AFTER being abruptly cut short in 2020 due to the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, the Enniskillen Drama Festival is back this year with eight plays from drama groups from across the island of Ireland.

This year’s festival runs from March 5 to 12 at the Ardhowen Theatre, Enniskillen.

Commenting on his delight that the festival is back for 2022, Enniskillen Drama Festival Director Dave Rees said: “We really are so delighted to be back, and we have a really great line-up this year.

.

.

“I have to say it’s down to the hard work of our committee and such great support from Bryony May and Fermanagh and Omagh District Council, but also the hard work of the groups who took the decision last autumn that they were going to commit and get it done, despite the fact that they weren’t always sure about what it would be like in March [given that the pandemic was ongoing].

“Now, of course, restrictions are relaxing so we’ve got a lot of optimism and a lot of good plays coming up.”

In 2020, the Enniskillen Drama Festival, which had been celebrating its 40th anniversary year at the time, was cancelled half way through the festival week due to the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“2020 was our 40th anniversary and we were all up and running and ready to celebrate it, but it was cut short.

“I remember it vividly – our last show was actually Enniskillen Theatre Company’s ‘The Night Alive’,” said Dave, commenting that the drama group put on a “wonderful” show to a packed house.

However, the next day, it was announced that the festival had to be cancelled.

.

.

Restrictions

“The Irish government first came out with their restrictions, which meant a lot of the Irish groups couldn’t come up, and it very quickly followed up from that the Amateur Drama Council of Ireland (ADCI), the national organisation, basically closed it down.

“We had a company in the theatre starting to build the set, and we had to go down and say, ‘Sorry guys, but as of 6pm tonight, no theatre is allowed’, so they had to go home, and they were so wonderful about it.

“It’s quite interesting that Enniskillen Theatre Company were the last ones two years ago, and they are back again this year,” said Dave.

The Enniskillen Theatre Company will be performing ‘The Night Alive’ once again, on Wednesday, March 9.

“I’m really pleased because it is a wonderful play and there’s a couple of new cast members but I know Ena [Trimble] is going to do a really wonderful job again. They were scored very highly the last time,” he added.

.

.

Alongside Enniskillen Theatre Company, seven other drama groups will perform as part of this year’s festival programme.

“It’s wonderful that people can come and see all these different plays, and we’ve got quite a range, from serious drama and quite a bit of comedy this year that I’m looking forward to,” said Dave, talking about this year’s programme.

“The groups that are coming, they are from all over – from Ballyshannon, Belfast, Newtownstewart, Prosperous from way down South, so it’s lovely. Letterkenny are coming here for the first time in a while too,” he added.

This year will see the return of 2020 adjudicator David Grant.

“We thought it was appropriate to have the same adjudicator because he was very well appreciated by the audiences and the groups to have him back, as he only did half the festival the last time,” explained Dave, adding: “We’re looking forward to meeting up with him again and listening to his adjudications.”

The show sponsors for this year’s Enniskillen Drama Festival are Fermanagh and Omagh District Council, Killyhevlin Hotel, Modern Tyres, Crudden and Dolan, Credit Union, Lochside, Occupational Therapy NI and Radiant Dentistry.

.

.

“I want to really thank our sponsors,” noted Dave.

“We have a lot of local companies that sponsor us and they sponsor an evening apiece, some of whom have been with us the whole 40 years.

“That is tremendous support and it is so appreciated by us and by all our groups and the audiences. I can’t really thank them enough. Without them it’d be difficult to put it on,” he told this newspaper.

The schedule for this year's festival is as follows:

Saturday, March 5 - Holywood Players presents 'Absent Friends' by Alan Ayckbourn

Sunday, March 6 - Butt Drama Circle presents 'An Incident with Dave Cotter' by Shaun Byrne

Monday, March 7 - Newtownstewart Theatre Co. presents 'Family Plot' by Daragh Carville

Tuesday, March 8 - Rosemary Drama Group presents 'Tartuffe by Moliere' adapted by Ranjit Bolt

Wednesday, March 9 - Enniskillen Theatre Co. presents 'The Night Alive' by Conor McPherson

Thursday, March 10 - Letterkenny Music & Drama Group presents 'Dramateurs' by Kieran Kelly

Friday, March 11 - Ballyshannon Drama Soc. presents 'All My Sons' by Arthur Miller

Saturday, March 12 - Prosperous Drama Soc. presents 'God of Carnage' by Yasmina Reza