The Catacombs – Working Title

Located in the 1940s basement of 13 Fitzwilliam Place, ‘The Catacombs’ was a nightclub established by Dickie Wyman, who re-located to Dublin from the UK in order to avoid being drafted into WW2 after his boyfriend was killed in action. In an Ireland where conservatism ruled, “The Catacombs” was a place where anything went. It was a den of heavy drinking, discussions, debates, fights and lust and attracted bohemians like Brendan Behan, Patrick Kavanagh, J.P. Dunleavy, and Anthony Cronin, even earning a mention in Dunleavy’s ‘The Gingerman’.

With this in mind we aim to craft a full-length production inspired by the tales of ‘The Catacombs” patrons, through the following processes:

Researching the era and its attendees and unearthing the story/stories of “The Catacombs’

Storyboarding each scene for a cohesive narrative on which to hang the production

Writing dialogue for each scene-this part of the process may be aided by actor workshops.

This is a collaborative piece and each part of the process will involve working creatively with a team of people.
If you would like to get involved in this team driven project please email  artistic@dublinshakespearesociety.ie specifying what part/parts of the process you would like to get involved in.