HEAVEN is set in the Irish midlands, during the weekend of a local wedding. Mairead and Mal live ordinary lives.
Perhaps attending a wedding will help, or it might raise questions that are difficult to answer.
They run headlong into unresolved relationships, unrealised dreams, and a land of ‘what might have been?’ The play is delivered as a pair of criss-crossing monologues, which makes perfect sense for a couple exploring carnal hungers they could never share. A perfect marriage of inciteful, muscular character writing and nuanced, dynamic delivery from the two great actors - Lucy Miller and Noel Hodda -, makes HEAVEN a captivating experience.
O’ Brien keeps his crises simple. For Mairead it’s Breffni, an old flame with whom she still shares a sizzling sexual chemistry; a connection absent in her marriage. For Mal, it’s a confrontation with the homosexual urges sublimated for decades into sexual fantasies of Christ, stigmata and all. When his perfect ‘Jesus’ walks into the wedding venue, Mal starts making choices well outside the norm as a respected teacher.
HEAVEN an overwhelmingly compassionate portrait of marriage, brimming over with wit and pathos.
‘beautiful, eloquent, and deeply satisfying theatre, full of humanity and truth…told with immense affection, candour, and brilliance’ ★★★★ - Scotsman
‘combines form and content to such devastatingly potent effect’ ★★★★★ - The Arts Desk
EUGENE O'BRIEN - PLAYWRIGHT
Eugene O'Brien is an Irish playwright, screenwriter, and actor.
Eugene O'Brien wrote the hugely successful play Eden, which transferred from Dublin's Abbey Theatre to London's West End and premiered on Broadway in 2004. In 2008, he adapted the play for film. Starring Eileen Walsh and directed by Declan Recks, it was played at film festivals across the world and was nominated for the European Film Academy Awards 2008.
Eugene also writes for television and film. His credits include the award-winning Pure Mule for RTE and he is currently developing The Lesson for Blinder Films with Tom Hall. Eugene is also developing Diamonds with Blinder Films and is in development on The People's Champion with Avenue Productions.
Kate Gaul
Director
Carmen Lysiack
Dialect Coach
Lucy Miller
Actor
Topaz Marley-Cole
Lighting Designer
Noel Hodda
Actor
Caity Cowan
Stage Manager
Romeny Hamilton
Assistant director
Maddie Withington
Social Media Manager
'Heaven' by Eugene O'Brien
Directed by Kate Gaul
14-31 May
The Loading Dock, Qtopia
On the weekend of a wedding in rural Ireland, Mal and Mairead’s marriage is quietly crumbling.
For Mal, a buried queer desire, once repressed in favour of a "normal" life, suddenly resurfaces when a Christlike young man reignites his forbidden fantasies. For Mairead, a fiery, tough-as-nails woman who married Mal to escape her own reckless romantic past, the weekend throws her face-to-face with the one who got away—the man who still holds a piece of her heart.
As both grapple with the choices that led them here, O’Brien’s Heaven becomes a raw, sensual examination of what it means to truly live. For anyone who’s ever felt trapped in a role they never asked for, this play pulses with the intensity of repressed desire and unfulfilled dreams. Whether you're questioning the road you’ve taken, or yearning to break free, Heaven is a fierce, funny, and heart-wrenching exploration of identity, regret, and the lives we secretly long for.
Winner of the 2023 Irish Times Award for Best New Play, this daring and critically acclaimed play is a must-see for anyone who’s ever questioned the path not taken. Love, lust and liberation collide on a night that will change everything.
REVIEWS
2023 A HIT IN DUBLIN, NEW YORK, AND EDINBURGH
2023 WINNER IRISH TIMES AWARD FOR BEST NEW PLAY
WINNER IRISH TIMES AWARD FOR BEST ACTRESS
WINNER SCOTSMAN FRINGE FIRST AWARD
‘Beautiful, eloquent, and deeply satisfying theatre, full of humanity and truth…told with immense affection, candour, and brilliance’ ★★★★ - Scotsman
‘Funny, bittersweet, and exquisitely written.’ ★★★★ - Guardian
‘An overwhelmingly compassionate portrait of marriage, brimming over with wit & pathos.’ Fest Mag
CREATIVE TEAM
Presented by Bitchen Wolf
Playwright: Eugene O'Brien
Director: Kate Gaul
Cast: Lucy Miller, Noel Hodda
Art making is a collective effort. We aim to co-produce with other companies, provide artist mentorship, producing, scriptwriting funding, support and collaboration with creatives.
Supporting new and fully fledged theatre and film artists by fostering collaboration and ensemble with renowned companies and independent creators.
Drama With Bite
Embrace the wild
Roar with Bitchen Wolf
Sign up below
Join the pack
Find out about new shows, who we're working with and funding opportunities.
This production was supported through Shopfront's Open Shop
