There's a Friel-good factor in the air this week, as friends and colleagues in film and theatre pay tribute to one of our greatest living playwrights. Leading the celebrations in honour of Brian Friel was producer Noel Pearson, who launched the inaugural Friel Festival at AIB Group Headquarters in Ballsbridge on Wednesday. The 70-year-old playwright was the picture of composure, as he looked down on the gathered assembly, his spectacles reflecting the sky, and his shirt buttoned up without a tie. At least, this was how he appeared in a portrait which had been specially painted by artist Robert Ballagh, and which graces the cover of the festival programme.
Speaking to the gathering, and uncharacteristically wearing a tie, the actual Brian Friel looked a little less relaxed, but complimented his painterly colleague's work, saying, "I particularly like the tinted glasses".
The Friel Festival will see a number of the playwright's best works being staged in various theatres between April and August, including Aristocrats at the Gate, Living Quarters at the Peacock, Give Me Your Answer Do! at the Lyric in Belfast, and Dancing At Lughnasa at the Abbey. The festival will also include pre-show talks, discussions, a conference and exhibition, ensuring that every aspect of Friel's stagecraft is examined in depth.
The famously shy Friel declined to discuss his own work, but did admit he was honoured to be the focus of this new festival.
Joining the honour guard were the playwright's wife, Ann Friel, and their daughter, Judy Friel, who is literary manager of the Abbey; playwright Frank McGuinness, whose new play, Dolly West's Kitchen, will open at the Abbey in October; Abbey Theatre director Patrick Mason; the Gaiety's John Costigan; director of Andrew's Lane Theatre Pat Moylan; David Grant of the Lyric Theatre in Belfast; the Gate Theatre's Marie Rooney; and director Ben Barnes, who is looking forward to staging Uncle Vanya and Aristocrats at the Lincoln Centre Festival in New York next July. Barnes, a Beckettean scholar in his own right, has just returned from Montreal, where he staged a successful five-week run of Waiting For Godot.
Also there were Harold Fish of the British Council; Eugene Sheehy, general manager of AIB Bank, the festival's main sponsor; Barry Moloney, chief executive of Esat Digifone, which is co-sponsoring the event; James Hickey, chairman of the Abbey board; and broadcaster Brian Farrell, whose polka-dot bow-tie would have made a colourful subject for the Ballagh brush.
The Friel Festival will also be the subject of a documentary by Noel Pearson's company, Ferndale Films. Pearson, who also produced the film version of Dancing at Lughnasa, will be staging Juno and the Paycock at the Gaiety in September, starring British actor Michael Gambon. Pearson's next film will be a feature on Samuel Beckett, entitled A Fall to Grace, and based on the Tony Cronin book, The Last Modernist. However, he's still waiting for the right actor to play the part of the gangly, craggy-faced author.
Straight to video
Dancing at Lughnasa was also the star attraction at the launch of Clarence Irish Classics, a new video label dedicated to Irish films, in Clarence Pictures' new preview screening theatre at 13 Denzille Lane. The film version of Friel's acclaimed play, starring Meryl Streep, is the newest video title in a cast of classic Irish films which includes Into the West, A Man of No Importance, My Left Foot, Ailsa and The Boy From Mercury.
Looking as though he'd just landed on Mars was Into The West star Ruaidhri Conroy. When approached by alien members of the media, the young actor seemed to recoil in terror. Asked if he was working on any film projects lately, Conroy quickly said, "No, no, I'm doing nothing", then fled to safety. Launching this initiative to bring great Irish movies into the living-rooms of the world was Minister for Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands, Sile de Valera. The supporting cast included Rod Stoneman, chief executive of the Irish Film Board; Mary Aleguen, also of the Film Board; Martin Higgins, managing director of Xtravision; deputy film censor Audrey Conlon; James Mitchell of Little Bird; Paddy Kelly of UIP; Trish Long of Buena Vista; Sheila Pratschke of the IFC; Roger Green of the Screen Commission; Stephen Murphy of UCI; and film director Stephen Bourke.
Also getting a sneak preview of Irish video history was director Stephen Bradley, whose new movie, Sweety Barrett, starring Brendan Gleeson, will premiere in Dublin next Wednesday. "Brendan's performance is great," said the director. "He's the most unlikely hero you could have. We had Brendan on board during the writing of the film, and it's great for us that it's coming out after all the attention he got in The General. We've already shown Sweety Barrett in Toronto and San Sebastian, and the reaction has been brilliant." Ed Guiney, who produced Sweety Barrett, was happy to see so many Irish movies premiering in Ireland.
One film which the whole planet seems to be looking forward to is Star Wars, Episode 1 The Phantom Menace. Audiences in America have already been paying into cinemas just to see the trailer for this latest instalment of the blockbuster science fiction saga. Good news for Irish fans of Star Wars is that the film gets its Irish premiere on July 15th in Dublin, and proceeds of this charity gala will go to Unicef. Special guest at the premiere will be Liam Neeson, who plays Jedi master Qui Gon Jinn in the film, and who is also the special patron of Unicef Ireland. Neeson persuaded the film's director, George Lucas, and its producer, Rick McCallum, to provide the film to support Unicef. Lucas is also expected to land in Dublin for the premiere, but we'll have to watch the skies for that one.
Keane as ever
The launch of Writers' Week 1999 provided an opportunity to celebrate the life and work of the late actor Eamon Keane, in the company of his family, friends, colleagues and admirers. The actor's brother, playwright John B. Keane, officiated at the event, and Eamon's sons, RTE broadcaster Eamon Keane and BBC foreign correspondent Fergal Keane, delivered moving tributes to their late father. Other family members who attended were Eamon's brothers, Denis Keane and Michael Keane, their sister, Peg Schuster, and John B.'s son, John Keane. Poet Brendan Kennelly recited a poem in celebration of the actor's larger-than-life personality, and John B. himself sang a song, appropriately entitled Sweet Listowel.
The occasion also marked the announcement of the Eamon Keane Full Length Play Award, which will be presented at the official opening of Writers' Week in Listowel on June 2. The £1,000 award is sponsored by Bank of Ireland, which seems to know the value of good drama.
Also attending this toast to an absent friend were authors Colm Toibin and Bruce Arnold; actors Barry Cassin, Eamon Kelly and Tom Studley; playwright Tony Guerin; Kerry TD Jimmy Deenihan; ex-Kerry footballer Ogie Moran, now the regional manager of Shannon Development; broadcaster Ciaran Mac Mathuna; and poet Michael Hartnett. Family and friends then headed off to the Westbury Hotel to continue this celebration of Eamon Keane's legacy.
Speaking after the launch, Fergal Keane revealed that he would soon be off to the Balkans to report on the war for BBC, after which he will be producing a BBC book and series entitled The Stranger's Eye, a sort of Irish travelogue of the millennium. He's also publishing his first novel, an adventure set in central Africa. Meanwhile, John B. will be launching a new book of short stories at Writers' Week ("There's a lot of my brother's spirit in these stories") and looking forward to the film version of his book, Durango, starring Patrick Bergin and Brenda Fricker, which is released in the US this month.
Special announcement
An Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern, had a gruelling athletic stretch this week, trying to hammer out a deal, get everybody on board, and persuade them to play the game. Happily, on Wednesday, Bertie was able to announce Ireland's successful bid to host the 2003 Special Olympics, in the company of Special Olympics founder and honorary chair, Eunice Kennedy Shriver; Special Olympics president Timothy Shriver; Minister for Tourism, Sport and Recreation, Jim McDaid TD; chairman of Esat Telecom and of the Games Organising committee, Denis O'Brien; Mary Davis, the national director of the Special Olympics in Ireland; Dublin Lord Mayor, Councillor Joe Doyle; Proinsias De Rossa TD; Garda Commissioner Pat Byrne; US Ambassador Michael O'Sullivan; and Argentinian Ambassador Victor Beauge.
The announcement was made in the Royal Hospital Kilmainham, and the signing ceremony was compered by Today FM's Ian Dempsey. Watching this historic deal being made were RTE political broadcaster Fergus Finlay; head of 2FM John Clarke; and golfer Christy O'Connor Jr.
"I wouldn't have missed this for the world," announced Ahern, who had flown down from Northern Ireland, and was soon to return to the negotiating table. "I don't want to go to where I'm going, but there's unfinished business to attend to," he told the crowd. If only the players in Ireland's big game could move as swiftly as the Special Olympics.
Star gazing
Anew observatory opened in Dublin this week, but the only stars to be seen there were those of the stage variety. Observatory is the title of a short play by young playwright, Daragh Carville, and it opened in the Peacock last Wednesday. The play is set in Armagh Observatory, and among those who came to view it were playwrights Bernard Farrell, Alex Johnston and Mark O'Rowe; actor Liam Carney; chairman of the Abbey Board, James Hickey and his wife, actor Fiona MacAnna; set designer Joe Vanek; Project Theatre director Fiach MacConghail; Dublin Fringe Festival director Ali Curran; and the Arts Council's Patrick Sutton.
Meanwhile, over in Andrew's Lane Theatre, audiences were peering across the Atlantic at a new production of Sam Shepard's play, True West, directed by Rossa O Sioradain and staged by Lughnasa Productions (those Friel references just keep on coming!), who seem to specialise in American drama, having already produced Eric Bogosian's Suburbia and David Mamet's American Buffalo. Go west, young producer, seems to be the obvious observation here.
The big questions
The end of the millennium is a time for asking important questions, and the big question asked by a new survey is, "who is the best-looking Irishwoman of all?" The earth-shattering results of the No. 7 Millennium Survey, which were announced at in Conrad Gallagher's Peacock Alley restaurant on Monday, show that Andrea Corr is the answer to all Irishmen's prayers, and that TV3 presenter Lorraine Keane comes a not-too-blunt second place in our hearts. In this hard-hitting and incisive survey, we learn that Cindy Crawford, not Kate Moss, possesses the ideal figure, and that if stranded on a desert island, women would miss their moisturiser more than their men. Now we can all rest easy and face the next millennium, armed with this invaluable information.