DIRECTING… Rosemary McKenna
FERMANAGH-born director Rosemary McKenna, returns to the county in the coming weeks to lead a workshop on ‘directing and devising’.
On Friday, October 3, was nominated for ‘best director’ in last year’s Irish Times Irish Theatre Awards.
Rosemary is the Artistic Director of Pillowtalk Theatre, Dublin. A graduate of Drama and English in Trinity College Dublin, she participated in the prestigious artist development programme SEEDS from 2011-2013.
Rosemary has also worked with Ireland’s leading theatre companies, Druid and Rough Magic.
Rosemary will be conducting a day long workshop with A Level Performing Arts students from across Fermanagh to explore the role of the theatre director. She will focus on the current trend towards ‘theatre-making’ and the creative skills required to develop a full performance.
Speaking to the Fermanagh Herald this week, Rosemary described a ‘busy summer’.
“I was working on the development of a new play with Druid theatre company, staging a new show for Gonzo Theatre, and beginning a collaboration with Teada Orchestra for the new music theatre piece I’m making for with own company, PillowTalk.
“I’m currently preparing for an exhibition of new Polish writing within the Dublin Theatre Festival, which is really exciting.
“I recently got an Associate Director position with an international theatre company who I really admire called ATC. I will be moving to London, where the company is based, in January, but the job will involve lots of touring.
“I’ll be in New York in February and March working on a show called ‘The Events’, which was awarded The Guardian’s best play of 2013.”
The opportunity to be a part of Fermanagh Live came through Rosemary’s past form tutor from Mount Lourdes, Anne McClean.
Rosemary explained: “When I bumped into her on a beach in Donegal a few years ago, she was delighted to hear what I was up to. She followed the work I was doing online, through reviews and articles, and asked me if I’d be interested in doing some work with young people for FLive.
“I’m really excited to be bringing a workshop on directing and devising to Fermanagh. When I was growing up, the focus of any drama lesson I encountered was acting. I really had no idea what a director actually did until I went to college.
“And for me, it was really eye-opening as I just felt so much more suited to that role. I’d like to give the students a broader understanding of what the job means as well as share some techniques that enables the director to generate their own material.”
Rosemary added: “I can offer the students some insight into what it’s like to build a career in theatre, and hopefully give them some of the necessary tools to help them along the way.”
The workshop has been sold out.
