Dr Fell

“I do not like thee, Dr Fell” by Bernard Farrell is well into rehearsal under the guidance of Billy Nott. Billy has assembled a stellar cast including old hands Ronan Flynn, John McGlynn, Chrissie Killian, Jason Gill and Maria Griffin and introducing some new talent with Aileen Keena and Albert Gillick.

The show runs from Sunday 28th February to Friday 5th March 2010. Make a diary note!

Bernard Farrell is considered to be one of Irelands most popular playwrights. Dr. Fell was his first play and is considered by many to be his best. It was first performed in the Abbey Theatre in 1979.The play, a black comedy with strong elements of thriller and mystery, is funny, gripping and highly entertaining. It centres around a group therapy session involving six people. There is Suzy, the group co-ordinator, who hails from the US whose remedy for any problem is to ‘relax, relate, communicate’. Roger, an intellectual snob, has dedicated his life to attending group therapy sessions around the world and thus knows the ‘modus operandi’. Peter, a builder, and his wife Maureen are there because Maureen is highly strung – according to Peter. Rita speaks of nothing else but her twelve cats and her husband, who died three years previously. There’s the mysterious Joe – the Dr. Fell of the title. Just why he’s there is not initially obvious, but his presence and behaviour act as a catalyst, which turns the session into a roller coaster ride for the other participants. And then there’s Paddy, the group attendant, an outsider looking in who views the participants as weirdos.