An INCREDIBLE Opening Night at the Everyman Palace Theatre in Cork!

From the moment we gathered at the theater at 3:30pm for our final dress rehearsal, the air was filled with the electricity of the perfect blend of excitement and anticipation- Opening Night was upon us.  After an excellent last dress the company was chomping at the bit to do it again- this time for our first Irish audience of the 2010 tour.  We tried busying ourselves with menial tasks like breathing, eating, (some of us smoking), checking our email...nothing could distract us. We. Were. READY.

We returned to the historic theatre where so many actors had walked the boards with the same nervous energy pulsing through their veins, awaiting the masses that would soon become an integral part of a piece of art held so closely to our hearts and minds for so long.  This play that had consumed our thoughts, time and passion; that had travelled thousands of miles with us, across land and sea, to be shared in the beautiful, communal ceremony that is live theatre... was finally ready for that moment.

We gathered on stage for some final love, and even a picture or two.  Then the actors returned to their dressing rooms and the house was open.  A vibrant and excited crowd filled the theatre- over 250 people on a Monday night- finding their seats, memorizing thier programs, chatting excitedly with their friends about what was about to happen.

The lights went down. Merl Haggard sang through the dark hallowed venue. The stage lights went up. The play began.

They adored us.  They clung to every word, laughed whole-heartedly and clapped and cheered for an encore- we had to extend the bows!!!

Speaking strictly as a stage manager who must watch this same play for weeks on end- there wasn't a show anywhere else in Ireland more deserving of the love and adoration Keegan's Fool for Love recieved on that night.

But now what you're really waiting for...Production Photos!