Drama group sets sights on festival hat-trick

SLIABH Aughty Drama Group will be going for the hat-trick this week having just been awarded first place for their production of Michael Carey’s Thy Will Be Done in the confined section at the Claremorris Drama Festival.

SLIABH Aughty Drama Group will be going for the hat-trick this week having just been awarded first place for their production of Michael Carey’s Thy Will Be Done in the confined section at the Claremorris Drama Festival.
This follows their success at the Mountmellick Drama Festival, where the dramatic society also scooped first place in the confined section. The Claremorris judges also honoured director/producer John Allen by naming him best producer, while Noel Hogan received the best actor accolade.
“We are on a high. It’s looking good to get the All-Ireland. We would want three but we might get there with two firsts and a second. The cast and crew are delighted. There is a bit of shock as well. When we put it on in Mountshannon, the feedback was that it was one of the best shows we’d put on but we weren’t expecting this level of success. It is going down great with the audience. It is very serious in parts but there is a lot of humour in it as well,” John said.
Regarding their two successes, John said, “Two out of two ain’t bad”. He said the group is “hopeful” that their third performance, which took place in Claregalway last Friday, may result in further success when the results are announced later this week. They are also awaiting the results from the South Wicklow Drama Festival, which they performed at in Carnew on Sunday.
According to John, their double win is not a bad start but as they prepare to play to their home crowd in Scariff this Thursday, as part of the Clare Drama Festival, he said it can “often be the hardest audience to perform for”.
“We’ve two in-a-row now, so we would be quietly confident but you never know,” he said.
Thy Will Be Done will be performing on Thursday at Scariff Community College at 8.30pm as part of the Clare Drama Festival.