An Irish Welcome - A Play at the Irish Centre, Huddersfield

Inspired by Huddersfield’s Irish community, local theatre company Chol has created An Irish Welcome, a play which celebrates the town’s Irish heritage.

With funding from Historic England’s High Streets Heritage Action Zone programme (HSHAZ), this brand new production has been written by Chol, and is entirely based on the stories and experiences of those linked to the Irish Centre on Fitzwilliam Street.

The plot revolves around the life and death of an Irishman who moved to Yorkshire in the 1960s to work on the construction of the M62 motorway. Set during his wake, tales of love, friendship, luck and laughter are interwoven with live Irish folk music. All of this will be performed for a live audience by a cast of professional and community actors at 7pm on Friday 18 March at the Irish Centre, Huddersfield.

Carly-Ann Clarke, the play’s writer and director said, “The purpose of this project is not just to celebrate Irish culture, but also to acknowledge the importance of community, of storytelling and of passing on traditions between generations.”

“We hope that audience members will recognise their contributions to the creative process as the play unfolds. It was written after putting a call out for people to share what it means for them to be from both an Irish and Yorkshire family background. Some of the stories were such gems - a real mix about meeting life-partners, Gypsy curses and Gaelic football. It seemed that setting the play just after a funeral was the perfect way to combine tales from every point of life. And like a wake, we hope that the show will trigger every emotion from tears to laughter - even better if it inspires people to tell stories of their own.”

An Irish Welcome will be performed at 7pm on Friday 18 March, at the Irish Centre, Fitzwilliam Street, Huddersfield.

Tickets are free, but to be sure to get a seat on the night, please book through Eventbrite at the link below.

A heritage walk exploring the architecture linked to Huddersfield’s Irish migrants is also taking place on Friday 18th March, beginning at 6pm, meeting at the Harold Wilson Statue. John Lambe will guide people through the town, finishing at the Irish Centre in good time for the start of the play. To book ticket, visit Eventbrite at the following website:
www.bit.ly/IrishHistoryWalk

For more information visit https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/an-irish-welcome-tickets-293674056007