• Once @ Olympia Theatre, Dublin

    Nearly two and a half years after its Dublin premiere, the wildly successful Once returns to Ireland for a run unto itself.  When the show made its European debut in February 2013, the Dublin-set musical premiered at the Gaiety for a short engagement before shipping out to its West End settlements for a two-year run where it added Olivier Awards to its Tony Accolades.  Now Landmark Productions returns the show for the summer season, performed exclusively at Dublin’s Olympia, and the fans it won abroad join new followers from its hometown in what’s sure to become a sellout. Walking into…

  • Screen/Play #3: Once, Begin Again and the Authenticity Problem

    In Irish writer-director John Carney’s musical comedy-drama Begin Again, released last year, troubled New York music executive Dan (Mark Ruffalo) sees young songwriter Gretta (Keira Knightley) perform at a downtown open mike session and, smitten with her music, gives her his card. He promises that with a bit of production pizazz and a half-decent video (maybe a Norah Jones vibe) she could have a real radio hit. Gretta rejects his commercialising instinct. She just wants to be real – let the songs speak for themselves and all that. The haggard but good-hearted Dan finds her idealism endearing and naive. ‘Name…