From the team that brought you Forgotten, Underneath and the Olivier Award-winning Silent, Before is a play with much music, set in Clery’s of Dublin, on the very day this iconic department store shuts – for good.
Pontius is inside, trying to choose a gift for his estranged daughter, whom he hasn’t seen for almost 20 years. He will meet her in an hour. This father’s journey is both beautiful and strange, from the isolation of his Midlands home, to the madness of O’Connell Street. Some folk are impossible to buy for…
Before was commissioned by Fishamble and has been in development with the support of the Arts Council, National Theatre Studio (London), Pavilion Theatre, the RTÉ Concert Orchestra, Georganne Aldrich Heller, Robert Leroy, and The Strollers Touring Network.
WINNER: Herald Archangel Award, Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2019
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About the Production
Running Time
85 minutes, no intervalAge Guidance
14+Content Warning
Strong language, references to violent imagery and sex
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Support the Emma O'Kane Bursary
Before features choreography by Emma O’Kane. Emma was an exceptionally gifted artist who moved effortlessly across art forms and media as a performer, a choreographer and a participation project leader.
Following her untimely death in 2021, Fishamble together with a consortium of partners set up an independent bursary in her name to honour her exceptional ethos and artistic practice.
‘Go big or go home’ was an Emma expression. She believed in people’s potential and in trying things out. She was never afraid of failure.
The purpose of the bursary, why it exists and its unique contribution to artists, aims to capture this essence. Keep her legacy alive. Sustain her spirit.
Donate now
Past Performances
Before Past Productions Archive
2022 Touring
12 March Glór, Ennis
25&26 March Millbank Theatre, Rush
2 April Theatre Royal, Waterford
5&6 April Centre Culturel Irlandais, Paris
14 May PhizzFest, Phibsborough
10 June: Festival of Writing & Ideas, Borris
26 July: Hewitt Summer School, Armagh
29 Sept: The Everyman, Cork
2021 Live and Digital Touring
4 July: CLONMEL JUNCTION ARTS FESTIVAL, Clonmel
14 Aug: SCRIPTS FESTIVAL, Birr
2019 Touring
1 Feb: MERMAID ARTS CENTRE, Bray
8 Feb: NENAGH ARTS CENTRE, Nenagh
15 – 16 Feb: CIVIC THEATRE, Tallaght
21-22 Feb: PAVILION THEATRE, Dún Laoghaire
23 Feb: GARTER LANE, Waterford
11 Apr: ROSCOMMON ARTS CENTRE, Roscommon
27 Apr: RAMOR, Virginia
2-3 May: AXIS, Ballymun
2 Jun: LISTOWEL WRITERS’ WEEK
4-5 Jun: THE EVERYMAN, Cork
27 June: TOWN HALL THEATRE, Galway
15 – 21 July: FIT UP FESTIVAL, West Cork
2 – 25 Aug: DANCE BASE, Edinburgh, supported by Culture Ireland
14 Sept: PAVILION THEATRE, Dún Laoghaire
19 Sept: DROICHEAD ARTS CENTRE, Drogheda
22 Sept: SHORELINES FESTIVAL, Portumna
25 Sept: CLIFDEN ARTS FESTIVAL, Clifden
4 – 5 Oct: THE IRISH FESTIVAL OF OULU, Oulu, Finland, supported by Culture Ireland
9 Oct: THE DOCK, Carrick on Shannon
11 Oct: MERMAID ARTS CENTRE, Bray
15 Oct: BALLINA ARTS CENTRE, Ballina
24 – 25 Oct: BELFAST INTERNATIONAL THEATRE FESTIVAL, Belfast
14 Nov – 8 Dec: ODYSSEY THEATER, Los Angeles, USA, supported by Culture Ireland
2018 Strollers Network Tour
5 Oct: Dublin Theatre Festival (Preview)
7 Nov: VISUAL, Carlow
9 Nov: SOURCE ARTS CENTRE, Tipperary
13 Nov: WATERGATE THEATRE, Kilkenny
15 Nov: HAWK’S WELL THEATRE, Sligo
17 Nov: SIAMSA TÍRE, Sligo
19 Nov: SOLSTICE ARTS CENTREe, Navan
21 Nov: LINENHALL ARTS CENTRE, Castlebar
23 – 24 Nov: DRAÍOCHT, Blanchardstown