Curtain up and light the lights | Micheál Phelan
With UCC’s Dramatic Society kicking off another year of productions and theatrical events, Micheál Phelan tells us what’s in store.
The UCC Dramatic Society is one of the oldest societies on campus and has an exciting year of theatre and events planned for students and staff. For those who don’t know much about the society, Dramat allows you to explore all areas of theatre including acting, directing, lighting design, costumer design, make-up and hair design and stage management. Even if you are just interested in being a full time audience member, there’s something there for you! They also hold a variety of workshops that are beneficial on both a theatrical and personal level. Dramat’s aim is to provide their members with a society where they can come together and interact creatively and socially.
This college year is packed with new productions and events which are open to new and old members. This semester alone, Dramat will be producing four main stage productions, a Panto, as well as holding workshops and society nights out. There will also be a Short Play Festival of original writing or other which will run from 30 October to 3 November. The majority of their productions are produced in the UCC Granary Theatre, which is located in the Connolly Building Complex along Western Road.
Their four mainstage productions for semester 1 include Stop Kiss directed by Carine Natin, The Disappearing Dogs directed by Rory McConville, The Seafarer directed by Barry Whelan and The Big Boy directed by Jack Holland. Auditions for these first semester productions will take place on Tuesday 2 and Wednesday 3 October in the Connolly Building complex on Western Road and are open to all students. Even if you don’t have the confidence to perform, you can take part in all the action backstage.
This coming March, UCC will host the Irish Student Drama Association Festival where amateur student drama societies from all universities and ITs throughout Ireland send their best productions of the year to go and compete in the ISDA Festival. It is definitely a great way to meet students from other drama societies in other colleges. Last year, UCC Dramat took home three awards including ‘Best Set’, ‘Best Ensemble’ and a discretionary award as well as being nominated in other categories at the ISDA Festival 2012 in UCD. They’ll be hoping to emulate the same success with their productions this year.
If all that still hasn’t taken your fancy, or if you want to find out more information about the society and the aspects of Dramat life, the society will be holding their Information Night on Monday 1 October in the Connolly Building Complex. For those who are new to UCC and want a taste of Dramat, there will be a Fresher’s Fest Variety Show in the Drama Lab in the Connolly Building for the annual Societies Day.