Lay Me Down Softly
Mon 11 Jul 2011 – Sat 6 Aug 2011
Presented by Wexford Arts Centre in association with Mosshouse
‘Dark-cornered and bloody-nosed, Lay Me Down Softly is a knockout piece of writing, brilliantly performed and reeking of sweat and canvas.’ The Mail On Sunday
‘…so evocative that you can almost smell the dust and sweat’
‘A truly captivating affair. The Wexford writer shows a boundless aptitude for capturing human emotion and delights in throwing it full force at his audience in this depiction of the old school Irish carnival boxing booth… I defy anyone not to get drawn in straight away.’
‘…intimate and soft… Roche evokes the poignancy of thwarted ambition’
‘…delights in the anecdotal quirk and the incorrigible way that comedy and tragedy leak into each other’ The Independent
‘Of epic significance’
‘A Quiet Gem.. Superb ensemble performances.. beautiful writing and box clever directing… a joy to watch’
Roll-up, roll-up, and enter the shady world of Delaney’s Travelling Roadshow…
Step inside the boxing ring… smell it, sense it, feel it. And somewhere between the fights and the fortune tellers, the bookies and the bloodshed, rub shoulders with its wayward wards.
Set in rural Ireland in the early 60s, Lay Me Down Softly takes us inside the darkly comic and colourful world of the old travelling carnival. When young runaway Emer arrives in search of her long lost father, and a challenge from a professional boxer is thrown into the ring, everything in this run-down sideshow is set to change forever.
Inhabiting a forgotten world that is nonetheless brimming with all too-familiar passions and human foibles, Lay Me Down Softly is a slice of vintage Roche. It follows his acclaimed productions The Wexford Trilogy and The Cavalcaders and other much-loved tales of small-town Ireland.
Cast includes Gary Lydon, Michael O’Hagan, Anthony Morris, Simone Kirby, Pagan McGrath, Dermot Murphy and Declan Dempsey.
Creatives include Billy Roche (Director), Buí Bolg (Designer), Paul Keogan (Lighting Designer) and Mick Egan (Sound Designer).