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20th Dec 2016

One Of The Greatest-Ever Stories About Dublin Has Been Turned Into An Opera

aidan

Well this looks pretty amazing.

The Dead – the closing short story in James Joyce’s Dubliners, and one of the most incredible pieces of literature based around the city – has been adapted into an opera, which is set to run for five nights in the Project Arts Centre.

The story, which follows Gabriel Conroy through a musical party at his aunts’ house, and through to a moment of crippling realisation as he learns of a detail from his wife’s past, is an absolutely stunning tale in any format – but given the setting, seeing it brought to life through the medium of music should be particularly special.

Other adaptations

It’s not the first time the Joyce masterpiece has been adapted into another format.

Some 20 years after Hugh Leonard’s famous one-act adaptation, a 1987 film version by John Huston turned out to be the iconic director’s last-ever film – and its script was nominated for an Academy Award in the Adapted Screenplay category.

In the late 1990s, Christopher Walken starred as Gabriel Conroy in a Broadway version that picked up a Tony Award.

thedead

And in 2013, a version scripted and directed by the Dublin-based playwright Charles Richards became the first to be performed in the house in Usher’s Island where the story was set (pictured above) – and this Leeson Park Players production continues to tour.

For tickets to the upcoming show in the Project Arts Centre, click here.

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