Blood in the Dirt Event – The New Theatre

A new play by Rory Gleeson

Presented by Landmark Productions and Keynote Productions

When Big Jim Donnelly moves to Biddulph, Ontario in 1845, and stakes a claim on settled land, the locals know there will be trouble.
Based on a true story, spiralling down the centuries, Blood in the Dirt traces the history of violence in modern settlement, the cost of survival, and the meaning of legacy.

Written by Rory Gleeson, Caitríona McLaughlin directs one of Ireland’s leading actors, Lorcan Cranitch, in this epic tale of family, dispossession and the attachment to land.

Cast and Creatives

Lorcan Cranitch

Cast

Caitríona McLaughlin

Director

Paul Keogan

Set and Lighting Design

Ciara Fleming

Costume Design

Sinead Diskin

Sound Design

Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh

Composer

Reviews

★★★★
“The ghost of Bull McCabe is never far away in Rory Gleeson’s visceral and violent “Blood in the Dirt,” a tale of man’s love of the land, and of the men who work and own it … an experience as viscerally earthy as it is exhilarating to watch.
Immersed in a language full of the muddied, bloodied, soil and stone of the land, “Blood in the Dirt” proves visceral and powerful in equal measure. All brought vividly to life by a towering performance from Cranitch.”

-- The Arts Review
★★★
“Rory Gleeson breathes life into an Irish-Canadian folk tale … Gleeson’s debut play is a timely commentary on the rights of possession and the balance of power … aesthetically the piece is a triumph of subtlety. Paul Keogan’s set and lighting design work in unison to deliver Caitríona McLaughlin’s vision as director … Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh’s evocative score creates an absorbing atmosphere“

-- Irish Times