www.giaf.ie 2: GALWAY INTERNATIONAL ARTS FESTIVAL | 14 –27 July 2014 | Welcome to Galway International Arts Festival On behalf of Galway International Arts Festival we would like to welcome you to this year’s Festival. We have a new name and a new look and we hope you like both. The Festival has grown significantly over the last number ‘Enda’s plays take a lot of years and we felt it an appropriate time to introduce the name change and new design given our growing international reputation and the changing nature of what we do. We are very honoured to have so many wonderful out of you – but I love it’ artists, writers, performers and creative people join us from across the globe where once again new productions and exhibitions are at the heart of the Festival. Cillian Murphy on working with Enda Walsh We are very excited about this year’s Festival productions and co–productions Ballyturk , Chapatti and Room 303 and are thrilled to be working with so many By Charlie McBride Festival friends on these. It is wonderful to think that some of these projects are touring internationally and will carry the flag to both the UK and USA for Galway. THREE YEARS after he delivered an “We were ‘tecching’ Misterman one Cillian was still at university when he This builds on the continuing touring success of last year’s acting tour–de–force in Enda Walsh’s day in New York,” Enda recalls “and was cast in Corcadorca’s staging of Disco Festival co–productions The Rite of Spring , Petrushka , Misterman and 18 years after his Cillian was in the middle of a scene Pigs in the autumn of 1996. The play had and riverrun . electrifying debut in Walsh’s Disco Pigs , where, as the character Thomas McGill, an explosive impact; originally scheduled We are delighted to have expanded the Absolut Visual Cillian Murphy once again teams up with he was arguing with his mother whose to run for three weeks, it ended up Arts Programme this year to several new locations his old compañero for a production that voice was on this tape machine. So touring for two years throughout Europe, including a wonderful new city centre location for the will, without doubt, be a highlight of the Cillian was ranting away and at the Canada, and Australia and it firmly Absolut Festival Gallery. In addition, we are happy to be theatrical year. same time the production manager was launched the careers of both men (as able to take the visual arts programme outdoors with Ballyturk , co–produced by Landmark kneeling down right beside him quietly well as that of Murphy’s co–star, Eileen the fantastic installation RedBall Galway . Productions and Galway International fixing a table and it just struck me as Walsh). Our discussions strand First Thought has expanded Arts Festival, is written and directed a great image that could be in a play. In the years since, Enda has written again while our Festival Big Top programme continues by Walsh and features a cast of Cillian “You have these two people right a string of acclaimed plays such as to grow in popularity with our A Night at the Proms with Murphy, Mikel Murfi, and Stephen Rea. beside each other with completely Bedbound, Walworth Farce, The Small the RTÉ Concert Orchestra returning following the success After premiering at the Galway different energies, like two universes Things , and New Electric Ballroom and his of last year’s introductory concert. International Arts Festival this month smacking up against each other. The work has been performed all over the The Street Spectacle programme builds on the success (where its run quickly sold out), the physicalness of that, those two energies world. He recently won a Tony Award for of last year using the backdrop of the city to hopefully production will travel to the Olympia colliding in a small space, really made an writing the book of the Broadway deliver similar memorable performances. Theatre in Dublin (7 to 23 August ), impression on me.” musical, Once . Finally, we would like to take this opportunity to thank Cork Opera House (26 to 30 August ), “I’m attracted to people who have a Cillian’s career has followed a similarly all our funders, sponsors and friends for their support and and the National Theatre in London real theatrical instinct and Cillian is a starry trajectory; leading stage roles in also wish the city well as it bids to be European Capital ( 11 September to 11 October). completely instinctual actor,” Enda says. prestige productions of Synge, Chekhov, of Culture 2020. Enda Walsh wrote Ballyturk with its “He makes everything seem logical so O’Casey, and Shakespeare and a series Hope you enjoy the Festival! three actors specifically in mind and there’s that and even where there’s an of impressive screen credits, including Cillian was one of the initial sources inarticulacy in the characters he plays 28 Days Later, Inception, The Wind That John Crumlish, CEO and Paul Fahy, Artistic Director of inspiration for the play. he can still find a real poetry in them.” Shakes The Barley, Batman Begins, WWW.GIAF.IE / +353 91 566 577 one city, two weeks: a creative collision at the edge of Europe :3 The Dark Knight , and The Dark Knight been straight into the work and the thing of it, and I love live performance – Ballyturk , preferring that the audience together,” Cillian admits. “We might Rises . He has just finished shooting the rehearsals are always energetic and full I love film and TV but there is discover it for themselves when they do it but Enda’s just so busy and I’m second series of hit BBC series Peaky of ideas, there is no ego or anything something special about live go see it, though the play does largely reasonably busy so it’s about the time Blinders . Amid all their many accolades like that, it’s a brilliant groove to be in.” performance and I’ll never lose the focus on the friendship between the factor really. With our collaborations and awards, Murphy and Walsh have When we meet, Cillian is still love of it.” characters played by Cillian Murphy there can be a long gap or a short gap, remained good friends and they live sporting his Thomas Shelby haircut I ask him would he like to be able to and Mikel Murfi. there was a long, long, gap between near each other in London. from Peaky Blinders , the shoot of which do more theatre. Murfi, who has directed or acted in Disco Pigs and Misterman and a much “I just really like his plays,” Cillian finished just two days before he began “I’ll always go back to theatre,” he several Enda Walsh plays, offered this shorter one between Misterman and says of the writer. “I always try to rehearsals for Ballyturk . replies. “The gap before Misterman is sliver of insight; “In terms of its energy, Ballyturk . But we have talked about it.” follow good writing, regardless of the “Ideally you shouldn’t crash two jobs the longest I’ve been away, that was it reminds me of The Walworth Farce , Getting back to Ballyturk , Cillian medium. I was very lucky when I was into each other but if you are going to about five or six years and that was too we ran 38 minutes of it there in concludes by revealing how he is still a kid really that he gave me my do it, it might as well be into something long for me. It’s now been three years rehearsal the other day and after it looking forward to taking the play to first ever professional role, in Disco Pigs , like this,” he says, wryly. “It’s good to be since we did Misterman in Galway and we were all totally drenched in sweat. his native Cork. and we’ve managed to tolerate each back in the world of theatre. I just love if I can keep doing it at that sort of rate It’s this mad monstrous machine of “It’s my first time back on the Cork other ever since then! From a purely the rehearsal room. It’s been three I’d be quite happy. a play that just devours you!” stage since Disco Pigs which is going selfish point of view you want to be in years since Misterman and I’d forgotten “It takes a lot out of you – Enda’s Aside from his brilliant writing for on 20 years ago now,” he says. “It’ll be the best plays and work with the best how wonderful it was to be just plays certainly take a lot out of you! – the stage, Enda has also shown himself great to be back, Mary Hicks is doing writers and Enda happens to be that.” ‘making stuff’. but I love it and it’s necessary for me as to be a fine screenwriter, perhaps most a brilliant job there at the Cork Opera Noting their latest reunion, he says: “As Enda says you start off with this a performer to go and do it. You get to notably with the Bobby Sands’ film House and I’m delighted we’re bringing “The reason people re–collaborate is ‘document’, this script with all these act with your body which you don’t get Hunger . Is there any likelihood of Walsh the show there.” because there’s a sense of trust. You words on it then four weeks later by to do in film or television and I’d and Murphy teaming up on the big can go straight to the work, there is some miracle people are sitting in a forgotten the joy of doing that and screen (admittedly Cillian did reprise none of that finding out what makes dark space watching you do it and it’s the liberation of doing that.” his Disco Pigs role in the 2001 film people tick.