Freefall – The Traverse

A sudden shock, and a man’s life flashes before his eyes. In an intense rush of extraordinary images and tangled memories, he attempts to reconnect the events that have shaped him.
Winner of two Irish Times Irish Theatre Awards 2009 for Best New Play and Best Director.
The UK premiere of The Corn Exchange’s award-winning Freefall by Michael West is being staged at Traverse Theatre, Cambridge Street Edinburgh from Friday 6th August (preview) to Sunday 29th August as part of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2010.

If you go to see nothing else this Festival time then make time to see this play. It is the most inventive piece of theatre The Reporter has seen for a long time. The main character is in his pyjamas for the hour and a half he is on stage – which you are allowed to completely forget about as you are drawn into the tale of one man’s life from all angles. In the same way although he has a son, Jack, it is not essential that the son actually makes it on stage at all!
From the creative team behind Dublin by Lamplight (Winner Best Ensemble, Stage Awards 2005), The Corn Exchange return to the Traverse with this humorous and compassionate study of an ordinary life.
Freefall was a hit in its premiere run in the Dublin Theatre Festival 2009 and went on to win Best Director and Best New Play at the Irish Times Irish Theatre Awards, as well as receiving nominations for Best Actor (Andrew Bennett) and Best Supporting Actress (Ruth McGill).
Directed by Annie Ryan and featuring Andrew Bennett, Declan Conlon, Damian Kearney, Ruth McGill and Janet Moran, Freefall is about seeking family and the pivotal moments of kindness that have made a decent man.
Freefall was initially inspired by the amazing story of renowned neuroscientist Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor – A Stroke of Insight, as told on TED.com.
The Corn Exchange is one of Ireland’s most acclaimed theatre companies. Its award winning productions have toured the UK, USA, France, the Netherlands, and Australia. Previous work includes: Everyday, Dublin by Lamplight (Traverse 2005) and Foley (Traverse 2001) by Michael West, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof by Tennessee Williams, Mud by María Irene Fornés (winner Best Production Irish Theatre Awards), Lolita adapted by Michael West, and Car Show.
Freefall also played the New Plays from Europe Festival in Wiesbaden Germany in June this year, the Galway Arts Festival in July, and will play at the Abbey Theatre, Dublin this November.

Supported by Culture Ireland