FERMANAGH actor and artistic director Dylan Quinn wanted to explore “my sense of belonging” to Enniskillen and the county as he brings the magical story of his grandfather to life on stage.
Theatre performance ‘My Grandfather’s House’ recounts the role that his grandparent, Brendan Burns, played in the Royal Marines and the effects of violence in the county during The Troubles.
“I was interested in exploring my sense of belonging to this place and how this had been influenced by my grandparents and in particular my maternal grandfather,” Mr Quinn explained.
“I was fortunate to know all of my grandparents. In my granda Burns case, I identified with what I felt was both a strong sense of belonging and being separate or separated from this home place.
“This becomes particularly apparent when we review my life, between the collapse of the Sunningdale Agreement in 1974 and the establishment of the Good Friday Agreement,” he added.
Running until Saturday (March 29), four people each night are afforded the opportunity to experience the play on a special constructed performance space in Quay Lane in Enniskillen.
‘My Grandfather’s House’ will be set in a 1970-styled Belmore Street and through theatre, movement and music, the audience will be invited to interact and experience the old Enniskillen.
The National Lottery, the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, The Reconciliation Fund Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and Experience Enniskillen have all financially supported the project.
Head of Drama and Dance at the Arts Council, Alison McCrudden, is excited by the scheme.
“Dylan Quinn is one of our leading dance and movement theatre artists and we are delighted to support his work with National Lottery funding,” explained Ms Crudden.
“His practice includes a particularly strong, innovative strand of site-specific work around rural Fermanagh, so we are excited to see this work develop as a result of a Commemoration Attachment at the Abbey Theatre Dublin and a Commissioning Award from the Arts Council of NI.
“‘My Grandfather’s House’ is another quality collaboration, choreographer and performer Dylan Quinn working with composer Andy Garbi, a British Himalayan artist.”
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