Writer’s Note: John Breen, ALONE IT STANDS
ALONE IT STANDS takes place in a very different world in 1978. It was a grim time in Ireland.
There was a war in “the North”. Contraception, homosexuality, abortion and divorce were all illegal. There was mass unemployment and immigration, a sense that if you wanted any kind of a life you had to get out – England, America, Australia; anywhere would do. It felt like to be Irish was to be cursed. There was no U2, no Riverdance, no Italia 90, no Celtic Tiger: until the Munster rugby team beat the All Blacks in 1978 in Thomond Park and the country went mad with joy. I wrote ALONE IT STANDS to celebrate that victory and celebrate the town I grew up in. It is mostly true. The play started its journey in a small rugby club moving on to small theatres, then big theatres, the West End and even The Sydney Opera House!
The play has given much to me and I am thrilled it will be seen again in Sydney. Ireland has of course changed beyond recognition and we have beaten the All Blacks a few times now (don’t mention the World Cup!), but nobody else has beaten them in Thomond Park, in Limerick, on a Tuesday. So Alone it Stands!
John Breen
Kicking off 25 Jan – 2 Mar, don’t miss this legendary tale!