Tom Murphy is an Irish dramatist celebrated for his close collaborations with Dublin's Abbey Theatre and Galway's Druid Theatre. His plays delve into the complexities of Irish identity, societal shifts, and the intricate nature of human connection. Murphy's distinctive voice, blending humor, tragedy, and lyrical prose, crafts profoundly resonant and memorable theatrical experiences.
The collection features a series of deeply evocative poems reflecting on the poet's early life in California. With a remarkable ability to recall intricate details, the verses capture the essence of personal experiences and emotions, creating a rich tapestry of memories. The poet's extensive knowledge enhances the work, offering readers a profound and immersive journey through nostalgia and self-discovery.
The narrative explores the concept of a successful marriage through the lens of a couple who embody the idea that unity is key—symbolized by the equation "one plus one equals one." The protagonist seeks to understand their remarkable dynamic and apply their formula to her own life, emphasizing the themes of love, partnership, and personal growth. As she navigates her journey, the story delves into the challenges and insights that come with striving for a harmonious relationship.
The third collection of plays by "The most distinctive, the most restless, the most obsessive imagination at work in the Irish theatre today" Brian Friel"James in The Morning After Optimism is literally on the run, a comically exaggerated villain in flight form his crimes, seeking refuge in a fairytale forest. Harry in The Sanctuary Lamp is holed up in a church like a mediaeval outlaw, hoping to keep at bay the guilt of his messy life. JPW King in The Gigli Concert is a kind of cross between Dr Livingstone and Robinson Crusoe, a missionary who has become a shipwrecked loner, an Englishman sent to Dublin by a cult to convert the natives, and left there, beached and bereft." (Fintan O'Toole)
The narrative revolves around young Edward Kilcullen, whose life spirals due to alcoholism, while lawyer McGinty schemes to claim the Kilcullen estate. Amidst this turmoil, temperance preacher Sir Arden Rencelaw emerges as a potential savior. The play weaves together elements of comedy, tragedy, and heroism, exploring themes of redemption and the human spirit, all enriched by a backdrop of villainy and song. Additionally, the character of Agnes holds a mysterious secret that adds depth to the unfolding drama.
The narrative offers an introspective journey through the author's perspective, revealing a raw and unfiltered critique of contemporary American society. Through his reflections, the author passionately addresses issues of injustice while simultaneously discovering moments of connection and community amidst the chaos.
Powerful, brutal, beautiful, and at times, enchanting, winter in Yellowstone National Park is a world unlike any other. It is a season both abstract and profound, where super-heated water erupts into arctic air, where wildlife pushes snow in a constant struggle to survive, and where silence and solitude dominate the park’s deep wilderness. Photographer Tom Murphy has experienced Yellowstone’s winter wilderness as few others have, skiing far into the backcountry with heavy camera gear, an uncanny ability to weather cold and snow, and an artist’s eye for the sublime. His photographs reveal a majestic land where the air is clean and clear and where a wolf’s throaty howl carries for miles on a still day.“Silence & Yellowstone’s Winter Wilderness” shows us the splendor and force of Yellowstone’s long cold. In 130 photos we begin to understand the lives of the wildlife that must endure it; we begin to feel the inspiring power of a landscape still wild and pure; and we see nature’s beauty in things great and small. These photos are accompanied by Murphy’s thoughtful words that take us into the time and place of each image. The captions allow us to smile at a fox’s serious hunt for a mouse, to understand why bison stand stoically in geothermal steam, and to marvel at a sudden shift of subtle light that brings breathtaking grandeur to a nondescript little tree and just as suddenly takes it away.As popular author Tim Cahill observes in his foreword, “These are photos that mirror a man’s passion, and I know of nothing like them anywhere. Murphy’s photographs are not simply stunning or they are also knowledgeable and even wise.”
Famine / The Patriot Game / The Blue Macuschla
The first collection of plays by "The most distinctive, the most restless, the most obsessive imagination at work in the Irish theatre today" Brian FrielFamine portrays the Great Hunger of the Irish in 1840s, with fresh pathos and insight.Patriot Games is a documentary drama charting the 1916 Easter rising.The Blue Macushla is a live gangster movie on stage set in the Republic of the 1970s with the politics of the Troubles emerging in Northern Ireland spilling over into the South.
