Meet Ursula.

She's made it. A nice house filled with gorgeous furniture and a merc in the driveway. She doesn't mind throwing her sister Jacinta a few quid here and there, what with her having five kids and a good-for-nothing husband to deal with.

But when Ursula falls on hard times, will she have to swallow her pride and break her promises?

The first of eight ten-minute plays, in the brand new audio play series, On The Street Where We Live.

1. Lolly by Amanda Verlaque

Meet Caoimhe.

Lovely, yet feeling unloved. In fact, so low in self-esteem and desperate for a soulmate that she seeks out the sort of people she wouldn’t normally entertain. And when her online searches result in less than ideal encounters, she starts to question who she is and what she wants from life. It’s a reevaluation that highlights the importance of self-worth and ultimately leads to redemption.

Ginger Beer + Low Self Esteem by Ciara Elizabeth Smyth

Three students thrown together by COVID-19 quarantine, they are trapped in the company of strangers.

This isn’t the university life they were promised and as the atmosphere in the house becomes increasingly claustrophobic, Scott buries himself in his music and Deborah dives into the bottle.

SOUR BREATH // adolescent gutter by Meghan Tyler

The short stories recorded for NINOW100 present a place of country gospel groups, of hostess clubs on the top floor of hotels, where local hoods and high-rollers mix with foreign correspondents, of protests outside rock concerts, of local radio shows.

It's a place - surreal, frightening, funny - that many may recognise, at least a little.  The stories are attuned to the complexity of the locale and antitheses of repression and liberation, loss and reward.

Written by Wendy Erskine
Narrated by Debra Hill
Jimmy Doran as Da
Neil Keery as Mikey
Suzie Kelly as Elsie
Niall Cusack as Hugh
Brian Markey as Ian
Directed by Finn Kennedy
Sound & Music Composition by Garth McConaghie

Mikey Mullholland

The full title of this piece is NOTES FOR THE ATTENTION OF THOSE WORKING IN THE XANDU NIGHTCLUB, THE HENNESSY COURT HOTEL, BELFAST, 1983, found in the pocket of an old handbag when clearing a roof space, 2018

The short stories by Wendy Erskine, recorded for NINOW100, present a place of country gospel groups, of hostess clubs on the top floor of hotels, where local hoods and high-rollers mix with foreign correspondents, of protests outside rock concerts, of local radio shows.

It's a place - surreal, frightening, funny - that many may recognise, at least a little. The stories are attuned to the complexity of the locale and antitheses of repression and liberation, loss and reward.

Written by Wendy Erskine
Narrated by Suzie Kelly and Debra Hill
Starring Jimmy Doran as Frank Hanna
Featuring Bernadette Brown, Rebecca Doonan, Debra Hill, Neil Keery, Suzie Kelly, and Brian Markey
Directed by Finn Kennedy
Sound & Music Composition by Garth McConaghie

NOTES FOR THE ATTENTION OF...

Glorified Scaffolding by Jan Carson

Read by Maeve Smyth and directed by Emily Foran with live recording and sound editing by Ian Jordan. 

Produced by the MAC

Glorified Scaffolding is part of Except A Man by Jan Carson, a series of monologues and introductory essay in response to John T. Davis’ 1989 documentary, Dust on the Bible. Dust on the Bible remains a stunning snapshot of evangelical Protestant culture in Northern Ireland in the late 1980s. Carson grew up on the peripheries of this community and was, from an early age, aware that it was a male-dominated landscape with few opportunities for women to make their opinions or experiences known.

Each of the five monologues reflects the experience of one of the women who appear briefly in the documentary. They are -for the most part- silent, as they would have been in the religious communities they belonged to. In allowing these women to voice their thoughts and feelings, Carson seeks to explore the role of women in the evangelical Protestant tradition and lend them some degree of autonomy.

Glorified Scaffolding

Just a Closer Walk by Jan Carson

Read by Maggie Cronin and directed by Emily Foran with live recording and sound editing by Ian Jordan.  

Produced by the MAC

Just a Closer Walk is part of Except A Man by Jan Carson, a series of monologues and introductory essay in response to John T. Davis’ 1989 documentary, Dust on the Bible. Dust on the Bible remains a stunning snapshot of evangelical Protestant culture in Northern Ireland in the late 1980s. Carson grew up on the peripheries of this community and was, from an early age, aware that it was a male-dominated landscape with few opportunities for women to make their opinions or experiences known.

Each of the five monologues reflects the experience of one of the women who appear briefly in the documentary. They are -for the most part- silent, as they would have been in the religious communities they belonged to. In allowing these women to voice their thoughts and feelings, Carson seeks to explore the role of women in the evangelical Protestant tradition and lend them some degree of autonomy.

Just a Closer Walk

The Final Word by Jan Carson

Read by Dervla McSorley and directed by Emily Foran with live recording and sound editing by Ian Jordan.  

Produced by the MAC

The Final Word is part of Except A Man by Jan Carson, a series of monologues and introductory essay in response to John T. Davis’ 1989 documentary, Dust on the Bible. Dust on the Bible remains a stunning snapshot of evangelical Protestant culture in Northern Ireland in the late 1980s. Carson grew up on the peripheries of this community and was, from an early age, aware that it was a male-dominated landscape with few opportunities for women to make their opinions or experiences known.

Each of the five monologues reflects the experience of one of the women who appear briefly in the documentary. They are -for the most part- silent, as they would have been in the religious communities they belonged to. In allowing these women to voice their thoughts and feelings, Carson seeks to explore the role of women in the evangelical Protestant tradition and lend them some degree of autonomy.

The Final Word

An Early Exit by Jan Carson 

Read by Helena Bereen and directed by Emily Foran with live recording and sound editing by Ian Jordan. 

Produced by the MAC

An Early Exit is part of Except A Man by Jan Carson, a series of monologues and introductory essay in response to John T. Davis’ 1989 documentary, Dust on the Bible. Dust on the Bible remains a stunning snapshot of evangelical Protestant culture in Northern Ireland in the late 1980s. Carson grew up on the peripheries of this community and was, from an early age, aware that it was a male-dominated landscape with few opportunities for women to make their opinions or experiences known.

Each of the five monologues reflects the experience of one of the women who appear briefly in the documentary. They are -for the most part- silent, as they would have been in the religious communities they belonged to. In allowing these women to voice their thoughts and feelings, Carson seeks to explore the role of women in the evangelical Protestant tradition and lend them some degree of autonomy.

An Early Exit

Bait and Switch Avenue Agents by Jan Carson 

Read by Debra Hill and directed by Emily Foran with live recording and sound editing by Ian Jordan.  

Produced by the MAC

Bait and Switch Avenue Agents is part of Except A Man by Jan Carson, a series of monologues and introductory essay in response to John T. Davis’ 1989 documentary, Dust on the Bible. Dust on the Bible remains a stunning snapshot of evangelical Protestant culture in Northern Ireland in the late 1980s. Carson grew up on the peripheries of this community and was, from an early age, aware that it was a male-dominated landscape with few opportunities for women to make their opinions or experiences known.

Each of the five monologues reflects the experience of one of the women who appear briefly in the documentary. They are -for the most part- silent, as they would have been in the religious communities they belonged to. In allowing these women to voice their thoughts and feelings, Carson seeks to explore the role of women in the evangelical Protestant tradition and lend them some degree of autonomy.

Bait & Switch Avenue Agents

Except A Man is a series of monologues and introductory essay written by Belfast-based writer, Jan Carson in response to John T. Davis’ 1989 documentary, Dust on the Bible. Dust on the Bible remains a stunning snapshot of evangelical Protestant culture in Northern Ireland in the late 1980s. Carson grew up on the peripheries of this community and was, from an early age, aware that it was a male-dominated landscape with few opportunities for women to make their opinions or experiences known.

Each of the five monologues reflects the experience of one of the women who appear briefly in the documentary. They are -for the most part- silent, as they would have been in the religious communities they belonged to. In allowing these women to voice their thoughts and feelings, Carson seeks to explore the role of women in the evangelical Protestant tradition and lend them some degree of autonomy.

NInow100

Except A Man

NINOW100: Audio

A Ticket to Identity by Jake O'Kane

"I’ve often heard you should write what you know, I think it more interesting to write what I don’t know. So to write from the point of view of a Unionist was both challenging and interesting in equal measure." - Jake O'Kane

A Ticket to Identity, written by Jake O’Kane, stars Jake O’Kane as Billy, Chris Mohan as Johnny, Alison Harding as the automated phone, Richard Croxford as the Customer Help Assistant and Keith Singleton as Fiacre. Directed by Oisín Kearney, with sound and music composition by Garth McConaghie and live recording by Damian Hughes and Ian Jordan.

A Ticket to Identity

NINOW100: Audio

Big Tide Rising by Abby Oliveira 

On the centenary anniversary of the creation of NI, two artist friends are reunited at the border that neither can cross.  The invisible border that, under lockdown conditions, appears increasingly absurd to them both.  They fantasise about leaving their hometowns to emigrate just as soon as they get the chance, they question their reasons for staying.  In the end, will they stay or go?  This piece is a mixture of spoken-word poetry and monologue.

Big Tide Rising by Abby Oliveira

The Party Party (A Complete History of Parties in NI (1921-2021)) by Emily DeDakis stars Libby Huntley, Ruby Campbell, Thomas Finnegan and Cailum Carragher. This series was produced by the MAC, Belfast, Directed by Colm G Doran, with sound and music composition by Constance Keane and live recording by Damian Hughes and Ian Jordan.

The Party Party is a collection of memories of parties - no, not the 'petition of concern' kind - the 'dancing till 3 a.m.' kind!

Emily said of the project, "I adopted this place as my home 15 years ago, but I’m not a citizen so I can’t vote here. I f*ing love voting, though. A few years ago I tried to convince a friend that we should start a new political party for NI: The Party Party. Our platform: JOY IS NOT A LUXURY. I’d be the candidate, he'd manage my campaign. He said no. (He also pointed out that because I can’t vote, I also can’t run for office. How clever.) So I’m doing this instead: collecting memories of parties from the people of NI via a quick, anonymous survey. It’s cracker so far - but I still have no idea how it’ll turn out. It’s an election and the count is ongoing..."

Well Emily, this is the end result. Get your dancing shoes on, stat.

The Party Party by Emily DeDakis

A History in Numbers deals with the passage of time and the changes that it may or may not bring. It picks at the political, artistic and inter-relational threads that were woven into Emma's experience of one element of change; the decriminalisation of abortion in Northern Ireland.

Starring Libby Huntley, Ruby Campbell and Rachel Murray. This series was produced by the MAC, Belfast, Directed by Colm G Doran, with sound and music composition by Constance Keane and live recording by Damian Hughes and Ian Jordan.

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