Fierce, funny and immediate, ADRIFT is a contemporary family drama by one of Ireland’s most acclaimed contemporary playwrights.
Presented by Nomad Theatre Network, in association with Once Off Productions
Directed by Marc Atkinson Borrull
‘Ireland is full’?
Of what exactly?
A birthday celebration turns febrile when a rural Irish family address their sister’s relationship with a refugee. Fierce, funny and immediate, ADRIFT is a contemporary family drama exploring the psychology of fear and Ireland’s complex relationship with emigration.
“Deirdre Kinahan is one of Ireland’s major contemporary playwrights. She writes about issues that affect modern Ireland as well as the issues that have clouded its past. She is a masterful, poetic writer, with a way with a phrase that just dazzles.” The Slotkin Letter, Canada, Review.
Previous loved plays include OUTRAGE, The Saviour, An Old Song Half Forgotten, TEMPESTA, The Unmanageable Sisters, Rathmines Road, Moment, Halcyon Days.
‘You can’t even have the conversation!’
Well, what better place than theatre? In ADRIFT, Kinahan explores the ironic rise of Irish anti-immigrant sentiment with her celebrated humour and humanity, taking the arguments that seem to set fire to hearts and buildings right into the Irish kitchen.
Joined by a stellar cast and acclaimed Director Marc Atkinson Borrull (An Ideal Husband, Gate Theatre; Three Sisters, Dublin Theatre Festival; Tempesta also by Deirdre Kinahan, Cork Midsummer & Glassmask Theatre) ADRIFT promises a wonderfully honest, empathetic and unsettling night at the Theatre.
Cast
Bríd Ní Neachtain – (Banshee of Inisheerin & Ros Na Rún)
John Olohan – (An Cailin Cuin, That They May Face The Rising Sun)
Catherine Byrne – (That they may face the rising sun, Love/Hate, The Tudors)
Darragh Feehely – (The Body Is Water, Groundless)
Janet Moran – (The Dry, The Last Rifleman, Breakfast On Pluto)
Creative Team
Writer: Deirdre Kinahan
Director: Marc Atkinson Borrull
Set & Lighting Designer: Zia Bergin-Holly
Costume Designer: Valentina Gambardella
NOMAD: ‘Nomad is a network of seven venues established in 2006 to work collaboratively with artists to produce and tour work of a high artistic standard for our audiences. In 2024, we chose to commission ‘Adrift’ by Deirdre Kinahan because we have huge regard for this playwright, and because we believe that this is work our audience deserves to see…. urgent, provocative work that will challenge us as an audience to have that important conversation about who we are as a people and as a nation. As a network, we are committed to bringing the best of work to our audiences. With a renowned playwright, a stellar cast and design team, this is as good as it gets!’
Produced by the Nomad Network and Once Off Productions, Adrift embarks on a national tour bringing this timely and resonant Irish story to audiences across Ireland.
Adrift is “Supported by the Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon Touring of Work Scheme”.
