Conor McPherson
Encyclopedia
Conor McPherson is an Irish
playwright
and director
.
, McPherson began writing his first plays there as a member of UCD Dramsoc
, the college's dramatic society, and went on to found Fly By Night Theatre Company
which produced several of his plays. He is considered one of the best contemporary Irish playwrights; his plays have attracted good reviews, and have been performed internationally (notably in the West End and on Broadway).
The Weir
opened at the Royal Court before transferring to the West End and Broadway. It won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Play for 1999.
His 2001 play, Port Authority
tells of three interwoven lives. The play was first produced by the Gate Theatre
of Dublin but premiered at the New Ambassadors Theatre
in London in February 2001, before moving to the Gate Theatre in April of that year. The production was directed by McPherson himself. New York's Atlantic Theater Company
staged a production of the play in spring of 2008, starring Brian d'Arcy James, and Tony Award winners John Gallagher Jr. and Jim Norton. Says New York Times critic Ben Brantley, “I found myself holding on to what these actors had to say as if I were a 5-year-old at bedtime being introduced to ‘The Arabian Nights.’”
McPherson also directed his play, Dublin Carol
, at the Atlantic Theater Company, New York, in 2003.
His 2004 play Shining City
opened at the Royal Court and prompted the Daily Telegraph to describe him as "the finest dramatist of his generation..." A meditation on regret, guilt and confusion, the play is set entirely within the Dublin offices of a psychiatrist who himself has psychological secrets. Whilst much of the play takes the form of monologues delivered by a patient, the everyday stories and subtle poignancy and humour make it a riveting experience. It subsequently opened on Broadway in 2006 and was nominated for two Tony Awards, including Best Play.
In September 2006, to great critical acclaim, McPherson made his National Theatre
debut as both author and director with The Seafarer
at the Cottesloe auditorium, starring Karl Johnson
and Jim Norton
, with Ron Cook
as their poker-playing, Mephistophelean guest. Jim Norton won an Olivier Award for his performance while McPherson was nominated for both the Olivier and Evening Standard Awards for Best Play. In October 2007 The Seafarer came to Broadway keeping with it most of its creative team, including McPherson as director and both Jim Norton and Conleth Hill in their respective roles (with stage and film actor David Morse taking over as Sharky, and Ciarán Hinds
portraying Mr. Lockhart.) The production on Broadway received some rave reviews including such statements as "McPherson is quite possibly the finest playwright of his generation" from Ben Brantley at the New York Times and "Succinct, startling and eerie, and the funniest McPherson play to date" from the Observer. Jim Norton's performance as Richard Harkin in The Seafarer at The National Theatre won the 2007 Best Supporting Actor Laurence Olivier Award, and he picked up a Tony Award in 2008 for Best Featured Actor in a play.
McPherson wrote and directed a stage adaptation of Daphne Du Maurier's
story The Birds
, which opened in September 2009 at the Gate Theatre
in Dublin.
The film of his first screenplay
, I Went Down, was critically acclaimed and a great commercial success. His first feature film as a director, Saltwater, won the CICAE award for Best Film at the Berlin Film Festival. His second feature film was The Actors
, which he wrote and directed.
He is the director and co-writer of The Eclipse, a film which had its world premiere at the 2009 Tribeca Film Festival
. It was picked up for distribution by Magnolia Pictures and was released in US cinemas in Spring 2010. The film subsequently won the Melies D'Argent Award for Best European Film at Sitges in Spain - the world's premier horror and fantasy genre festival. At The 2010 Irish Film and television Awards The Eclipse won the awards for Best Film and Best Screenplay. Ciarán Hinds
won the Best Actor Award at the Tribeca Film Festival for his portrayal of Michael Farr.
Meyer Whitworth Award This Lime Tree Bower
Guinness/Royal National Theatre Ingenuity Award This Lime Tree Bower
Pearson TV Writer in Residence Award This Lime Tree Bower
Evening Standard Award The Weir
George Devine Award The Weir
Critics Circle Award The Weir
Laurence Olivier Award The Weir
Tony Award nomination for Best Play Shining City
Tony Award nominations for Best Play and Best Director The Seafarer
Laurence Olivier and Evening Standard nominations for Best Play The Seafarer
Manchester Evening News Award Best Touring Production The Seafarer
Further reading =
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
and director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
.
Life and career
McPherson was born in Dublin, . He was educated at University College DublinUniversity College Dublin
University College Dublin ) - formally known as University College Dublin - National University of Ireland, Dublin is the Republic of Ireland's largest, and Ireland's second largest, university, with over 1,300 faculty and 17,000 students...
, McPherson began writing his first plays there as a member of UCD Dramsoc
UCD Dramsoc
UCD Dramsoc is the student drama society of University College Dublin. The society was founded in 1926 and is currently in its 84th session. Since it was founded, the society has had two central objectives which are key to its ethos; firstly to be a breeding ground for emerging talent by pursuing...
, the college's dramatic society, and went on to found Fly By Night Theatre Company
Fly By Night Theatre Company
Fly by Night Theatre Company is an Irish theatre company based in Dublin. It was established in summer 1992, mostly by students from University College Dublin who had been active members of UCD Dramsoc, the student drama society. Regular members of the company were Richard Brennan, Jason Byrne,...
which produced several of his plays. He is considered one of the best contemporary Irish playwrights; his plays have attracted good reviews, and have been performed internationally (notably in the West End and on Broadway).
The Weir
The Weir
The Weir is a play written by Conor McPherson in 1997. It was first produced at The Royal Court Theatre Upstairs in London, England, on 4 July 1997. It first appeared on Broadway at the Walter Kerr Theatre on 1 April 1999. It has since been performed in Toronto, Dublin, Belfast, Boston,...
opened at the Royal Court before transferring to the West End and Broadway. It won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Play for 1999.
His 2001 play, Port Authority
Port authority
In Canada and the United States a port authority is a governmental or quasi-governmental public authority for a special-purpose district usually formed by a legislative body to operate ports and other transportation infrastructure.Port authorities are usually governed by boards or...
tells of three interwoven lives. The play was first produced by the Gate Theatre
Gate Theatre
The Gate Theatre, in Dublin, was founded in 1928 by Hilton Edwards and Micheál Mac Liammóir, initially using the Abbey Theatre's Peacock studio theatre space to stage important works by European and American dramatists...
of Dublin but premiered at the New Ambassadors Theatre
New Ambassadors Theatre
The Ambassadors Theatre , is a West End theatre located in West Street, near Cambridge Circus on the Charing Cross Road in the City of Westminster...
in London in February 2001, before moving to the Gate Theatre in April of that year. The production was directed by McPherson himself. New York's Atlantic Theater Company
Atlantic Theater Company
Atlantic Theater Company is an Off-Broadway non-profit theater, whose mission is to produce great plays "simply and truthfully utilizing an artistic ensemble." The company was founded in 1985 by David Mamet, William H. Macy, and 30 of their acting students from New York University, inspired by the...
staged a production of the play in spring of 2008, starring Brian d'Arcy James, and Tony Award winners John Gallagher Jr. and Jim Norton. Says New York Times critic Ben Brantley, “I found myself holding on to what these actors had to say as if I were a 5-year-old at bedtime being introduced to ‘The Arabian Nights.’”
McPherson also directed his play, Dublin Carol
Dublin Carol
Dublin Carol is a three-handed play by Conor McPherson-Story:John, a middle-aged employee of a funeral home in Dublin, returns from a funeral on Christmas Eve with Mark, a 20-year-old who has helped out that day and to whom John tells his sad history about how he has destroyed much of his life and...
, at the Atlantic Theater Company, New York, in 2003.
His 2004 play Shining City
Shining City
Shining City is a play by Conor McPherson, set in Dublin which was first performed in London's West End at the Royal Court Theatre in June 2004....
opened at the Royal Court and prompted the Daily Telegraph to describe him as "the finest dramatist of his generation..." A meditation on regret, guilt and confusion, the play is set entirely within the Dublin offices of a psychiatrist who himself has psychological secrets. Whilst much of the play takes the form of monologues delivered by a patient, the everyday stories and subtle poignancy and humour make it a riveting experience. It subsequently opened on Broadway in 2006 and was nominated for two Tony Awards, including Best Play.
In September 2006, to great critical acclaim, McPherson made his National Theatre
Royal National Theatre
The Royal National Theatre in London is one of the United Kingdom's two most prominent publicly funded theatre companies, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company...
debut as both author and director with The Seafarer
The Seafarer (play)
The Seafarer is a 2006 play by Irish playwright Conor McPherson. It is set on Christmas Eve in Baldoyle, a coastal suburb north of Dublin city. The play centers on James "Sharkey" Harkin, an alcoholic who has recently returned to live with his blind, aging brother, Richard Harkin...
at the Cottesloe auditorium, starring Karl Johnson
Karl Johnson
Karl Johnson is a Welsh actor, notable for acting on stage, film and television. He is the recipient of an honorary doctorate from Birmingham City University. His most notable role to date was the title role in Derek Jarman's 1993 film Wittgenstein...
and Jim Norton
Jim Norton (actor)
Jim Norton is an Irish character actor.-Performances:Jim Norton has been acting for over forty years in theatre, television, and movies, and frequently plays clergymen, most notably Bishop Brennan in the sitcom Father Ted, as well as in The Sweeney , Peak Practice , Sunset Heights , A Love Divided...
, with Ron Cook
Ron Cook
Ron Cook is an English actor who has been active in the theatre, film and television since the 1970s. He is from South Shields, Co Durham, England and is a graduate of Rose Bruford College.- Stage appearances :...
as their poker-playing, Mephistophelean guest. Jim Norton won an Olivier Award for his performance while McPherson was nominated for both the Olivier and Evening Standard Awards for Best Play. In October 2007 The Seafarer came to Broadway keeping with it most of its creative team, including McPherson as director and both Jim Norton and Conleth Hill in their respective roles (with stage and film actor David Morse taking over as Sharky, and Ciarán Hinds
Ciarán Hinds
Ciarán Hinds is an Irish film, television and stage actor. He has built up a reputation as a versatile character actor appearing in such high profile films as Road to Perdition, The Phantom of the Opera, Munich, There Will Be Blood and Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy. His television roles include...
portraying Mr. Lockhart.) The production on Broadway received some rave reviews including such statements as "McPherson is quite possibly the finest playwright of his generation" from Ben Brantley at the New York Times and "Succinct, startling and eerie, and the funniest McPherson play to date" from the Observer. Jim Norton's performance as Richard Harkin in The Seafarer at The National Theatre won the 2007 Best Supporting Actor Laurence Olivier Award, and he picked up a Tony Award in 2008 for Best Featured Actor in a play.
McPherson wrote and directed a stage adaptation of Daphne Du Maurier's
Daphne du Maurier
Dame Daphne du Maurier, Lady Browning DBE was a British author and playwright.Many of her works have been adapted into films, including the novels Rebecca and Jamaica Inn and the short stories "The Birds" and "Don't Look Now". The first three were directed by Alfred Hitchcock.Her elder sister was...
story The Birds
The Birds (story)
"The Birds" is a famous novelette by Daphne du Maurier, first published in her 1952 collection The Apple Tree. It is the story of a farmhand, his family, and his community, who are attacked by flocks of seabirds who have organized themselves into avian suicide warriors. The story is set in...
, which opened in September 2009 at the Gate Theatre
Gate Theatre
The Gate Theatre, in Dublin, was founded in 1928 by Hilton Edwards and Micheál Mac Liammóir, initially using the Abbey Theatre's Peacock studio theatre space to stage important works by European and American dramatists...
in Dublin.
The film of his first screenplay
Screenplay
A screenplay or script is a written work that is made especially for a film or television program. Screenplays can be original works or adaptations from existing pieces of writing. In them, the movement, actions, expression, and dialogues of the characters are also narrated...
, I Went Down, was critically acclaimed and a great commercial success. His first feature film as a director, Saltwater, won the CICAE award for Best Film at the Berlin Film Festival. His second feature film was The Actors
The Actors
The Actors is a 2003 film written and directed by Conor McPherson and starring Dylan Moran and Michael Caine. In supporting roles are Michael Gambon, Miranda Richardson and Lena Headey ....
, which he wrote and directed.
He is the director and co-writer of The Eclipse, a film which had its world premiere at the 2009 Tribeca Film Festival
Tribeca Film Festival
The Tribeca Film Festival is a film festival founded in 2002 by Jane Rosenthal, Robert De Niro and Craig Hatkoff in a response to the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and the consequent loss of vitality in the TriBeCa neighborhood in Lower Manhattan.The mission of the festival...
. It was picked up for distribution by Magnolia Pictures and was released in US cinemas in Spring 2010. The film subsequently won the Melies D'Argent Award for Best European Film at Sitges in Spain - the world's premier horror and fantasy genre festival. At The 2010 Irish Film and television Awards The Eclipse won the awards for Best Film and Best Screenplay. Ciarán Hinds
Ciarán Hinds
Ciarán Hinds is an Irish film, television and stage actor. He has built up a reputation as a versatile character actor appearing in such high profile films as Road to Perdition, The Phantom of the Opera, Munich, There Will Be Blood and Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy. His television roles include...
won the Best Actor Award at the Tribeca Film Festival for his portrayal of Michael Farr.
Theatre Awards
Stewart Parker Award The Good ThiefThe Good Thief
The Good Thief is a 2002 crime thriller film starring Nick Nolte, Emir Kusturica, and Nutsa Kukhianidze, and directed by Neil Jordan. It is a remake of the 1955 French film Bob le flambeur by Jean-Pierre Melville...
Meyer Whitworth Award This Lime Tree Bower
This Lime Tree Bower
This Lime Tree Bower is an early play by Conor McPherson. The title is taken from the poem of the same name by Samuel Taylor Coleridge. Originally produced and directed at the Crypt Theatre Dublin by the author himself, it later transferred to the Bush Theatre London...
Guinness/Royal National Theatre Ingenuity Award This Lime Tree Bower
This Lime Tree Bower
This Lime Tree Bower is an early play by Conor McPherson. The title is taken from the poem of the same name by Samuel Taylor Coleridge. Originally produced and directed at the Crypt Theatre Dublin by the author himself, it later transferred to the Bush Theatre London...
Pearson TV Writer in Residence Award This Lime Tree Bower
This Lime Tree Bower
This Lime Tree Bower is an early play by Conor McPherson. The title is taken from the poem of the same name by Samuel Taylor Coleridge. Originally produced and directed at the Crypt Theatre Dublin by the author himself, it later transferred to the Bush Theatre London...
Evening Standard Award The Weir
The Weir
The Weir is a play written by Conor McPherson in 1997. It was first produced at The Royal Court Theatre Upstairs in London, England, on 4 July 1997. It first appeared on Broadway at the Walter Kerr Theatre on 1 April 1999. It has since been performed in Toronto, Dublin, Belfast, Boston,...
George Devine Award The Weir
The Weir
The Weir is a play written by Conor McPherson in 1997. It was first produced at The Royal Court Theatre Upstairs in London, England, on 4 July 1997. It first appeared on Broadway at the Walter Kerr Theatre on 1 April 1999. It has since been performed in Toronto, Dublin, Belfast, Boston,...
Critics Circle Award The Weir
The Weir
The Weir is a play written by Conor McPherson in 1997. It was first produced at The Royal Court Theatre Upstairs in London, England, on 4 July 1997. It first appeared on Broadway at the Walter Kerr Theatre on 1 April 1999. It has since been performed in Toronto, Dublin, Belfast, Boston,...
Laurence Olivier Award The Weir
The Weir
The Weir is a play written by Conor McPherson in 1997. It was first produced at The Royal Court Theatre Upstairs in London, England, on 4 July 1997. It first appeared on Broadway at the Walter Kerr Theatre on 1 April 1999. It has since been performed in Toronto, Dublin, Belfast, Boston,...
Tony Award nomination for Best Play Shining City
Shining City
Shining City is a play by Conor McPherson, set in Dublin which was first performed in London's West End at the Royal Court Theatre in June 2004....
Tony Award nominations for Best Play and Best Director The Seafarer
The Seafarer
The Seafarer may refer to the following:*The Seafarer , a play by Conor McPherson*"The Seafarer" , an Old English poem*The Seafarers, a short film by Stanley Kubrick...
Laurence Olivier and Evening Standard nominations for Best Play The Seafarer
The Seafarer
The Seafarer may refer to the following:*The Seafarer , a play by Conor McPherson*"The Seafarer" , an Old English poem*The Seafarers, a short film by Stanley Kubrick...
Manchester Evening News Award Best Touring Production The Seafarer
The Seafarer
The Seafarer may refer to the following:*The Seafarer , a play by Conor McPherson*"The Seafarer" , an Old English poem*The Seafarers, a short film by Stanley Kubrick...
Selected films
- I Went Down (1997) (writer)
- Endgame (2000) (director)
- The ActorsThe ActorsThe Actors is a 2003 film written and directed by Conor McPherson and starring Dylan Moran and Michael Caine. In supporting roles are Michael Gambon, Miranda Richardson and Lena Headey ....
(2003) (writer & director) - The EclipseThe Eclipse (film)The Eclipse is a 2009 Irish supernatural drama film directed by Conor McPherson and stars Ciarán Hinds, Iben Hjejle and Aidan Quinn.-Premise:...
(2009) (co-writer & director)
Plays
- Rum and Vodka (1992)
- The Good Thief (1994)
- This Lime Tree BowerThis Lime Tree BowerThis Lime Tree Bower is an early play by Conor McPherson. The title is taken from the poem of the same name by Samuel Taylor Coleridge. Originally produced and directed at the Crypt Theatre Dublin by the author himself, it later transferred to the Bush Theatre London...
(1995) - St. Nicholas (1997)
- The WeirThe WeirThe Weir is a play written by Conor McPherson in 1997. It was first produced at The Royal Court Theatre Upstairs in London, England, on 4 July 1997. It first appeared on Broadway at the Walter Kerr Theatre on 1 April 1999. It has since been performed in Toronto, Dublin, Belfast, Boston,...
(1997) - Dublin CarolDublin CarolDublin Carol is a three-handed play by Conor McPherson-Story:John, a middle-aged employee of a funeral home in Dublin, returns from a funeral on Christmas Eve with Mark, a 20-year-old who has helped out that day and to whom John tells his sad history about how he has destroyed much of his life and...
(2000) - Port AuthorityPort Authority (play)Port Authority is a 2001 play by Conor McPherson. It tells of three interwoven lives: a boy leaves home for the first time; a man starts a job for which he is unqualified; a pensioner is sent a mysterious package....
(2001) - Come on OverCome on Over (play)Come on Over is a 2001 one-act play written by Conor McPherson. It consists of two overlapping monolgoues given by Matthew, a former Jesuit priest and Margaret, his lover from the village he grew up in....
(2001) - Shining CityShining CityShining City is a play by Conor McPherson, set in Dublin which was first performed in London's West End at the Royal Court Theatre in June 2004....
(2004) - The SeafarerThe Seafarer (play)The Seafarer is a 2006 play by Irish playwright Conor McPherson. It is set on Christmas Eve in Baldoyle, a coastal suburb north of Dublin city. The play centers on James "Sharkey" Harkin, an alcoholic who has recently returned to live with his blind, aging brother, Richard Harkin...
(2006) - The BirdsThe Birds (story)"The Birds" is a famous novelette by Daphne du Maurier, first published in her 1952 collection The Apple Tree. It is the story of a farmhand, his family, and his community, who are attacked by flocks of seabirds who have organized themselves into avian suicide warriors. The story is set in...
(adaptation)(2009)
External links
- Interview with Conor McPherson for "The Eclipse," IFC.com
- Comprehensive Playography
- Article on The Birds, by [Andréa Grunert in [http://www.objectif-cinema.com]November 2009 [French]
- http://www.objectif-cinema.com/spip.php?article5290 Interview with Conor McPherson, by [Andréa Grunert] in [http://www.objectif-cinema.com] March 2010 [French]
- http://www.scope.nottingham.ac.uk/filmreview.php?issue=19&id=1257 Review: THE ECLIPSE, by [Andrea Grunert] in [http://www.scope.nottingham.ac.uk] February 2011
Further reading =
- Allen Randolph, Jody. "Conor McPherson." Close to the Next Moment: Interviews from a Changing Ireland. Manchester: Carcanet 2010.
- Grunert, Andrea. "The Eclipse" in: Enzyklopädie des Phantastischen Films, Meitingen: Corian Verlag, 90 (June 2010):1-8, ISBN 9783890484907.