'World-class Cork acting talent' to feature in Everyman's new season 

The artistic director of The Everyman in Cork, Des Kennedy, has announced the launch of his inaugural season, Everyman Made, which will feature a line-up of Cork-centric performances.

The first Everyman Made season will open in April with Making History by Brian Friel, a period drama about Hugh O’Neill and the events before and after the Battle of Kinsale.

For this performance, Mr Kennedy will be directing several of Cork’s best-known actors, including Denis Conway.

The show will be followed by Bafta-nominated Irish writer Nancy Harris’ family thriller The Beacon, which is set in West Cork and will have its long-awaited Cork premiere.

The Everyman will also partner with Annabelle Comyn, who directed the theatre’s hugely successful Asking for It, and international theatre and opera director, Daniel Kramer, who will present a late-night political cabaret Happy Hour, delivered as part of the Cork Midsummer Festival in June.

“After a few months of getting to know our brilliant audiences, staff, and volunteers, I am delighted to launch the Everyman Made season which includes some world-class Cork acting talent, presents work by some of our greatest Irish and international playwrights, and is inspired by both the history of The Everyman Playhouse at Fr Mathew Hall and the ambition of Cork as an international cultural capital,” said Mr Kennedy.

“Theatre is about making stories, making community, making memories, [and] making magic.”

Highlights in the programme include Druid’s Three Short Comedies by Seán O’Casey, directed by Garry Hynes and performed by Druid ensemble members, Marie Mullen and Marty Rea. Former Love Island host Laura Whitmore will also star in the adaptation of international bestseller The Girl on the Train, which is touring the UK and Ireland this summer.

Also coming to Cork this season is a stage adaptation of Claudia Caroll’s novel The Secrets of Primrose Square; a political drama about a miscarriage of justice in the Guildford Four-themed biopic, The Life and Times of Paddy Armstrong, starring Cork actor Don Wycherley; and NI Opera’s beautiful one person Poulenc opera La Voix Humaine, based on the play by Jean Cocteau.

The Everyman will also welcome headliner comedians Jason Manford, Chris McCausland, Ardal O’Hanlon along with new and emerging musical acts Eddi Reader, White Horse Guitar Club, Jamie Duffy, and the Everyman Made quarterly singalong Sunday Songbook.

The Everyman is supported by Arts Council Ireland, Cork City Council Arts and RTÉ Supporting the Arts.