Cairde Arts Festival in Sligo premieres a new play called The Hare on July 3rd and 4th.
Written by Clare Monnelly and Bob Kelly, The Hare is the story of a young rural girl isolated by her friends, living on the edge of her community. Unable to fit in, she is torn between the wildness she understands and the so-called civilised world that rejects her. The play stars Úna Ni Bhriain, with musician and composer Steve Wickham providing the music and a mysterious presence on stage.
Bob Kelly & Una Ní Bhriain discuss The Hare with RTÉ Arena above, while Bob introduces the play below.
At the beginning of the project that would be called The Hare, I had a clear intent; but I knew there were aspects of the storytelling that I simply wasn't wise enough for.
I approached Clare Monnelly about co-writing, something we were both new to. Clare's a great playwright and I felt that her style contrasted strongly with mine; I knew she’d kick me out of my comfort zone.
We agreed the most important thing was to find a unified voice – joint authorship is usually pretty obvious and jarring. We began by simply taking turns to write to each other, exploring freely the themes of the piece. One would write, and the other would allow that to infiltrate their response; I’d use a line of Clare’s as a starting point for something new, Clare would write about a memory triggered by something I’d written.
Gradually we allowed our styles to influence each other, editing each other’s work, offering what we thought the other might use. We did this for a year, without any discussion. Then read it all over, had a chat, and did it again.
Through the pandemic we kept it going, gently nudging each other in different directions, gently allowing ourselves to be nudged. Slowly, the project gathered humans: Eleanor White, a dramaturg I had the good fortune to work with on Breakfast On Pluto, came on board to help us make sense of it all. Tara McGowan of Cairde Festival was an early and strong supporter, and the Abbey supported us with a small research grant. Chakra O’Connor helped us to workshop the early text, and gradually the story – that of a young woman on the edge of Irish society, who can’t find her way back in – emerged.
Soon Steve Wickham of the Waterboys, a great theatre lover who has helped me in the past, offered his musical services, and Úna ní Bhrían, a Cork-based actress I knew from Humans: A Robot Musical, did a rehearsed reading of the piece as part of Cairde 2022. Once Off Productions agreed to produce, we managed to get Arts Council Funding, and here we are in rehearsals, preparing to perform at Cairde, The Pavilion and the Cork Arts Theatre in early July.
That the core action at the heart of this project was a collaboration is not a small thing; it began as one person inviting another to play, and the piece has emerged not from one artist trying to express themselves, but two humans trying to be of use to each other.
It can be easier for theatre to find clarity and direction when everyone’s creativity has to pass through the narrow doorway of one person’s understanding, but the richness of multiple creative voices is often lost.
Now, as we add layers - Jenny Whyte’s design, Michael Cummins’ lighting, Joe Hunt’s sound – to Úna & Steve’s performances, we try to allow each other’s resonances to build in such a way that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts; a story that reflects all of us in different ways, depending on how it's held up to the light.
Cairde Sligo Arts Festival hosts the world premiere of The Hare on July 3rd and 4th, before it travels to Pavilion Theatre, Dublin and Cork Arts Theatre - find out more here.
