• Dancing at Lughnasa @ Lyric Theatre, Belfast

    It’s 25 years since Brian Friel’s domestic drama Dancing At Lughnasa hit the stage of Dublin’s Abbey Theatre though the themes of Diaspora and chronic under-employment are, if anything even more relevant today. Seen through the eyes of seven year old Michael Evans, it’s the tale of a family of close knit sisters who scratch out a living in 1936 Donegal, primarily supported by the teacher’s salary of the eldest sister, the puritanical Kate. With the simple-minded Rose and maternal Agnes sewing gloves for a pittance and the earthy, fun loving Maggie keeping house with Michael’s unwed mother Christina money…