Arts News - Galway nominees for theatre awards

GALWAY has featured strongly in the nominations for this year's Irish Times Irish Theatre awards, announced on Saturday. The award winners will not be made known until the presentation ceremony in the Great Hall at IMMA (the Irish Museum of Modern Art) at Kilmainham, Dublin on February 26. Druid Artistic Director Garry Hynes is associated with two of the productions from which actors have been nominated. Her long-standing colleague and Druid Theatre co-founder Marie Mullen is nominated for Best Actress for her role as Woman in Testament. This single-hander by Colm Tóibín was performed as part of the 2011 Dublin Theatre Festival, and the role played by Mullen, though named simply as Woman, was that of the Virgin Mary in the late years of her life near Ephesus. She gave a gripping performance in a play that might once have been thought controversial, but merely got rave reviews. Garry Hynes directed for Landmark Productions and the Dublin Theatre Festival. She also directed John B Keane's Big Maggie, this time for Druid, and the production has given rise to two nominations. One is also a Best Actress ticket, for Aisling O'Sullivan in the name part. Playing a much younger Maggie than the traditional ageing matriarch, O'Sullivan completely dominated the stage with a gravelly ultra-Kerry accent and a commanding, sensual presence. Another member of the Big Maggie cast, veteran actor John Olohan, has been nominated in the Best Supporting Actor category for his performance as Byrne, the monumental sculptor who has an eye for Maggie. The other Galway show to feature in the award nominations is Enda Walsh's  Misterman, produced by Landmark Productions for Galway Arts Festival. From Misterman, Cillian Murphy is nominated for Best Actor in another singlehander. It uses tape recorders to break through the limitations of a solo performance, and played to full houses at the 2011 Galway Arts Festival and later New York. The play is also nominated for Best Production, and Jamie Vartan is nominated for Best Set Design. Exciting concert for Athenry Music School WHAT is described as 'an incredibly exciting concert' will take place this Friday, January 20 at 8pm in the Raheen Woods Hotel, Athenry. The event will involve Athenry Youth Orchestra (who are going to perform in the NCH on February 4) St Patrick's Brass Band, Athenry Junior Orchestra and Trio Elatha which includes internationally reknowned violinist/fiddler Zoe Conway, classical cellist Ailbhe McDonagh and classical guitarist and composer Brendan Walshe. Each of these ensembles will present individually and the finale of the concert is a world premiere of a specially commissioned work Alarm Hammer for orchestra, brass band and the trio composed by Brendan Walshe. Tickets are €10, €7 and €5 for adult, concession and child respectively. The concert is a fundraising event for the Athenry Music School Orchestra programme. AMS is a not for profit community school with 24 in faculty and a student body of nearly 400.   Advance warning on The Scottish Play SUPERSTITIOUS theatregoers be warned. The Scottish Play is on its way to Galway! Yes, Macbeth, known to generations of actors as The Scottish Play because it is supposed to be unlucky to pronounce its name, will be presented in Galway in March. Second Age, the specialist Shakespeare company, will tour a new production from next month, fetching up in the Town Hall Theatre from March 13 to 15.   Ballinahinch on TG4 THEâ€Ë†new TG4 series Cé a chonaigh i mo Theach-sa (Who lived in my house) features Ballinahinch House in Connemara on Thursday Jan 26 at 10 pm. Presenter is Manchan Magan.