A Very Devious Launch

For starters, we didn’t tell people what we were launching. That was quite devious of us. The food that was on display was quite deviant also. All in all, our launch was suitably different. Strange, but aptly so.

A lovely crowd of company, friends, members, associates, sponsors and family gathered in The Watergate Theatre on Saturday night for the launch of our first big production of 2012, our new version of Night Of The Living Dead. To help set the scene, we had the original movie screening in the background for any curious heads who weren’t already familiar with the Romero classic. You can read all about the show right here.

We also took the time to announce some new goodies, like a new play Punctured which we are delighted to be developing under Fishamble Theatre Company’s New Play Clinic (more on that later this week), we dropped some hints at our (still developing next play), a new commission from John Kennedy and a relaunch of our Friends Of program which now goes under of the innuendo laced title of Friends With Benefits. That was also quite deviant.

The main focus was on Night Of The Living Dead which we launched with the help of a huge spread of aptly themed baked goods. Thanks to everyone who was lovely enough to make goodies for us but a special piece of thanks has to go to our art director Niamh Moyles who produced this beautifully horrible looking cake in the shape of a severed hand. Gruesome? Yes. Tasty? Hell yes.

It was also great to be back in the lovely, warm ready made confines of the Watergate Theatre to launch the show. It’s like coming home for us in a lot of ways. We haven’t done a play there since  2009 so it’s lovely to be back in Kilkenny’s biggest and best theatre for the first time in three years.

We drank, ate, made merry, talked up the show, talked up the cast (they’re all brilliant) and talked up the rest of what we hope is going to be a very busy, productive and fun year. It was a great night, not a living dead one, but we’re getting there.

There’s still left over buns if anyone wants some.

Photos by Ross Costigan.