LITTLE GEM

By Elaine Murphy

Starring Anita Reeves, Hilda Fay, Sarah Greene; Designed by Alice Butler; LIghting Design by Mark Galione; Sound Design by Carl Kennedy Directed by Paul Meade. A Gúna Nua/Civic Theatre Production


WINNER: FISHAMBLE AWARD BEST NEW IRISH WRITING, DUBLIN FRINGE FESTIVAL

WINNER: BEST FEMALE PERFORMANCE - DUBLIN FRINGE FESTIVAL

This stunning debut theater piece premierd at Dublin’s 2008 Fringe Festival, September 9th -13th in Project Cube, before transfering to The Loose End Studio at the Civic Theatre, Tallaght

LITTLE GEM. Photographs by Futoshi Sakauchi

Our festival show,LITTLE GEM, by Elaine Murphy and co-produced with the Civic Theatre, played to sell out houses in both Project and in the Civic during the Dublin Festival Fringe. The show also took two awards at the Fringe: The Fishamble Award for Best New Irish Writing and the Award for Best Female Performance. This last award was, by a special decision of the judges, granted to all the members of the cast equally – Anita Reeves, Hilda Fay and Aoife Duffin. A wise decision as it really was a spectacular ensemble effort.

Amber has fierce bad indigestion and the Sambuca’s aren’t getting rid of it… Lorraine attacks a customer at work and her boss wants her to see a psychiatrist… Kay’s got an itch ‘down there’ that Gem can’t scratch…but maybe Kermit can… Paul – the bollix – uses Amber as just a ‘handy hole’ until he can get to Australia… The hairy man fancies Lorraine but fails to rise to the occasion… And Gem doesn’t like the neighbours coming in to ‘mind’ him. And if all that isn’t bad enough, little Gem makes his presence felt and…well…life is never the same again!

LITTLE GEM was a huge success, with Awards, Reviewers and – most importantly – with Audiences. It played to packed houses for the full three weeks of the Fringe Festival. The Show is scheduled to return to the Civic Mainstage and then to Draiocht in Blanchardstown in March 2009