A sparkling new play about Maura Laverty, the multi-talented broadcaster, cookery expert, agony aunt and controversial writer, who was a household name in Ireland for three decades. Maura is spirited back from the dead as a guest on a surreal TV show called ‘This Was Your Life.’ She cooks a recipe from her iconic cookbook, Full And Plenty, on stage and talks about her roller-coaster life.
The host gets Maura to reveal some of her darker secrets and the price she paid for her success. Fifty years after her death, how will a contemporary audience evaluate her recipes and her tumultuous life?
Writer Maura Laverty’s life is a fascinating tale of talent and tenacity; she is brought back to life in this charming play full of detail, wit and tragedy. Bairbre Ní Chaoimh (who plays Laverty in this hugely enjoyable production) cooks a Spanish omelette as the show progresses. For younger audiences this is a fascinating picture of how a strong woman refused to play nice in the restrictive post-war decades and worked her way bang into the centre of Irish cultural life. Her ghost will be well pleased.’ – The Irish Independent
A witty and entertaining journey through the writer’s life, with Ms Ní Chaoimh in splendid form as the pugnacious Laverty. – Irish Mail on Sunday
Presented by The Curious Ensemble
Written by Yvonne Quinn and Bairbre Ní Chaoimh
Cast: Malachy McKenna (Rip Riley) and Bairbre Ní Chaoimh (Maura Laverty)
Director: Joan Sheehy
Set Designer: Naomi Faughnan
Costume Designer: Peter O’ Brien
Sound Designer: Ewan Cowley
Running time 1 hour and 20 minutes, no interval.