Before

Description

Some folk are impossible to buy for. Mama said it's because they are usually the ones who are impossible to know... Before is set in Clerys of Dublin, on the very day this iconic department store shuts - for good. Pontius is inside, trying to choose a gift for his estranged daughter, whom he hasn't seen for almost 20 years. He will meet her in an hour. This father's journey is both beautiful and strange, from the isolation of his Midlands home to the madness of O'Connell Street. Before is a new play with much music, which follows the runaway international success of Fishamble's Pat Kinevane Trilogy (Forgotten, Silent and Underneath), which have won Olivier, Scotsman Fringe First, Herald Angel, Argus Angel, Adelaide Fringe and Stage Raw LA awards. This edition was published to coincide with the original production which was first produced by Fishamble: The New Play Company in November 2018.

Pat Kinevane is a native of Cobh, Co. Cork. He has worked as an actor in theatre, film, television and radio for 27 years. ?In 2016 Pat won a Laurence Olivier Award in London for his Outstanding Achievement as an Actor and a Writer this year. This prestigous award was shared with Fishamble and Jim Culleton who have been integral to the Production and Direction of Pat's three Solo Shows. As a writer he completed his first full length play The Nun's Wood in 1997 which won a BBC Stewart Parker Trust Award and was produced by Fishamble. Fishamble then produced his second play The Plains of Enna (Dublin Theatre Festival 1999). Pat wrote The Death of Herod for Mysteries 2000 at the SFX. In 2008 his piece Evangeline Elsewhere premiered in New York in the First Irish Festival. Pat has been touring since 2006 with his three solo pieces Forgotten (Irish Times Theatre Award Nominee) and Silent (Scotsman Fringe First, Herald Angel and Brighton Argus Angel Award) and Underneath (Scotsman Fringe First and Adelaide Fringe Awards) all produced by Fishamble. Pat is deeply thankful to Fishamble for all of their work and endless support..

Passionate one-man show...Mr. Kinevane interprets Valentino's highly theatrical screen presence to stunning effect...carefully wrought production...[he] doesn't just demand [the audience's] attention, he commands it. And that difference is what makes Mr. Kinevane an artist of the theater. -- Ben Brantley * Bne Brantley, New York Times (on Silent) * Kinevane moves, in a striking performance under Jim Culleton's effective direction, with the elegance of a dancer and the engaged poise of a boxer. It's a startling combination...the caress of poetry and the disarming direct address of stand-up...a moving story, which, until its end, pulses with the erratic noise of life. * Irish Times (on Silent) * EXTRAORDINARY... sit back and enjoy * New York Times (on Underneath) * CRITIC'S CHOICE... RIVETING... finely tuned direction... Psychological insight, compassion and darkly comic wit. * LA Times (on Underneath) * Skillfully crafted...fabulously choreographed...impeccable sound and lighting...visually exciting * Sunday Times *