The call out is simple: they ask artists from all over the country for their most outrageous, imaginative, enthusiastic, multi-genre, awe-inspiring, tear-inducing, laughter-medicinal, audience-wowing ideas to tantalise their taste buds and catapult your brain waves on to our stages. The main idea is that this must be new work, never seen before either onstage or in front of an audience.
Gotcha! Though looking at the absolute feast of an event bill, the programming is far from simple with all genres and types of presentations – music, dance, comedy, theatre, improv, spoken word, drag, circus, aerial or all the above in a symphonic smorgasbord – represented. Now in its ninth year Scene + Heard continues to go from strength to strength with its thrilling mix of creativity and bold experimentation as artists from across Ireland and beyond showcase their innovative new ideas, giving audiences an exclusive chance to witness the genesis of exciting future productions. This year, the festival will debut 111 brand-new works, featuring over 600 performers, designers, directors, and creators. The selection celebrates daring ideas, artistic fusion, and creative risk-taking. Audiences are invited to engage directly, offering vital feedback that helps shape the final evolution of these works.
The evolution of the Festival emanates from their heartfelt proclamations that define its culture implicitly; the belief that Art is supposed to reach its audience and that it is the prerogative of the work to sometimes not work. They also believe that the audience should be instrumental to the development of Art. Development is a key word in the Scene + Heard lexicon.
Festival founder Caoimhe Connolly says, “I think sometimes with live performance, and with theater particularly, it doesn’t get tested before it gets mounted into a full scale production. So we started from the concept that audiences are not stupid. And if they don’t understand what’s happening on stage, be it improv or comedy or theater or whatever you’re having yourself, then the artist needs to go back to the drawing board and rework that idea before they spend the time and money on mounting a full scale production.
“The whole idea of the festival was that we guide them through a creative process. We teach them, so it’s very practical. We do mentoring and workshops and talk them through the nuts and bolts of what they have to do. The beauty of it is that they get to test 10 or 15 minutes of their work with us, where we’ve taken the risk and we’ve hired the venue and we’ve looked after them in terms of insurance and all that kind of detail and they really just get to connect with the audience in the room.”
While the Festival is primarily known as a safe space to try out ideas, its success rate in kick-starting productions that do make it to the stage is growing exponentially. “When we started the festival we had this idea that if we could put on 100 shows and if 10 of them went on to tour the country or to do full runs that would be mega but actually, what’s happened with this platform over the last couple of years is that nearly 65% of these people are moving on and doing something with their work.
“The time of year is very good, because we’re pre-Dublin Fringe, pre-Edinburgh Fringe, pre-Galway Theatre Festival, the Australian comedy festivals and the Adelaide Fringe, and then obviously the music festivals in the summer, so there’s an opportunity for the artist to present an excerpt and invite people in to see it. It’s an ideal showcase for funders, audiences, fans of an established artist, potential collaborators or Festival programmers to see if there is room there to expand on something.”
In these days where independent voices are finding it harder to be heard, an event such as this offers young actors AND creatives a vital opportunity to showcase work. Like all emerging showcases in every artistic field you sometimes have to wade through the crap to find the nuggets but the journey is always an exciting one. Let’s take a quick look at this truly diverse programme.
For Comedy lovers the multilingual marvel Perfectionistá odes to women through camp humour, while Coconut Bit dives into the hilarity of sound design. Mercury Rising offers a goofy twist on reality, and Lock Up Your Uncles sees one woman’s determined quest for Ireland’s hottest uncle. For fans of chaotic charm, Dada Dojo by Paul Currie promises absurdist antics. For an exotic buzz The Ballad of Levi Strauss, Francis Breen’s denim-clad cowboy comedy, and As An Immigrant, I Love Ireland, Dhruv’s witty take on cultural differences look fascinating while Same As It Ever Was compares past and present with sharp comedic observations and Brian Garvan’s Amsterdam spins a slideshow of a hilariously bad trip. For tragicomic fans, Slap Me Thrice And Hand Me To Me Mama explores Kevin McNally’s thespian highs and lows. The satirical Cronie Brothers: Free Trial delves into selling out, Porno uses clowns to twist live sex show tropes, and These Sketch’d Times brings timely humour to deeply unfunny times.
For Dance and Physical Theatre fans there’s delight in daring displays of dynamic storytelling and visceral visuals that will move you to the edge of your seat. Please Break My Heart transforms heartbreak into endless inspiration, while White-Knuckled grips audiences with the gut-wrenching pain of breaking free from bonds. In Wrestling is Fake, the performers hilariously prove their point with high-energy antics. Rooted & Rising: A Dance of Two Selves offers an immersive journey of self-discovery and cultural integration, while Cult of Aerobics unleashes the audience’s potential with vibrant, vivacious routines. Itch scratches at the struggles of living with adversity, and Las Cuatro delivers an all-female, comedic, surreal circus cabaret that promises to amaze and amuse in equal measure.
Deep diving into thought-provoking performances that explore identity, self-discovery, and the essence of being Hoteru takes audiences on a transformative travel journey, while The Dirt on Your Shoe emphasizes self-care and the power of prioritizing oneself. Cravings humorously confronts diet culture and the struggle for self-acceptance, and Feral Women offers a visceral exploration of inner battles. The Big Chop bravely examines the challenge of facing yourself, and Fifteen Minutes of Shame delves into the question, “Who are you, really?”. In The Borderlands Personality Disorder, borders—both physical and metaphorical—are examined for the limits they impose, while The Problem with Kate Winslet’s Dress is an absurdist journey through hope and human resilience. How to Have Fun as an Adult champions the useless, indulgent, and absolutely essential, while Parasocial Pat hilariously laments his ghosting by his favourite podcast.
Lose yourself in the captivating complexities of love, loss, and laughter as I Had a Dream I Shot You in the Head…but the Calibre Wasn’t Very Big explores love’s absurd extremes while Play It Again immerses us in the poignant pangs of hopeless romance. In Love Me Do, drag meets clown and dark humour to reveal the hilarity and heartbreak of relationships. Amsterdam navigates the tender turmoil of friends falling in love, and E-N-D-S hilariously dissects breakups over “Friends” the show. Part(s) (W)Hole turns a dykey breakup into a musical catharsis, while A Red Romeo and A Blue Julian showcase fiery fights and passionate reconciliations, proving love’s many shapes and shades will leave you laughing, crying, and utterly enthralled.
Music is well represented with hilariously titled works like My “Best” Friend Left Me in the River with My Uileann Pipes to Die, where haunting harmonies entwine with a tale of betrayal, while Shaving Ysbaddaden brings bards together to weave an epic, enchanting tale. Animal Farm 2: The Moosical! humorously re-imagines Orwell’s classic with musical flair, and Beautiful Broken Things embraces why we’re here in the first place with a melodic exploration of meaning. Son of a Witch delivers a ballad of grief and resilience for those left behind, and I Wouldn’t Mind Control reminds us that healing has no off button. Gleek of the Week celebrates the transformative power of art through a Glee-inspired journey, while Please Hold captivates with sex, synths, and a live, liminal experience. Finally, Your Heart is an Empty Room tackles the tangled emotions of heartbreak—because band breakups can hurt even more than romantic ones.
Immerse yourself in insightful, impactful stories that spotlight society’s struggles and strengths. Big Yellow Letters and Fanny Riot explode with the chaos and catharsis of the Dublin riots, while It’s F- confronts the complexities of women’s healthcare. In Late Night Station, two guards navigate sticky situations with humour and heart, and Working Load Limit tackles digital overload with daring, dynamic flair. I Want to Speak to Your Manager hilariously tracks a woman’s radical transformation into a “Karen”, while Forbidden Fruit builds bonds through the universal language of food. Celebrate resilience in The Quiet Men, a tribute to actors Barry Fitzgerald and Arthur Shields, and Adelphi ’63, a nostalgic ode to joy and the Beatles.
Monere unpacks bigotry’s impact, A Scream in Search of a Mouth explores the anatomy of femicide, and Sorry That Happened to You bravely examines life after the trauma of rape. Dark comedy shines in Too Big to Try and Free Drugs and Killer Whales, probing corporate greed and underwater absurdities with razor-sharp wit.
For Experimental and Avant-Garde enthusiasts Bird Face, but it’s a Mask blurs the boundaries between identity and anonymity, while Something Up Ahead draws us into the lives of strangers on a late-night train. Grindset hilariously satirizes the pursuit of life optimization, and Alejandro Reads a Poem poetically ponders immortality. The Land That Never Was brings a conman’s wild scam to life, and An Impulsive Absorption of Everything transforms life into art with chaotic creativity. Witness Fin. – The Harbinger of Death’s first day for a darkly comedic take on existential bureaucracy, or marvel at monotony in 40 Minute Encore. Synaesthesia creates a sensory symphony of light, sound, and colour, while Introduction to Charcoal challenges perceptions with a staged life-drawing class. Detention plunges into a dystopian Dublin where history’s lies unravel, Immolation Papers brings sacrificial rites to the stage, and Sheep! uses woolly metaphors to hold a mirror to us all.
For ‘purer’ theatrical experiences The New Warrior embarks on a heroic journey as the son of Achilles sets out to finish what his father started. Siege humorously tackles the struggles of outwitting starvation in 1690s Ireland, while Dead Monks follows monks facing fateful decisions as Vikings descend. In Go West!, two cartographers hilariously navigate the impossible task of creating the perfect map, and The Philosopher and the Ancient God humorously chronicles an epic quest for a sandwich. Relive nostalgia with VHS: A Journey Through Personal Cinema, immersing audiences in the magic of 90s home videos, and dive into A Cruel & Uncaring God, a darkly comedic ode to the chaotic world of The Sims. These tales promise a roller-coaster of emotions—expect to laugh, cry, and cheer through these timeless theatrical treasures.
Rehearsed readings include Disturbed which delivers twisted sketches spotlighting obnoxious morons, blending biting humour with brilliant absurdity. In One Giant Leap Present: Show Jumps, audiences will revel in an afternoon of new writing, each piece a polished gem in progress. Finally, Reality Check combines a comedy TV pilot reading with partial improvisation, promising an unpredictable and uproarious experience.
Explorations of human connections abound as Trapped humorously highlights a boss’s predicament stuck in the toilet, while Córchuimhne immerses audiences in a father and son’s shared memories through virtual reality as Gaeilge. Common Girls captures the compelling reunion of estranged roommates, and How May I Help You unravels a strange workplace occurrence. The Debutante takes us on a touching mother-daughter journey, while Proud Father, Exhausted Dad! hilariously chronicles one man’s struggle with his questionable life choices. In Forever Twenty, the profound pain of losing a loved one is tenderly explored, while Wop bop a loo bop a lop bomb om delivers an unforgettable holiday story. Finally, Do I Have to Cancel My Grandfather? dives deep into an extraordinary conversation with a deceased grandfather through his work.
The Tiny Lock-In combines sketch comedy with audience interaction, promising unpredictable hilarity. In Hivemind, you’ll connect with your phone to collaboratively solve puzzles, while Cuckcrow captivates with a contemporary opera steeped in farcical intrigue. Leonora stirs the senses with a surreal recipe for erotic dreams, and Broads packs sharp wit and unapologetic humour into a riotous one-woman show. Thrifted Spirits infuses old clothes with the haunting stories of their previous owners, and Anonn invites audiences to witness a medium connecting with actual spirits. In Combat Cabaret, you’ll laugh, cry, and brace yourself for dramatic twists, while The Vinonauts delivers a family-friendly, comic caper through 19th-century France.
For audiences, the festival isn’t just about watching – it’s about participating. Feedback mechanisms include in-person ballots, digital forms, and direct post-show conversations. This invaluable input helps artists refine their work while offering the audience a sense of ownership in the creative process so don’t be shy, tell them what you think!
Words: John Brereton
Scene + Heard runs at Smock Alley Theatre from Feb 13th to March 1st.
sceneandheardfestivalofnewwork.ie
BOOKING:
Tickets are sold in 45min time slots that will comprise of either one show, or a couple of complimentary performances.
Early Bird €13 (until 2pm of show day) / On The Door €15
Smock Alley Theatre, Dublin 8
(01) 6770014
