The theatre company Corcadorca, renowned for its site-specific productions in the city and county of Cork, sadly closed its doors two years ago. Its cessation left a void, lamented as a dreadful sense of loss by the theatre’s creator, Geoff Gould. For three decades, Corcadorca has been inspiring audiences from its creative hub at the Triskel Arts Centre.
It brought to life a myriad of memorable plays, including the memorable ‘Trial of Jesus’ in 1999 on Patrick’s Hill and a striking adaptation of ‘A Christmas Carol’ in the city’s old women’s prison in 1994. Both productions demonstrated the company’s inherent fondness for atmospheric suspense. One of the highlights in their repertoire was the 1996 debut of Enda Walsh’s ‘Disco Pigs,’ directed by Pat Kiernan, the founding artistic director. The show involved acclaimed actors Eileen Walsh and Cillian Murphy, and is now considered iconic.
The company also witnessed successful subsequent productions, such as ‘Stars of Bel Air,’ Patrick McCabe’s first play. This drama evolved from a script reading in 2012 to a stage production at Cork Opera House a year later, titled ‘The Big Yum Yum.’ The entire process epitomized the very essence of how the development centre functioned, according to Tony Sheehan, Triskel’s artistic director.
The closure of Corkadorca led to a material financial loss, namely the withdrawal of its Arts Council grant, which otherwise would have given €200,000 to Cork’s theatrical community. This sum seemed unlikely to be replaced regardless of the city’s many establishments more reminiscent of taverns than theatres.
However, Corkadorca’s departure did eventually spur positive momentum. Essentially, it forced the birth of the Cork Theatre Collective, as described by David Parnell, the head of theatre at the Arts Council. Parnell and Michelle Carew, Cork City Council’s arts officer, were quick to openly discuss the profound void that the company’s absence would generate. This spurred Cork’s theatre community to come together — to collectively develop a viable game plan moving forward, as Carew suggested.
A collective sprung from the meetings that were initially sparked between the local theatre creators and the Arts Council. The former Corcadorca hub, situated at Triskel, was soon identified as a key focus in order to align the requirements of the Arts Council grant with the existing state of affairs. The company had previously used the well-resourced ground-level auditorium within this site for cultivating and transforming innovative ideas into finished pieces ready for the stage. Fin Flynn, a previous co-worker of Kiernan and present Cork Arts Theatre’s artistic director, revealed that Kiernan established this auditorium, which was at the time vacant and seeking a new tenant, as an element of the company without any external financial assistance.
Currently, the site serves as the core of the Cork Theatre Collective, which designated Leigh Hussey from the Irish Theatre Institute as its creative producer and artistic director in January. She has already begun managing a one-year trial residency and bursary program and is in process of organising the finance application for the second year.
Hussey notes that the program roughly spans 25 weeks and has the capacity to accommodate around 75 artists. She states that they aren’t focused solely on work that takes place on the stage, but they are dedicated to promoting creativity, activity and diverse notions of theatre. She finds her role rewarding, as she has an active passion for supporting artists in producing their work regionally or nationally, and making a name for themselves locally.
The key modification from the previous Corcadorca scheme is that the collective now includes financial reimbursement for participating artists. The “Space to Think” residencies, offering a €1,550 bursary, grant artists two weeks to concentrate on their projects without worrying about procuring supplemental income. On the other hand, the “Space to Play” residencies, paired with €3,000, provide an interactive week for artists to develop their ongoing projects alongside other participants. The minimum weekly compensation for artists is €750, with a minimum daily wage of €150. The residencies are strictly available to theatre workers residing in Cork City and the surrounding county, with an accommodation bursary of €200 available for county based applicants.
Niall Cleary, from Graffiti Theatre Company in the city, greatly appreciates the intense creative drive of the collective. Cleary views this initiative as a recognition of theatre for all audiences, disregarding age or mandatory participation. He sees it as a platform for pulling together different ideas and receiving payment for this.
Ger FitzGibbon, a former head of drama and theatre studies at University College Cork, a novelist, playwright, and Graffiti’s co-founder, acknowledges the city’s theatre landscape is transforming. FitzGibbon notes the city is generating a pool of talent yet struggling to transition them to production, a deep-seated issue at various levels. He welcomes this initiative that fosters development, particularly aiding artists in the early stages of their work.
Does this suffice to counteract the perceived consistent erosion of the city’s theatrical repertoire? The Cork Theatre Collective’s board incorporates the city’s premier arts management, ranging from Maura O’Keeffe of Once Off Productions to chief executive of Cork Opera House, Eibhlín Gleeson, and the Cork Midsummer Festival to Cork Arts Theatre. Gleeson, deeply involved with successful student residency and UCC mentoring collaboration, views the collective as a resource creating a supportive arena for theatre professionals. She comprehends the demands of the community, and for her, this is a chance to do things correctly.
Sophie Motley, the group’s chair, is determined to keep the Corcadorca grant in Cork. She insists that being quick on their feet was necessary previously, which shaped the group’s direction. Motley is aware of the local creative environment’s needs for equal support at all stages and ages. She believes theatre learning involves seeing, participating and making productions. She affirms the collective provides the entire process, starting with a place at Triskel.
Motley recently completed her three-year term as artistic director at the Everyman, scrutinising what she identifies as the Tom Creed generation. This group consists of Cork-based creatives feeling out of opportunities in the city, recent graduates bound for London, and the abundant talent being showcased by, for instance, the MTU Cork School of Music. In Motley’s perspective, their collective work is aimed at restoring what has been lost. She underlines the importance of leaving a trail when setting out on a new journey.
Previously, UCC’s Bernadette Cronin and Cork School of Music’s Regina Crowley, as part of Gaitkrash theatre company, have profited from Triskel’s developmental openings and have collaborated on multiple projects there. Cronin expressed her encouragement about the upcoming reopening of the creative space – a place “where every individual felt a sense of belonging”. The funding provided by the Arts Council indicates a hopeful turn for the significant art organisations in the city, projecting a promising image to the larger theatre sector and to the public about Cork’s dynamic role in Irish theatre moving forward.
David Parnell from the Arts Council is positively expecting the collective’s self-validation for its ongoing operation. Meanwhile, Geoff Gould from Blood in the Alley Productions, located in west Co Cork, suggests that the collective’s residencies should symbolise a seal of approval rather than inheritance. Gould claims that the theatre-company setup has faded away and we now operate in a vastly different landscape. However, he appreciates the collective’s system to assemble a production rapidly. “How can that be deemed negative? In actuality, it’s an indirect financial backing for a production and as for its longevity, it is imperative to remain in the loop. Persistence is fundamental in this context.”
While it might be premature to assert that everyone enthusiastically acknowledging the Cork Theatre Collective’s efforts are in unanimous agreement, it is evident that they share common hopes. Yet, an ironic twist: Corcadorca remained committed to their endeavour for 31 years but this month, Pat Kiernan’s appeal for a Space to Think residency was dismissed by the separate three-person peer panel of the collective. Hussey states that Kiernan’s appeal was amongst the 18 submissions battling for limited spots. “I was quite cheered to see his application,” she comments, “but considering the high competition, I am optimistic he will reapply.”