DruidO'Casey

The Plough and the Stars
DruidO’Casey begins with The Plough and the Stars, the story of newlyweds Jack and Nora Clitheroe living in a city on the brink of rebellion in 1916.

The Shadow of a Gunman
In The Shadow of a Gunman, Donal Davoren, Seumas Shields and Minnie Powell find themselves tragically tangled up in the Irish War of Independence.

Juno and the Paycock 
The saga ends with Juno and the Paycock and the Boyle family who see their fortunes dashed amidst the upheaval of the Irish Civil War.

WINNER - Garry Hynes, Best Director, UK Theatre Awards

Recommended by: The New York Times, The New Yorker, New York Magazine, Time Out New York

Best Theatre of 2023: New York Magazine, The Observer, Irish Mail on Sunday, The Irish Examiner (Joe Duffy), The Arts Review

★★★★★
‘a revelation ... magnificent’
The Observer

★★★★★
‘Druid Theatre’s staging unearths unexpected dimensions in the three plays’
Financial Times

★★★★★
‘[an] irresistible combination of dazzling stagecraft and visionary theatrical daring’
The Stage

★★★★★
‘Druid triumphs yet again ... spectacular’
Irish Mail on Sunday

★★★★★
‘a thrilling experiment in epic theatre’
New York Stage Review

★★★★★
‘brilliant ... astonishing ... perfection’
Front Row Center

‘the season’s most exciting international visit’
The New Yorker

‘astonishing’
The Wall Street Journal

‘incredibly funny, relentlessly tragic ... a rare thrill’
New York Magazine

‘a treasure hall of shocking tableaux and stirring poetry, not a second wasted’
Observer (New York)

‘magnificent ... a monumental undertaking ... a truly memorable experience’
Sunday Independent (Emer O'Kelly)

‘superb ... immense’
Sunday Independent (Colin Murphy)

‘Druid's big guns deliver a delicious barrage of O'Casey’
Irish Independent

★★★★
‘a brilliant ensemble cast brings Garry Hynes’ vision to life’
The Irish Times (Sara Keating)

‘DruidO’Casey made an outstanding debut ... magnificent’
The Irish Times (Deirdre Falvey)

‘Druid’s magnificent new staging of the O’Casey trilogy should be a source of national pride ... a unique national epic’
The Irish Times (Fintan O'Toole)

‘a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity ... engaging and thought-provoking’
Exeunt NYC

★★★★
‘a significant achievement by Hynes and her superb ensemble ... magnificent’
The Irish Examiner

★★★★
‘the theatrical event of the year ... crucial, contemporary and relevant’
The Arts Review

‘magnificent production breathes new life into O’Casey’s plays’
Connacht Tribune

‘worth moving heaven and earth to try to get a ticket’
Irish Farmers Journal

★★★★
‘a poignant epic about Dublin residents living on the edges of the revolutionary period’
Feeling Good

‘the performances ... are nothing short of exceptional’
Interludes

‘a masterful undertaking ... a triumph’
Theater Pizzazz

‘Galway's renowned Druid Theatre Company reorders Seán O'Casey's Dublin Trilogy to stunning effect’
TheaterScene

‘glorious ... sublime ... the quality of the acting and direction is second to none’
Alan in Belfast

In DruidO'Casey, the three plays of Sean O'Casey's Dublin Trilogy will be performed together in one day, an epic theatrical event.

A limited number of individual performances of the three plays in the trilogy will also take place.

In DruidO'Casey, the three plays of Sean O'Casey's Dublin Trilogy will be performed together in one day, an epic theatrical event.

Please visit each venue's website for their particular performance schedule.

DruidO'Casey US tour dates are made possible by the generous support of Culture Ireland.

Please note that these timings are estimates and are subject to change.

Trilogy total playing time:
6 hours 15 minutes plus intervals and breaks

Trilogy Performance Schedule

• 1pm, The Plough and the Stars, 2 hours 30 minutes (plus interval)
• Coffee break
• 4.30pm, The Shadow of a Gunman, 1 hour 30 minutes (no interval)
• Dinner break
• 8pm, Juno and the Paycock, 2 hours 15 minutes (plus interval)

Single-Play Performances

The Plough and the Stars
2 hours 30 minutes (plus interval)

The Shadow of a Gunman
1 hour 30 minutes (no interval)

Juno and the Paycock
2 hours 15 minutes (plus interval)

November 1915 – April 1916

The setting of the The Plough and the Stars, a few months before and then during the Easter Rising

24 April 1916

Easter Monday, the Easter Rising begins

29 - 30 April 1916

The Easter Rising ends

21 January 1919

The Irish War of Independence begins

10 – 11 May 1920

The setting of The Shadow of a Gunman, during the Irish War of Independence

11 July 1921

The Irish War of Independence ends 

28 June 1922

The Irish Civil War begins

1922

The setting of Juno and the Paycock, during the Irish Civil War

12 April 1923

First performance of The Shadow of a Gunman, at the Abbey Theatre in Dublin

24 May 1923

The Irish Civil War ends

3 March 1924

First performance of Juno and the Paycock, at the Abbey Theatre in Dublin

8 February 1926

First performance of The Plough and the Stars, at the Abbey Theatre in Dublin

Listen to the episode.

Join us for a special episode of Arena on RTÉ Radio 1 to celebrate the world premiere of DruidO'Casey at Galway International Arts Festival. On the set of DruidO'Casey at the Town Hall Theatre, Arena's Sean Rocks will chat to the cast and creative team behind this new staging of Sean O'Casey's Dublin Trilogy.

This special episode will be recorded in front of a live audience and broadcast later that evening.

Thursday 27 July
Town Hall Theatre
2.30pm - doors open
2.45pm - recording begins
4pm - recording ends
Please note that latecomers cannot be admitted

Tickets
€7 tickets are available from the Town Hall Theatre box office
Book tickets

View on YouTube.

A century ago, Ireland was reborn in the fires of rebellion and war. The playwright Sean O’Casey bore witness to these seismic events and dramatised them as the Dublin Trilogy, three great works of Irish theatre, full of history, humanity and humour — The Plough and the Stars, The Shadow of a Gunman and Juno and the Paycock. 100 years later, Garry Hynes has woven O’Casey’s three plays into an epic Druid theatrical event of conflict, national identity and the human toll of war.

To discuss these plays and this new production, Garry is joined in conversation by journalist and author Fintan O’Toole.

28 July 2023 at 1pm
O’Donoghue Theatre, University of Galway
€10 tickets are available via Galway International Arts Festival

Galway
Wednesday 26 July
Town Hall Theatre
A post-show discussion with members of the company as part of Galway International Arts Festivals's First Thought Backstage series, following the 7pm performance of The Shadow of a Gunman, chaired by Dr Miriam Haughton (University of Galway).

New York
Thursday 12 October
NYU Skirball
A post-show discussion with director Garry Hynes and other members of the company, following the 7.30pm performance of The Shadow of a Gunman.

All DruidO'Casey venues are fully accessible.

Please visit each venue's website for more information:
Galway: Town Hall Theatre
Belfast: Lyric Theatre
Dublin: Abbey Theatre
New York: NYU Skirball
Ann Arbor: UMS

In DruidO'Casey, more than 40 characters will be performed by 18 actors, including 4 members of the Druid Ensemble(^) and 7 actors making their Druid stage debut(*).

The Shadow of a Gunman

The Plough and the Stars

Juno and the Paycock

The production will be realised by a creative team of 12, led by Druid's Artistic Director Garry Hynes. The creative team includes 4 recipients of Druid's Marie Mullen Bursary(±).

The sets and costumes for the world premiere production of DruidO’Casey were created by Druid in Galway, at their Ballybane Scenic Workshop and their Nuns’ Island Costume Department.