Mayo school students present original musical drama
Moyne College students and staff have been busy in recent times getting ready for their big show – The Gate.
It takes place in Ballina Arts Centre this evening (Thursday, January 15) at 8 p.m., with tickets available now for €15 plus booking fee.
The Gate tells the story of a fictional pub in Ballina of the same name run by long-suffering Auntie Rita. She survived more than her fair share of storms: a parade of unwanted suitors, a pair of lazy nephews, and a lifetime without a moment’s peace, to name but a few.
But just when Rita thinks she’s seen it all, local TD Gordon O’Driscoll announces that The Gate will be flattened within a fortnight to make way for a new motorway connecting Ballina to Dublin. Suddenly, the pints stop flowing and the panic starts pouring!
Her hapless nephews, Dara and Cormac, musicians with more dreams than sense, rally the locals in a last-ditch fight to save the pub, led by reformed drunk Tim Foyle, who chains himself to the adjacent gate.
Hope arrives in the form of Buzz Brady, a smooth-talking American who might sweep Rita off her feet, or off her guard.
In a storm of pints, plots and pandemonium, Ballina erupts into a whirlwind of music, mischief and mayhem. Oh, and the pub is full of mice!
HEARTFELT
An original musical drama from the pen of John Cribben, the Moyne College production is a heartfelt and humorous celebration of community, resilience and the places that are home to us all.
The cast includes Daniel Dyksy, Ethan Devaney, Emin Kelly, Kayn Kellegher, Kyle Walsh, Mia Marion Cafolla, Nikodem Zahoroda, Olivia Jakobowka, Sara Raba, Shane Harper, Sean Collins, Tom Kerrigan, Veera Helin and Zach Halligan.
The band comprises Tiernagh O'Neill, Jordan Igoe and Michael Durcan, with backing vocals by Andrea Gallagher, Ellie Igoe, Fiorela Rivera, Lisa Htoo, Malika Reape, Megan Keane, Niamh Long and Rebecca Igoe.
The directors of The Gate are Michael Devaney and Sinéad McCarthy, with Tara Doherty as musical director.
Moyne College would like to thank Áine Egan and Cliodhna Rogan for their contribution in choreographing one of the dances; the teachers who covered classes to facilitate colleagues involved in preparing the show; and Tommy Cooke for loaning his set.