'Down in the Valley' is a new movie written and directed by David Jacobson. It stars Ed Norton as a young man who thinks he's a cowboy and Evan Rachel Wood as a young girl who thinks she knows better than her father. Set in California's San Fernando Valley, it's a doomed love story with a difference - a relationship between a rebellious teenager and a delusional man. Will it end in tears? Oh yes.
The Book: Everyman
Philip Roth's new novel 'Everyman' begins with the funeral of its central character and ends with his death. In between we go back through the man's life by way of his medical history - all the illnesses and physical disruptions that attacked him through the years. That's basically the narrative line: it starts with a burial; it ends in a death; and in between, decay. Sounds like the sort of barrel of laughs best avoided. But then this is Philip Roth, never a writer to ignore, especially when he's dealing with death. Ok, it may not be a subject with universal appeal, but it's certainly one with universal application.
The Play: Wallflowering
The Project Theatre in Dublin is currently staging Peta Murray's 'Wallflowering' for the first time in Ireland. It's a Tall Tales Theatre Production and tells the story of Cliff and Peg Small, an Australian couple who don't exactly live the high life. That said, it's a pursuit of happiness tale where Cliff and Peg have their own very limited ideas of what happiness is. Cliff is stuck in his dull but treasured ruts while Peg is flirting dangerously with feminist literature. It stars Helen Norton as Peg and Mal Whyte as Cliff. 'Wallflowering' runs at the Project until 10 June.
The Exhibition: Barrie Cooke
Three years ago we covered a major retrospective at the RHA of the work of the painter Barrie Cooke. Well Barrie is 75 this year and, to mark the occasion, the Kerlin Gallery has just opened an exhibition of new paintings. Many of Cooke's familiar preoccupations are in evidence - everything from water pollution to the female nude. The Barrie Cooke exhibition runs at the Kerlin Gallery until 3 June.
The Performance: Declan de Barra
Singer-songwriter Declan de Barra has just produced his debut album, 'Song of a Thousand Birds' - the songs recorded in various flats, basements and abandoned rooms in Dublin over the course of a year-and-a-half. He will be playing Bewley's Theatre Grafton Street on 15 June and at the Galway Arts Festival in July. He performs for us 'Throw Your Arms Around Me'.
