on the Francis J. Greenburger Mainstage
As part of the New Works Fall Festival
Featuring Readings of New Plays, Spotlighting Northern Irish Voices
By Meghan Tyler
Directed by Keelie Sheridan
With John Keating, Nicola Murphy Dubey, Sarah Street, Naren Weiss
Northern Ireland, 1989. A farmhouse window smashes, and rebellious Fianna Devlin crashes back into the life of her pious sister Alannah. Together in the unlovely family home for the first time in years, the sisters are back at each other’s throats in seconds. And when they are forced to confront their tyrannical father’s hideous legacy, all hell breaks loose.
Fuelled by Taytos, gin, 80s tunes and a chainsaw, it’s the Devlin sisters versus the world. It can’t end happily, but it can end gloriously. Like Thelma and Louise’s punk daughter, Meghan Tyler’s surreal Crocodile Fever is a grotesque black comedy celebrating sisterhood whilst reminding us that the pressure cooker of The Troubles is closer than we imagine.
BOOK NOW
Reviews:
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
“Martin McDonagh’s influence is rife in Crocodile Fever. But this is by no means The Lieutenant of Inishmore. This is much, much more. This is genre-defining.”— Miro Magazine
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
“This play is a bloody masterpiece in every sense, the dialogue pinging around the space, laughter dying in your throat, genuine shocks as the play becomes more Gothic […] See it for how women have been abused and neglected and how revenge may or may not be the best dish served.” — British theatre.com
“Chekhov famously pronounced that if you’re going to bring a gun on stage, you’ve got to use it. Is the same true for a chainsaw?” — theartsdesk.com
Irish Repertory Theatre’s New Play Development Program includes table reads, staged readings, workshops and commissions from voices that fulfill Irish Rep’s mission and tell stories of Irish and Irish-American people of all races, genders, abilities, and orientations. Following the success of the inaugural New Works Fall Festival spotlighting LGBTQ+ voices in June 2023, and the New Works Fall Festival spotlighting female voices last November, we’re delighted to announce four new play readings spotlighting voices from the North of Ireland. This program enables us to hear new work aloud with an audience and discover new plays and musicals for possible future production.
