Irish Theatre
William Butler Yates and Isabella Augusta Persse, Lady Gregory founded the Irish Literary Theatre in 1899. Its purpose was to foster Irish poetic drama. However, nationalism grasped the country, and these literary figures began staging native-born plays. This literary endeavor became the National Theatre Society and its home became the Abbey Theatre. Other literary greats who contributed their talents as directors and dramatists included J.M. Synge and A.E. (George Russell).
Irish history was the theme of many of the productions in the early years. After World War I there were topics on Northern Ireland, the 1916 Easter Rising and geography of a divided Ireland. Lady Gregory, in her writings, worked at revising the Victorian images of Ireland as a land of 'buffoones', of blarney-speaking, whiskey-swilling, stage Irishmen.
The Celtic Revival was a return to the Irish language and mythology. There was a hunger for culture in music and linguistics. The 1890s were a crucial period for the reclamation of cultural Ireland. Stories and plays were written about figures in Ireland's past such as CuChulainn, and the Ulster cycle.
Internationally renowned Irish writers from the early 20th Century include those previously mentioned along with: James Joyce, George Bernard Shaw, and Sean O'Casey. William Butler Yates won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1923. Over the past century there have been many great playwrights out of Ireland.
The Abbey and Peacock Theatres constitute the National Theatre of Ireland; both are located in Dublin. Throughout Ireland, there are many theatres and drama companies that perform the plays of Irish writers. Ireland's literary heritage excels throughout the world. There are a variety of art and theatre festivals that take place throughout the year around the country.
