On Wednesday, May 8, Ballyduff Drama Group will take to the stage in the Dean Crowe Theatre in Athlone to participate in the All-Ireland Open Drama finals when they perform Brian Friel’s ‘Dancing at Lughnasa’. The group has qualified for the finals for the fourth year in a row – the only group in the country other than Silken Thomas Players to so do.

This is the level of consistency of production and performance that patrons have come to now expect from the group. In advance of their Athlone All-Ireland performance, the group has three final performances at their home venue of St Michael’s Hall in Ballyduff on Saturday, May 4 and Sunday, May 5 at 8.15pm and with a matinee performance at 2pm on Bank Holiday Monday, May 6.

Friel is recognised as Ireland’s greatest living playwright and ‘Dancing at Lughnasa’ is regarded as his finest work. Its tale, in many ways, is one of gentle simplicity, with the story of a basic Irish family in 1936 at its core and set in an ordinary Irish village.

But intertwined with this basic story is the influence of ancient pagan influences, which still pervade local rural communities and the conflict of these elements of rural life with the current dominant influences of a conservative and controlling Catholic Church. The girls of the Mundy family, a returning from Africa Father Jack and a loving-tongued visitor from Wales all combine to create the eternal conflicts that exist between family and outsiders, between nature and civilisation and between instinct and authority.

Producer, Geraldine Canning, has brought together a great cast to drive forward this Friel masterpiece which is led by such as Valerie O’Leary, Kate Canning and Dolores Dermody and ably supported by Laura Griseto and Laura Kennedy as the other members of the Mundy sisterhood. Add in Brendan Dunlea as Father Jack and Lochlainn McKenna and Courtney Canning in the roles of Gerry Evans and Michael respectively and you have the makings of a group which can bring this Friel classic to full and true life.

It is a cast which has won a multiplicity of awards on the Festival Circuit up to now and has now full concentration on the Athlone job at hand. Expect then no less than excellent and professional performances for the Ballyduff venue on its last base-camp surge before the final assault on the theatrical Everest which is the All-Ireland title.

Bookings are at (058) 60456 2-8pm from next Monday.