I returned to Ireland from Chicago last week sure in the knowledge that the American premiere of my play, Belfast Girls, is in the excellent hands of the Artemisia Theatre Company. Julie Proudfoot has handled the play beautifully. With a barebones set she has managed to brilliantly evoke the journey my girls take to Australia in 1850. And the actresses playing the Belfast Girls - well, they are all absolutely outstanding. This production is exactly as I hoped it would be: a powerful ensemble piece with five roles for five amazingly talented young women. When I met the actresses in person I was stunned at how young they actually are and yet the power they bring to those roles really is jaw-dropping. So is Belfast Girls in Chicago a success? Undoubtedly - and I owe this entirely to Julie Proudfoot and her incredible all-female team of actors, designers and technical staff. I am extremely proud of this production. I was thrilled anyway that Belfast Girls was going to get ...
The blog of writer, Jaki McCarrick.