The Home Place
Encyclopedia
The Home Place is a play written by Brian Friel
that first premiered at the Gate
Theatre, Dublin on 1 February 2005. After a sold-out season at the Gate it transferred to London
's West End
on 25 May 2005, where it won the 2005 Evening Standard Award for Best Play, and made its American premiere at the Guthrie Theater
(Minneapolis, MN) in September 2007.
, County Donegal
, at the house ("The Lodge") of Christopher Gore, his son David, and their housekeeper Margaret. Christopher is a widowed land-owner from England ("the home place" of Kent). Both he and his son David are in love with Margaret. Two guests are staying at The Lodge, Dr Richard Gore, Christopher's cousin, and Dr Gore's assistant, Perkins. Dr Gore is an anthropologist and is traveling throughout Ireland recording the physical characteristics of the locals.
Dr Gore's methods and racist hypotheses ignite animosity in the town, where a despised English landlord, Lord Lifford, was recently murdered. Christopher is caught in the middle between his cousin and his allegiance to the locals. The play runs the course of a single day in Ballybeg and centers on the resurgence of the Home rule
movement in Ireland.
Brian Friel
Brian Friel is an Irish dramatist, author and director of the Field Day Theatre Company. He is considered to be the greatest living English-language dramatist, hailed by the English-speaking world as an "Irish Chekhov" and "the universally accented voice of Ireland"...
that first premiered at the Gate
Gate Theatre
The Gate Theatre, in Dublin, was founded in 1928 by Hilton Edwards and Micheál Mac Liammóir, initially using the Abbey Theatre's Peacock studio theatre space to stage important works by European and American dramatists...
Theatre, Dublin on 1 February 2005. After a sold-out season at the Gate it transferred to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
's West End
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
on 25 May 2005, where it won the 2005 Evening Standard Award for Best Play, and made its American premiere at the Guthrie Theater
Guthrie Theater
The Guthrie Theater is a center for theater performance, production, education, and professional training in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It is the result of the desire of Sir Tyrone Guthrie, Oliver Rea, and Peter Zeisler to create a resident acting company that would produce and perform the classics in...
(Minneapolis, MN) in September 2007.
Summary
The play is set in the summer of 1878 in the mythical village of BallybegBallybeg
Ballybeg is a generic name given to small Irish towns. The name comes from the Gaelic words Baile Beag which literally means Little Town...
, County Donegal
Donegal
Donegal or Donegal Town is a town in County Donegal, Ireland. Its name, which was historically written in English as Dunnagall or Dunagall, translates from Irish as "stronghold of the foreigners" ....
, at the house ("The Lodge") of Christopher Gore, his son David, and their housekeeper Margaret. Christopher is a widowed land-owner from England ("the home place" of Kent). Both he and his son David are in love with Margaret. Two guests are staying at The Lodge, Dr Richard Gore, Christopher's cousin, and Dr Gore's assistant, Perkins. Dr Gore is an anthropologist and is traveling throughout Ireland recording the physical characteristics of the locals.
Dr Gore's methods and racist hypotheses ignite animosity in the town, where a despised English landlord, Lord Lifford, was recently murdered. Christopher is caught in the middle between his cousin and his allegiance to the locals. The play runs the course of a single day in Ballybeg and centers on the resurgence of the Home rule
Home rule
Home rule is the power of a constituent part of a state to exercise such of the state's powers of governance within its own administrative area that have been devolved to it by the central government....
movement in Ireland.
Characters
- Christopher Gore - Owner of The Lodge and a landlord in Ballybeg.
- David Gore - Son of Christopher.
- Dr. Richard Gore - Cousin of Christopher Gore, Anthropologist.
- Perkins - Assistant to Dr Gore.
- Lord Lifford - Local landlord, recently killed.
- Margaret O'Donnell - Head housekeeper at The Lodge.
- Clement O'Donnell - Father of Margaret, local schoolmaster and choir leader.
- Sally Cavanagh - housekeeper at The Lodge
- Con Doherty - local voice/leader of disapproval of Dr Gore's work
- Johnny MacLoone - local, strongman for Con
- Tommy Boyle - young local
- Maisie McLaughlin - young local
- Mary Sweeney - local
Original Cast
When the show first premiered, the original cast was:- Christopher Gore - Tom CourtenayTom CourtenaySir Thomas Daniel "Tom" Courtenay is an English actor who came to prominence in the early 1960s with a succession of films including The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner , Billy Liar , and Dr. Zhivago . Since the mid-1960s he has been known primarily for his work in the theatre...
- David Gore - Hugh O'ConorHugh O'ConorHugh O'Conor is an Irish actor. His first film appearance was opposite Liam Neeson in the 1985 movie Lamb. Currently, he has two upcoming projects: Finding Fate and Operation H²O.-Biography:...
- Dr. Richard Gore - Nick DunningNick DunningNick Dunning is an Anglo-Irish actor born in the county of Wexford in 1959.Dunning is a well known theatre actor who attended RADA where he won the Ronson Prize for Most Promising Young Actor. He has appeared on stage in the West End in London and at the Gate Theatre in Dublin. He has won two...
- Perkins - Pat Kinevane
- Margaret O'Donnell - Derbhle Crotty
- Clement O'Donnell - Barry McGovernBarry McGovernBarry McGovern is an Irish stage, film and television actor. He was educated at Castleknock College, Dublin.-Background:McGovern is a former member of the RTÉ Players and the Abbey Theatre Company. He has worked in theatre, film, radio and television, as well as written music for many shows, and...
- Sally Cavanagh - Laura Jane Loughlin
- Con Doherty - Adam FergusAdam FergusAdam Fergus is an Irish film, television and stage actor. Born in Drogheda, County Louth and raised in the nearby village of Laytown, his film and television credits include roles in the television series Proof, The Clinic, Trouble in Paradise and Being Erica, and the films Inside I'm Dancing and...
- Johnny MacLoone - Michael Judd
- Tommy Boyle - Bill Ó Cléirigh / Kenneth McDonnell (alternated shows)
- Maisie McLaughlin - Leanna Duke / Ciara Lyons
- Mary Sweeney - Brenda Larby