Cyprus Avenue starring Stephen Rea to be made available online for World Theatre Day
© Ros Kavanagh
David Ireland's show will be available for free from 12.00 on 27 March (World Theatre Day) via the Royal Court's and The Space's website, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube pages. This will be the first time the film can be seen internationally.
You can watch it here:
[Content Warning: Cyprus Avenue is recommended for anyone 18+. It contains strong language, discussion of sectarian themes and scenes of extreme violence that some viewers may find disturbing].
The production last ran at the Royal Court in spring 2019 and starred Ronkeň Adeěkolueňjo, Chris Corrigan, Andrea Irvine, Amy Molloy and Stephen Rea. It has also played at the Abbey Theatre, Dublin and toured to The MAC, Belfast and the Public Theater, New York.
The show was adapted for BBC Four on 15 September 2019, where it mixed live performance with on-location footage in Belfast. Commissioned by The Space, the film adaptation was executive produced by Lucy Davies, Jane Featherstone, Barbara Broccoli and Michael G Wilson.
Cyprus Avenue tells the story of a father who experiences a psychotic episode and believes his five week-old granddaughter is the reincarnation of Gerry Adams. It was awarded Best New Play at the Irish Times Theatre Awards and the James Tait Black Prize for Drama in 2017, with Rea taking the prize for Best Actor at the Irish Times Theatre Awards in the same year.
The Royal Court's artistic director Featherstone commented: "This is such an extraordinary opportunity granted to us by The Space for more people to see this exceptional play – all of us involved feel strongly that it communicates vital messages about intolerance, systemic hatred and violence and examines the consequences of long term division and national trauma."
