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All That Fall, Tullow Church, Foxrock, Dublin
Directed by Cathal Quinn - a Mouth on Fire production.
Featuring Donnacha Crowley (Mr Rooney), Neill Fleming (Mr Barrell), Michael Judd (Mr Tyler), Paul Marron (Christy and Mr Slocum), Deirdre Monaghan (Miss Fitt), Melissa Nolan (Woman), Matthew O'Brien (Jerry and Tommy), Geraldine Plunkett (Mrs Rooney), and Siofra Quinn (Dolly).
March 23rd 2019
Going to Foxrock is always a special journey for a Beckett lover. Going to Tullow Church itself, just five hundred meters away from Cooldrinagh, has something of a strange pilgrimage. But going to the Beckett in Foxrock event is a unique and much awaited yearly encounter with Beckett's life, his family, and his work. This year, the uniqueness of the event was two-fold, commemorating not only the thirtieth anniversary of Beckett's death, but also the fiftieth anniversary of his receipt of the Nobel Prize. The play chosen to mark the occasion was the fascinating and equally challenging radio play All That Fall, written in 1956 for the BBC, and set in Foxrock itself. Furthermore, the President of Ireland, Michael D. Higgins, and his wife, Mrs. Sabina Higgins, herself a former actress, attended the play and the reception following the performance, demonstrating the importance of this event for Ireland and reaffirming the significant place that Beckett occupies in the pantheon of Irish writers.
As we entered the small local church, we were welcomed by some parishioners who gave us each a black blindfold, mentioning only "this is for later, keep it safe". While the church was filling up, discussions varied from Beckett's life in the area, and the little golden plaque beside the door of the side entrance of the church, reminding visitors that Beckett used to visit this place of worship with his mother, to the presence of Caroline Murphy, Beckett's cousin. However, as 8 pm approached, the Beckett audience, constantly glancing back towards the entrance of the church as they waited for the President, were also becoming increasingly intrigued by the blindfold, which the President called later "an excellent idea".
Once Michael D. Higgins and his wife were seated on the first row, Reverend John Tanner, rector of the church, gave a warm welcome to the audience. He reminded us of the importance of this...