover Behan’s unique combination of riotous comedy and deep humanity, brought to life by an exciting collection of the country’s leading theatre makers, designers and performers.  

The cast of 15 brilliant performers, all female and non-binary actors, will perform all of the male characters, continuing Behan’s legacy of subversion, of surprising and confronting audiences, while providing an unforgettable evening of entertainment.

#TheQuareFellow

Show Trailer 

Teaser 

Notes on Survival: Programme Note by Director Tom Creed 

“In this production, it draws attention to the different kinds of masculinities that the characters in the play perform for each other, in order to maintain their status in a prison hierarchy in which everyone, staff and inmates alike, is institutionalised.”

To read the full programme note for The Quare Fellow from Director Tom Creed, click here.

Brendan Behan and the North Inner City: Programme Note by Historian Donal Fallon 

“From a young age Behan loved the community around him on Russell Street, in the shadow of Croke Park. The humour of its people and the folklore of the locality is found throughout his output.”

To read the full programme note for The Quare Fellow from Historian Donal Fallon, click here.

The Old Triangle: Excerpt by Radie Peat (Lankum) 

One of the most uniquely recognisable, and critically and popularly lauded, voices in Irish music, Radie Peat – of multi-award winning Lankum and ØXN – collaborates with the Abbey Theatre on its production of Brendan Behan’s The Quare Fellow, lending her vocals to the lyrics of ‘The Old Triangle’, which ring out hauntingly throughout the performance.

Click here to read more about the history of ‘The Old Triangle’ and hear an excerpt from the song.

Reviews

★★★★
‘A hugely enjoyable romp that packs sombre reflection in with profane laughter’
The Irish Times

★★★★
‘Skilfully executed’
Financial Times

★★★★
‘Stylish, moving and memorable’
Irish Examiner


‘Tom Creed’s inspired production reminds us of what a great writer Behan was... A fine piece of work: high entertainment laced with just the right amount of weight’
Irish Independent


‘Remarkable performances’
Sunday Independent

Audio Described Programme Notes 

Download the audio-described programme notes here, or listen to them below.

 

Production Images 

Images: Ste Murray

Meet the Cast 

Artwork by Shane Cluskey 

 

To see the full company working on the show, click here.

Credits

  • Writer: Brendan Behan
  • Director: Tom Creed
  • Set Designer: Paul O’Mahony  
  • Costume Designer: Catherine Fay  
  • Lighting Designer: Stephen Dodd
  • Sound Designer & Composer: Mel Mercier 
  • Movement Director: Sue Mythen
  • Hair and Makeup: Val Sherlock
  • Voice Director: Andrea Ainsworth
  • Assistant Director: John King
  • Assistant Sound Designer: Aidah Sama
  • Casting Director: Sarah Jones  
  • Illustration: Shane Cluskey
  • Production Photography: Ste Murray
  • Warder Regan: Clare Barrett
  • Dunlavin: Barbara Brennan
  • Warder Donelly: Amy Conroy
  • Mickser and Hangman: Wren Dennehy
  • Prisoner E and Jenkinson: Emer Dineen
  • Prisoner B: Eva-Jane Gaffney
  • Scholara and Warder 2: Taylor McClaine
  • Neighbour: Gina Moxley
  • Healey and Chief Warder: Marion O'Dwyer
  • The Other Fellow, Cook and English Voice: Aisling O'Mara
  • Lifer and Governor: Rebecca O'Mara
  • Prisoner C: Chloe O'Reilly
  • Shaybo and Warder Crimmin: Ebby O'Toole-Acheampong
  • Prisoner D: Camille Lucy Ross
  • Prisoner A: Kate Stanley Brennan
  • Voice of Prisoner in Solitary: Radie Peat
  • Understudy: Julie Maguire


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