Irish acts continue to make waves at the annual Edinburgh Fringe, with awards today for Fishamble's solo production Underneath featuring Pat Kinevane and Aoife Duffin for her performance in The Corn Exchange's A Girl is a Half Formed Thing.
Both shows have already achieved critical and public acclaim in Ireland and received offers to tour internationally over the coming months and years.
The Scotsman newspaper, which sponsors the Fringe First Awards, said Fishamble's production of Underneath, written and performed by Pat Kinevane, proves that "a solo show can still feel like an epic theatrical spectacle".
It's not the first success for Fishamble at Edinburgh - they became the first Irish company to win two consecutive Fringe Firsts at Edinburgh in 2011 and 2012.
Aoife Duffin, winner of The Stage Award for Acting Excellence in Edinburgh
Kerry actress Aoife Duffin, who is best known for her role as Trisha in Moone Boy, has been wowing audiences with her performance since A Girl is a Half Formed Thing made its debut at the Dublin Theatre Festival last year.
This week The Telegraph newspaper gave her performance a glowing review and said she was "remarkable throughout, taking on this raw, merciless story with a performance of extraordinary courage".
Today the Minister of State at the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Aodhán Ó Ríordáin, congratulated all concerned and said "It is an amazing tribute to the strength and imaginations of our artists that, once again, Irish culture has achieved substantial success in a global context. I know that the competition is fierce at the Edinburgh Festivals and it’s a fantastic result for these performers and their shows."
There's also a strong Irish flavour to the Edinburgh festivals this year. The new director of the Edinburgh International Festival is Dublin man Fergus Linehan. Last week he spoke to RTÉ and praised the Irish arts, saying that we box way above our weight on the international arts scene.
Fergus Linehan, Director Edinburgh International Festival
"I think the Irish work everywhere together," Linehan said. "When you see the likes of Druid Synge and their recent success in New York and the success of Irish arts around the world, you'd be hard pressed to find any festival that doesn't have a regular flow of Irish work going through it. Ireland completely boxes above its weight in terms of arts internationally. It's astonishing."
One of the highlights of this year's festival was the world premiere of a new chamber opera titled The Last Hotel, which was composed by Donnacha Dennehy and written by playwright Enda Walsh.
