Glenties Drama Group present Brian Friel fundraiser

Glenties Drama Group are looking forward to presenting An Evening of Dramatised Readings from the works of the master playwright Brian Friel at 8pm on Friday, February 23 at the Highlands Hotel. 

All proceeds from the night will go to the building of The Brian Friel Centre in his beloved Ballybeg, Glenties.

Friel was one of Ireland’s greatest playwrights with his works performed all over the world from Broadway to the West End from the Abbey Theatre to the Tyrone Guthrie Centre in Minneapolis. But it is Glenties and the surrounding Donegal landscape, that has become immortalised in several of his plays as the fictional village 'Ballybeg'.

Whether you are already a fan of Friel’s work or someone who enjoys good writing and drama, there is a wide variety of extracts to enjoy. 

Readings will include pieces from Philadelphia Here I Come,  Faith Healer, Freedom of the City, Translations, Lovers and Dancing at Lughnasa with a reading from one of his wonderful short stories Mr Sing My Heart’s Delight. 

There will be some musical interludes too. Doors open at 7:30pm and admission is €10, all cash.

The Brian Friel Trust was established in 2017 to found a 'Brian Friel Centre', honouring his rich cultural legacy. The vision and plan of the Trust is to establish a centre incorporating 'The Laurels' and 'The Court House' in Glenties. The Laurels was home to Brian Friel's mother and is the setting of his play 'Dancing at Lughnasa'.

The Trust's ongoing vision is to completely restore and renovate The Laurels as the Dancing at Lughnasa House and to establish the main centre in the nearby Court House.

Since 2017, the Trust has sourced the funds to buy The Laurels and has secured the integrity of the building, which had fallen into disrepair, including the roof, windows and outer walls which have now been weatherproofed.

Just down the road from The Laurels is The Court House, which the Trust secured from Donegal County Council last year. Plans for The Court House which were developed earlier this year by CHL Consulting and John McLaughlin Architects include a vibrant, dynamic and creative interpretative visitor attraction, containing elements of the Friel archive - displays of photographs, letters, theatrical memorabilia, as well as Brian's reading library and a performance space.

Phase One is now complete at the cost of €110,000. The projected cost of the entire project will be in the region of €5 million. Phase two has now been launched and with the support of a GoFundMe campaign, which has raised almost €20,000 to date, will provide the vital next step for the completion of the entire project.