Culture
15 Feb 18

Abbey To Stage New Comedy About Ballymun Woman Winning Green-Shield Stamps!

The world premiere of 'The Unmanageable Sisters' –playwright Deirdre Kinahan’s new version of Michel Tremblay’s acclaimed Québécois comedy, Les Belles Soeurs – will be staged at the Abbey Theatre later this month.

Set in Ballymun back in 1974 in Ballymun, the play is about a woman named Ger Lawless who has won a million Green-Shield stamps.
But when 15 friends and family gather to help her claim her winnings, all bets are off! Over one fateful stamp-sticking party, these determined women bring you into their lives in the ferociously funny The Unmanageable Sisters.

Directed by Graham McLaren, the cast includes Karen Ardiff, Clare Barrett, Charlotte Bradley, Catherine Byrne, Rachael Dowling, Tina Kellegher, Lisa Lambe, Sarah Madigan, Clare Monnelly, Máire Ní Ghráinne, Mary O’Driscoll, Marion O’Dwyer, Rynagh O’Grady, Caoimhe O’Malley and Catherine Walsh.

Deirdre Kinahan is an award-winning Irish playwright. 'The Unmanageable Sisters' marks her debut at the Abbey Theatre and is the first of her two plays at Ireland’s national theatre this year, with Rathmines Road premiering on the Peacock Stage in October.

Deirdre Kinahan said: ‘I have long had a connection to Quebec and I am in awe of Michel Tremblay. He brilliantly captures the humanity, genius and laughter of the tragically undermined women in Les Belles Souers.

"It has been a real joy to work on this piece and to give it an Irish context and an Irish voice. I grew up watching plays at the Abbey, and I hope I carried the spirits of all the women who have sat in that auditorium and laughed, cried and shared their stories, as I wrote.’

Graham McLaren, Director of the Abbey Theatre and The Unmanageable Sisters added: ‘We’re doing this play for our mothers and grandmothers – the women in Ireland who were kicking against the system in the seventies, so that the lives of their wildest dreams would be a reality for their granddaughters.’

Here's the cast in the seventies-style teaser trailer:

'The Unmanageable Sisters' is part of the Abbey Theatre’s Free First Preview initiative, where audiences are invited to attend the first night of Abbey productions at no charge. The play runs from 26 February to 7 April 2018