2024 South Wicklow Drama Festival

The 2024 South Wicklow Drama Festival took place from Friday 15th – Saturday 23rd March (excluding Sunday 17th March) in St. Brigid’s Hall, Carnew.

We were delighted to have our 2024 Festival launched by Ettie Kilbride at our Launch Night in Jim Byrne’s on Thursday 22nd February.

Liam Hannaway, Chairman of the Amateur Drama Council of Ireland, officially opened the festival on Friday 15th March. Liam is a good friend to South Wicklow Drama Festival having brought many productions to Carnew with his own drama group, the Lislea Dramatic Players. We were honoured to welcome Liam in his capacity as Chairman of the ADCI.

We were delighted to welcome Imelda McDonagh as our 2024 adjudicator. Imelda is the President of the Association of Adjudicators (ADA).

The Winners of the 2024 South Wicklow Drama Festival

Confined Section

1st – Kilrush Drama Group – ‘Hooked!’

2nd – The Clodiagh Players – ‘Trad’

3rd – Kilmuckridge Drama Group – ‘I Do Not Like Thee Dr, Fell’

Open Section

1st – Ballycogley Players – ‘Out of Order’

2nd – Bridge Drama – ‘The Wake’

3rd – Bunclody-Kilmyshall Drama Group – ‘The Lonesome West’

Confined Section:

Best Actor in a Supporting Role – Eddie Condon as Fr. Rice in ‘Trad’, Clodiagh Players

Best Actor in a Major Role – John Redmond, in ‘Hooked!’, Kilrush

Best Actress in a Supporting Role – Kay Cahill as Mary in ‘Hooked!’, Kilrush

Best Actress in a Major Role – Erin Hogan as Lydia, in ‘Hooked!’, Kilrush

Best Director – Niall McGrath – ‘Hooked’, Kilrush

Open Section:

Best Supporting Actress – Catherine Stafford as Pamela Willey in ‘Out of Order’, Ballycogley

Best Supporting Actor – Ken Murphy as Finbar in ‘The Wake’, Bridge

Best Actress – Mairéad Ryan as Vera in ‘The Wake’, Bridge

Best Actor – Fr. Pat Mernagh as Richard Willey in ‘Out of Order’, Ballycogley

Best Director – Pat Whelan – ‘Out of Order’, Ballycogley

Adjudicator Award 1 – Tom Kennedy & Kris Mooney, for lighting design, Balally

Adjudicator Award 2 – Joseph Sunderland, Bridge

Adjudicator Award 3 – Mag Clooney for window work, Ballycogley

Best Comedy Performance (Jim Tighe Trophy) – Sean Carthy as George in ‘Out of Order’, Ballycogley

Magic Moment in Theatre (Pat Connaughton Award) – The fight scenes in ‘The Lonesome West’, Bunclody-Kilmyshall

Audience Cup (Altura Credit Union Award) – ‘Out of Order’ – Ballycogley Players

Best Presentation – ‘The Wake’ by Bridge Drama

 

Adjudicator – Imelda McDonagh

Imelda McDonagh is a multi-award-winning director and actress with a first-class honours M.A. in Theatre Studies. She is a qualified Make-Up Artist and holds a Licentiate in Speech and Drama from the London College of Music.

A lifetime of performance has led to the creation of some of her favourite roles, including Lady Bracknell in Wilde’s The Importance of Being Ernest, Blanche in William’s A Streetcar named Desire, Stephanie in Kempinski’s Duet for One, Gertrude in Shakespeare’s Hamlet and Kate in Miller’s All My Sons, as well as the monologue plays: Baglady by Frank McGuinness, Jennifer Johnston’s Christine and Dermot Bolger’s The Holy Ground. Also at home in the world of musical theatre, Imelda has won the coveted Association of Irish Musical Societies’ award (AIMS) for Best Director with her production of Kiss Me Kate and was nominated as Best Director for the amateur premiere of The Ha’penny Bridge and Michael Collins, a Musical Drama, winning the AIMS overall award for Best Show from a field of over fifty productions. She is currently directing The Producers for Enniscorthy Musical Society.

Currently President of the Association of Drama Adjudicators, Imelda has enjoyed adjudicating since 2001, including the Finals for Macra na Feirme and the ICA. Since she took early retirement form her career as a secondary teacher of English and Drama in 2012, she has enjoyed the freedom to travel throughout Ireland to adjudicate in every province. In 2017, she adjudicated the Confined Drama Finals in Tubercurry and, in 2018, the One-Act Finals in Kilmuckridge and, in 2019, the All-Ireland Drama Finals in Athlone. She is looking forward to adjudicating the UK One Act Finals in 2023.

Imelda has also been awarded The Civic Merit Award for her services to the community by President Michael D. Higgins.

 

2024 Festival Line-Up