A POCKET ruler would have been a useful implement at the announcement of the Dublin Theatre Festival programme last night, as the nine principal sponsors of this year's festival had a chance to look over the brochure.
Now that the festival's long association with Irish Life - its last "name" sponsor - has ended, the relative sizes of the companies' logos were being carefully scrutinised by various people in dark blue suits.
Not having a name sponsor had not, according to a spokesman for the festival, led to any shortfall of funds. "Things balanced out," he said.
Speaking at the launch, Ms Eithne Healy, chairwoman of the festival council, said she was confident this year's was "going to be one of the great festivals".
Two of Britain's most prominent theatre companies, the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal National Theatre will be at the festival which runs from October 7th to 19th. Both will be bringing comedies, though of very different sorts. The RSC brings Shakespeare's The Comedy of Errors, while the RNT will perform Dealer's Choice, a first play by a British stand-up comedian, Patrick Marber.
Following the success of last year's Buddleia, the Passion Machine Theatre Company will return with a new play, Kitchensink. Written and directed by Paul Mercier, the play is described as "a little history of suburbia" set in a fictional Dublin suburb.
Venues new to the festival include the National Basketball Arena in Tallaght, where a cast of 110 will perform Les Danaides. There will be three performances of director Silviu Purcarete's reconstruction of one of Aeschylus's lost plays at the Arena as the finale to its European tour.
The festival director, Mr Tony O Dalaigh, said he was particularly pleased to have this production because he had at first considered it would be beyond the resources of the Dublin Theatre Festival. After all, he said, the show had proved too expensive for the Edinburgh Festival.
Also visiting this year's festival are Movimento Danza from Italy who bring their dance piece Le Due Anime Del Guarracino; Stones in His Pockets, the latest production from Dubbeljoint theatre company; and from the United States, Starving Artists Theatre Company with Road Movie.
The Abbey's contribution will be a new play by Tom Murphy, while the Gate offers Stella by Starlight, a new play by Bernard Farrell.