A huge thank-you from Druid ❤️

Productions

2025 began with a barnstorming 11-venue national tour of Three Short Comedies by Sean O'Casey.

• 'flawlessly executed' The Stage
• 'a masterclass in 21st-century comic acting' Irish Independent

The centrepiece of our anniversary season was a double bill of Synge's Riders to the Sea and Shakespeare's Macbeth at The Mick Lally Theatre in Galway. Macbeth then transferred to the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin, where it sold out 3 weeks in advance.

• ★★★★★ 'intense double bill linked by elemental forces of nature' The Guardian
• 'Druid dream team delivers a double bill for the ages ... extraordinarily effective ... exhilarating' Sunday Independent

To close out the year, our 2024 production of Beckett's Endgame returned for a five-week run in New York at the Irish Arts Center, our first visit to this wonderful venue.

• Critic's Pick – 'Garry Hynes’s venerable Druid troupe' The New York Times
• '[a] terrific Endgame from the estimable Irish company Druid' The Wall Street Journal

Anniversary celebrations

Alongside our mainstage productions, we also celebrated our anniversary with a number of special events and exciting developments.

• A big 50th party in our home on Druid Lane attended by President Connolly
• A special performance of Riders to the Sea for President Higgins at Áras an Uachtaráin on Culture Night
• Two new books published about Druid including a new history of the company by Patrick Lonergan
• A design exhibition in the Hall of the Red Earl on Druid Lane showcasing Druid set, costume and prop design work
• A photography exhibition at the Kenny Gallery of Joe O'Shaughnessy's Druid photos
• An archive exhibition and academic symposium at the University of Galway
• The launch of two special commemorative stamps in Druid's honour by An Post
• The appointment of Maureen Kennelly as our new Chief Executive Officer
• The addition of our 2023 production of O'Casey's The Shadow of a Gunman to the Leaving Certificate curriculum

Touring

As well as presenting work in Galway this year, we also toured to Belfast, Cork, Dublin, Ennis, Kilkenny, Limerick, Longford, New York, Roscommon, Tralee and Wexford.

We passionately believe that audiences have the right to see first-class professional theatre in their own communities.

We’re really proud of our national touring history, having visited all 32 counties over the past five decades.

We’ve performed in some of Ireland’s biggest venues and also some of its most unusual and remote, from the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin to a field on Inis Meáin.

1980 marked our first international tour and since then we've performed in the UK, the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and Hong Kong.

Artist Development

In our 50th anniversary year, while celebrating the past, we also looked to the future of Irish theatre through our artist development initiatives.

This year's Marie Mullen Bursary recipient, director Lianne O'Shea, joined the creative team of our double bill of Riders to the Sea and Macbeth as Assistant Director. She also contributed significantly to our Community and Education programme and this year's Druid Debuts.

Five new FUEL artists took part in our annual residency programme at The Mick Lally Theatre, each developing a new performance project over nine months: Caomhnú Creative (Alice Kinsella and Daniel Wade), Aoife Delany Reade, Martin Kenny and Eoin Ó Dubhghaill.

Three new plays were read as part of our Druid Debuts rehearsed readings series. The work of playwrights Conor Kelly, Treasa Nealon and Clare Monnelly were selected from over 200 submissions.

The long-running Druid Academy with University of Galway continued this year with activities including masterclasses, student internships and access to Druid dress rehearsals.

Community and Education

Almost 2,000 students came to see Macbeth this year and hundreds more have already booked to see it when it returns next spring.

We also produced a series of educational resources to accompany the production including a three-part podcast series with the creative team.

Other Community & Education activities included a new work experience partnership with Blue Teapot Theatre Company, and a collaboration with the Drama League of Ireland and the Amateur Drama Council of Ireland on their annual playwriting award.

Christmas gift ideas

If you're still working through your Christmas shopping list, we've got plenty of ideas including tickets for Macbeth, new books about Druid, and Druid Friend gift subscriptions.

Druid Futures Fund

Join us in shaping the future of Irish theatre through the Druid Futures Fund, which supports Druid Debuts and other artist development initiatives.