Writings of celebrated female author Mary Lavin are brought to life in a Cork field

THIS week, in a field in the West Cork village of Ballydehob, the powerful and evocative story In the Middle of the Fields by Mary Lavin is being brought to life - literally in the middle of a field.

The acclaimed director Joan Sheehy, along with an award-winning creative team, is bringing this captivating work from one of Ireland’s most outstanding writers to new audiences as part of the West Cork Fit-up Festival.

Joan is not only a theatre director, but also an actress, with many TV and stage credits to her name, including playing the nosy Úna in the sublime film An Cailín Ciún, which won the Grand Prix award at the Berlinale 2022, and was shortlisted for an Oscar as Best International Feature Film.

This ground breaking production of In the Middle of the Fields, which she directs, is in association with Geoff Gould of Blood in the Alley theatre company, and following on from the Ballydehob performances they will tour Dublin’s Richmond Barracks from July 18 to 29 and Mary’s home-place in Bective, Co. Meath from August 1 to 5.

Starring Kathy Rose O’Brien, Mark O’Regan and Seamus Moran, the production is brimming with creative talent. Paul Keogan is in charge of the lighting and set, Colin Dunne oversees movement and direction, and there is original music by composer Tom Lane, performed by virtuoso accordionist Dermot Dunne, and costumes by Olivia Monaghan.

“In the Middle of the Fields is a powerful story and in 2021 I created a re-imagining of it under a large, stretchy tent so that performers and audience experienced a unique atmosphere and encounter it -literally in the middle of a field,” said Joan.

“I wanted to stay true to Lavin’s writing so we present the story word for word in innovative staging with live music.

I am thrilled to be bringing this production to fresh audiences.

On the surface, the story is a simple tale about a young widow who needs the grass cut in her field, and is employing the services of a neighbouring farmer to carry out the task. An exchange between the two in order to sort out the practicalities of the matter results in a highly charged and emotionally unsettling encounter, evoking fear, stirring up memories, recalling passions and examining the nature of grief.

The remarkable storytelling of Mary Lavin is conveyed in such a manner where every nuance of every movement is potent with meaning, making it the perfect story for theatre.

“ I myself am a country woman from Limerick, and this evocative rural story has haunted me for years. Making a great text come alive in front of an audience gives me such creative satisfaction. It takes many elements to work together to tell a story simply. I am so happy we have achieved that in this exquisite production,” says Joan.

Audiences can indeed expect a unique theatrical experience which harks back to the theatre fit-up tradition of the 1940s and ’50s, but with contemporary staging.

Geoff Gould is a former artistic Director of the Everyman Palace Theatre in Cork, and founder and artistic director of the Blood in the Alley theatre company and the West Cork and Blackwater fit-up festivals.

“My dad was involved as an actor with an amateur theatre company The Doneraile Players and also the Marion Players in Mallow. My mum did the make-up and that is how they met. I never had any interest in theatre, even though as children we were involved with the Fermoy Choral Society who, while an amateur group, many of their productions were semi- professional,” recalls Geoff.

“When I worked at the TSB in Mallow, a wonderful English teacher named Mary O’Higgins cajoled me into joining the fantastic local theatre group The Pilgrim Players. 

That was it really, I was hooked and I left the bank in 1997 to run The Everyman Palace. I’m inspired by the actors and writers whose world I am fortunate enough to inhabit.

“The tradition of fit-up has existed since the 19th century. During the summer months, professional actors who had no work in the cities would merge into a company and tour rural areas in Ireland with theatrical performances.

“Many of these travelling theatre companies were families where both parents and other members of the family would have been actors. Some of the best remembered were the Browns, the Mc Dowells, the Carickfords and the Keegans.

“By the 1930s, over 60 touring companies existed in the country. The arrival of RTÉ television in the early ’60s signalled the end of the fit- up tradition, with people preferring to sit at home watching the Late Late Show, rather than face the elements in a tent.

“In 2009, our theatre company, in a joint initiative with the Arts Office of Cork County Council, revived the tradition by bringing professional theatre productions to rural West Cork. Since then we have presented over 70 professional productions and this year’s production is our most ambitious to date. In 2016, we created the Blackwater fit-up festival and that too is growing in popularity.

“I am fortunate enough to have a great team around me that understand the festival and the way it works, and we are also fortunate that Cork County Council are such great supporters, and lucky to have the Arts Council without whose funding we would not survive.”

Writer and granddaughter of Mary Lavin, Kathleen McMahon said: “ I saw the production in Kilmallock, Co. Limerick, in 2021, and thought it was absolutely stunning. What Sheehy managed to do was convey the relevance and modernity of the story, something I’m struck by every time I read it. This is not a period piece, but a timeless encounter that has huge resonance in the light of the ‘Me Too’ movement. The outdoor staging of this production is what makes it really special.

“It’s a story that lives and breathes its surroundings. To see it performed, literally in the middle of the fields, was magical.”

Joan concluded: “I want the audience to have an adventure. An atmospheric and dramatic encounter in magical surroundings. And I want them to enjoy the power of a great, rural story.”

The show opens tonight (Tuesday July 11) and continues until July 15 in a tent besides the Community centre in Ballydehob. Tickets: Eventbrite.