2026 Festival Program
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Synopsis
6th to 14th March 2026
Friday
6th March 2026
Saturday
7th March 2026
Sunday
8th March 2026
Armagh Theatre
Group
Toxic Relationships
Bridge Drama
Things I Know to Be True
By Byddi Lee
By Andrew Bovell
Turning extinction into entertainment, from a prehistoric parody starring self-important T-rexes, to a cosmic conflict between Earth and Moon, to a scathing trial where Big Oil, Industry, Farmer and Consumer face off with Youth and Poverty, this play mixes science with satire in a way that’s as hilarious as it is horrifying.
In this deeply moving play, a family is tested by the complexities of love, identity, and the passage of time. Bob and Fran have spent their lives raising their four children, only to find that in the messy, imperfect nature of family, the bonds they’ve worked so hard to build are slowly unravelling. As their adult children confront their own personal battles — from love and heartbreak to self-discovery — the Price family is forced to confront uncomfortable truths that will change them forever.
Clann Machua
Greta Garbo came to Donegal
By Frank McGuiness
Ireland is on the verge of violent change, two couples are on the verge of ending, a woman tries to save her family, a girl tries to save her future. Above it all but in the midst of things, determining what happens next, is the loveliest and loneliest of all women, the great Garbo. But when the gods arrive, they can cause havoc, not least to themselves, as the divine Greta learns.
Monday
9th March 2026
Tuesday
10th March 2026
Wednesday
11th March 2026
Newpoint Players
The Dead by James Joyce
Adapted by Sean Treanor
In the great canon of Irish short stories, there is none more renowned than Joyce’s “The Dead”. In this adaptation, Newpoint have tried to bring to the fore the changing nature of 1905 Ireland, the growing influence of the Gaelic Revival, the changing social balance, the conflicts between Empire and Nation, the important and unsettling Suffragist/Republican movement and the frustrations and disappointments of apparently minor characters, who are victims of class and of persisting mores and values.
A beautiful song is central to the original story. This stage adaptation extends the use of live music and singing as a means of recreating the generally nostalgic but sometimes angry or tortured undercurrents experienced by individuals and by the Dublin middle class society of the era. Many of the characters are haunted by ghosts of the past. And now, for us, they and their environs are ghosts of a long lost time.
Pomeroy Players
Dancing at Lughnasa
By Brian Friel
Five unmarried Mundy sisters in rural Ireland, 1936, whose lives and fragile world, centred on poverty, tradition, and faith, are upended by the return of their priest brother, Jack, from Africa, and the brief reappearance of their nephew Michael’s charming but unreliable father, Gerry, amidst the pagan harvest festival of Lugnansa, narrated by the adult Michael looking back on their poignant, transformative summer.
Rosemary Drama Group
Hansard
By Simon Woods
MP Robin Hesketh returns home to find foxes have digging up his lawn... Cracks are also beginning to appear in his marriage, and long-buried secrets are about to be unearthed.
Thursday
12th March 2026
Friday
13th March 2026
Saturday
14th March 2026
Enniskillen
Theatre Company
Doubt: A Parable
By John Patrick Shanley
The story centres on Sister Aloysius Beauvier, a strict and conservative nun who serves as the school’s principal, and Father Flynn, a charismatic priest who advocates for a more progressive approach to education and faith. When Sister James, a young naïve teacher expresses concern that Father Flynn may have developed an inappropriate relationship with Donald Muller, the school’s first black student, Sister Aloysius becomes convinced of his guilt – though she lacks
concrete proof.
The play unfolds as a tense moral and psychological battle between certainty and uncertainty, faith and suspicion. Sister Aloysius’s relentless pursuit of the truth collides with Father Flynn’s insistence on innocence and compassion. In the end, the audience is left with ambiguity – no definitive evidence of wrongdoing – underscoring the play’s central theme: the nature of doubt itself, both as a moral burden and a necessary part of faith.
Holywood Players
Death Trap
By Ira Levin
In this acclaimed dark comedic thriller, washed-up playwright Sidney Bruhl hasn’t written a successful play in years and money is getting tight. But when Clifford, a student of a creative writing course he’s teaching, comes to him for advice on a script he’s written, his prayers are answered. Sidney recognises the script immediately as a sure fire hit and his ticket back to Broadway success. The only issue is, does Clifford want to share the credit...and what will Sidney do if he doesn’t?
Holding the record for the longest -running comedy-thriller on Broadway and nominated for four Tony awards including Best Play, Deathtrap will keep you on the edge of your seats. Full of twists and turns, shocks and surprises, you will be holding your breath until the very last moment.
Clontarf Players
I Never Sang for My
Father
By Robert Anderson
"I Never Sang for My Father" is a moving and perceptive play that explores the strained, lifelong relationship between a middle-aged son, Gene Garrison, and his domineering, aging father, Tom Garrison.
Gene, a widower, struggles to connect with his stubborn, self-centred father, who has a history of alienating his family (including his estranged daughter, Alice).