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The Creative Process

Robbie Blake's transcription of Friel's markings

This is Robbie Blake’s transcription of markings made by Brian Friel on a page of notes towards Dancing at Lughnasa (1990). Robbie first consulted the Brian Friel Papers at the National Library of Ireland’s reading room on Kildare Street in February 2019, and was struck by the resemblance of Friel’s annotations to graphic notation. This inspired them to create a graphic score for the piece that was to become ‘Running the ending’.

Video

Friel's creative process

Friel scholar Zosia Kuczyńska gives an overview of some of the distinctive features of playwright Brian Friel’s creative process as revealed by his literary archives at the National Library of Ireland.

Lámhscríbhinn Ghaolmhar

Michael's monologue

This draft of Michael’s opening/closing monologue from Dancing at Lughnasa (1990) features some of the ways in which Friel would annotate his notes.

Lámhscríbhinn Ghaolmhar

Structure the ages.

In Friel’s play Dancing at Lughnasa (1990), the radio is an important theatrical device. Apart from connecting the Mundy sisters to an emerging modernity, it also functions as an almost supernatural presence as it makes sudden musical intrusions that disturb the domestic scene.