All events take place in Project Arts Centre, 39 East Essex Street, Dublin 2.
All events are €5 for community groups but have to be booked in advance - call Grace on 085 191 8419
Graham Ryall - From Lemass to Ming, a history of drugs in Ireland, Weds March 26th
6pm - 60mins
"People think it's all about misery and desperation and death and all that shite, which is not to be ignored, but what they forget is the pleasure of it. Otherwise we wouldn't do it. after all, we're not fucking stupid. At least, we're not that fucking stupid." Irvine Welsh - Trainspotting.
"The essence of capitalism is to turn nature and commodities into capital. The live green earth is transformed into dead gold bricks, with luxury items for the few and toxic slag heaps for the many. The glittering mansion overlooks a vast sprawl of shanty towns, wherein a desperate, demoralized humanity is kept in line with drugs, television and armed force." Michael Parenti - Against Empire.
Ever wondered how we got here? Graham Ryall has. In his work in Rialto Community Drug Team, Graham spends his time analysing the irish drug trip. In 2009 THEATREclub sat in a room in Rialto for four hours with a man called Graham Ryall. He talked them through the last forty years of our history, through Community, Drugs, Politics, Society, Crime & Health. He told told them facts, jokes, stories and song lyrics and he told them with acute intelligence, empathy and heart.
It was this talk that inspired their critically acclaimed play HEROIN (Spirit of The Fringe Award winner in 2010). Not only did the talk inspire the show it also fundamentally changed how they viewed the world around them.
To begin our three day investigation into Ireland's addiction - we invite you to hear this talk too. Graham will go through our entire social history and take you on a trip that will blow your mind.
Remembering Adam & Paul, Weds March 26th
8pm - 2hrs
'Adam & Paul' is ten years old this year. This special opening event celebrates one of the only Irish films where addiction is the protagonist with a special screening of the film at Project Arts Centre, followed by a short documentary and a discussion about the representation of drug users in the mass media. In March THEATREclub will screen the film at metadone clinics and hostels in the city and document drug users responses to the film, as well as their reflections on the current drug trends. Where would Adam & Paul be today? After that, we will be joined by artists Lenny Abrahamson, Mark O'Halloran & Louise Lewis as well as journalists from the tabloid press for a special discussion on drug users in the media. How drug users are represented by the media and what impact does that have on their lives. Who is telling that story and what responsibility are they taking?
Frances Black - On addiction in the family, Thursday 27th March
6pm - 60mins
Well known singer Frances Black has spoken openly about her own recovery from addiction and the overwhelming response she received from the public:
“I was inundated with calls from families, all desperate for help on how to deal with an addict. People would come up to me at signings and tell me their stories. I was very moved by it.”
After finding recovery Frances went back to college, despite having left school at 15, and graduated as an addiction counsellor. She then did her training in the Rutland Centre with the renowned addiction specialist, Stephen Rowen (who now co-facilitates the The RISE Foundation’s Family Programmes with Frances).
Through this experience Frances realised that there was very little help available for families who were often devastated with loved ones in addiction. It was here that she witnessed the impact that addiction has on families:
“Every day, they watch someone they love slowly killing themselves. No matter how many times you may have asked them to stop, they just can’t hear you. Families are grieving for the person they are losing to addiction.”
Frances’s journey from the depths of despair in addiction to meeting families lost through having a loved one in addiction inspired her to set-up The RISE Foundation in 2008.
“The reality of addiction is that it doesn’t just destroy the person, it destroys relationships, self-worth, and the family unit.”
“My philosophy is that you need to educate everyone around the person in addiction, because it’s hard to reach the person themselves, they are in oblivion.”
In this talk, Frances, joined by her daughter, will explore the impact of addiction on families through music and song. Come and join her.
The Holy Show - Addiction is a Family illness, Thursday 27th March
8pm - 2hrs
There's a lot of talk about addicts but what about the people who love them? What about the people who clean up their sick and talk to their social workers? What about the terrible mothers who drove us to drink? What about the Da who brought us to the pub? When you're talking to an addict, the family is always in the room. We are so angry at them but we love them so much. After all, all drunks were once cuddly babies. No one wants to give birth to someone so they can slowly kill themselves. Maybe between us all, we have the answers. Come help us, help eac hother as we discuss The Irish Family, our families. Tonight the Holy Show hears from the Family on experience strenght and hope, on love and redemption and how to cope. Tonight it's all about real people and real stories. The Holy Show is presented by performance dynamo and modern day spiritual guru Neil Watkins, joined by his band as we have a serious talk with some light entertainment.
Rachael Keogh - Addicts aren't other people, Friday March 28th
6pm - 60mins
“Through sheer grit and determination she pulled herself out of the hell she was living in… what an achievement. She is an inspiration.’ - Allison O’Reilly, Sky News
“In her early twenties, Rachael Keogh was a desperate heroin addict. Her addiction to the drug took her to a place about as low as a person can go. She had grown up in Ballymun in difficult family circumstances and had, like many others, succumbed to the lure of drugs during her teenage years. Heroin nearly killed her.
By the time she eventually went into recovery, after a number of false starts, her arms were shrivelled, withered and blackened from the effects of repeated injections. She had suffered every degradation possible. But miraculously she managed to stop.”
Rachael Keogh is the author of the book ‘Dying To Survive’ . The book tells the story of her addiction, but in the book she tried not to talk much about drugs. She wanted to talk about the other stuff, the stuff we don’t talk about, the reason we take drugs to begin with.
For the past few years, Rachael has been travelling the country giving talks about her story. She wants people to know that anyone can become a drug addict, and you never think it will happen to you. She has learned a lot about addiction, but she still knows nothing about it.
This is Rachael’s take on where we are at now, if she had her way - she would tear the whole thing apart and start again. Come and hear how she would do it.
The Holy Show: The Addicts are ruining the city, Friday March 28th
8pm - 2hrs
Heroin is the drug of a recession. Drink is for the low and the depressed. So what do our city streets tell us about the people who live on them? And what about the other people, the ordinary decent folk who just want to earn a living. Why should they have to see someone with a needle in their arm? Why should they have their walk home from a hard day's work interrupted by someone asking yet again for change. We are asking for change. What do you think? Are the addicts the ones ruining the city? Or are we letting them down? What ever we are doing, (are we doing anything?) is not working and it needs to be different. Let's discuss. Let's love and fight. It's worth a try. It always is. Tonight the holy show looks at how we live with addiction, we're looking at street begging, open drug use and how to help the homeless. The Holy Show is presented by performance dynamo and modern day spiritual guru Neil Watkins, joined by his band as we have a serious talk with some light entertainment.
Also as part of the event
THEATREclub ensemble commissions
The THEATREclub ensemble spent 12 weeks in both Sundial House and Back Lane, holding workshops for the service users, earlier this year. These commissions are personal artistic responses of what they took for their time spent there.
The Rabbit Hole
We're all falling down rabbit holes all of the time. Some of us just manage to crawl out of them. Sometimes
A film by Louise Lewis shot over two days with film maker Joe Lee
http://bit.ly/lourabbithole
In fairness? A monologue by Shane Byrne
At several times, and in different places, Shane will share his findings about living in this city. Because everyone's entitled to a say. We're all entitled to our opinion. Jesus, aren't we all entitled to a second chance.
http://bit.ly/infairness
Will she get anywhere? A durational piece by Lauren Larkin
"You just keep going around and around and around. It's like a hamster wheel. You can't get off. You think you're going somewhere but you're not going anywhere. Rob, score, use. Rob, score, use. I have the same things in my pocket that I had when I was 14. Mark Kenny said this to Lauren in a rehearsal room in 2010 and it has really stayed with her. She wants to know why people are ADDICTED and she’s going to run until she finds out.
http://bit.ly/laurenhamster
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