Sliabh Aughty Drama Group

Hon. President: Alan Sparling
Secretary: Joanne Allen.
Chairman: Tom Hanley
Treasurers: Treasurer
P.R.O.: Shulagh Colleran.

The Mountshannon Players was originally founded in the late 1960s performing both one act and three act plays in Mountshannon hall and participating in various Drama festivals and competitions to great acclaim. There had been a great tradition of drama in the area since the 1940s with the Clare Drama Festival being established in Scariff in 1947 and most parishes in rural Ireland at the time had a dramatic society. One of the founding members and one of the few remaining continuous links with the group up to this day is Maud Nash. Maud's name was synonymous with drama and she was the backbone of the group for many years. The group became inactive from the mid 70s and 80s with many members joining Scariff Drama group. However the seeds were being sown for the next generation of budding thespians in Mountshannon National School under the joint directorship of teachers Pake and Phil Haran. A play was produced every year for the Christmas concert and was entered in the schools competition in the Clare Drama Festival with notable success.

In 1989 the group was re-formed under the name Sliabh Aughty Players with Maud Nash again at the helm. The first production was John B Keane's 'The Field' which went on to win several festivals around the country and was only beaten in the All Ireland Confined Finals by half a mark. For the next 10 years or so Sliabh Aughty became a force to be reckoned with on the confined circuit with such blockbuster productions as 'The Honeyspike', 'The Highest House On The Mountain', 'The Power of Darkness' and 'I do Not Like Thee Dr Fell' which won 5 festivals out of 5. Silverware was plenty during this time with the group winning many awards for directing, acting, stage management, set and lighting and this was undoubtably the groups finest period. However people moved on and drama took a back seat again for a few years with one notable exception. Mike McNamara directed a fine production of John B Keane's 'Sharon's Grave' in 1999. Once again there was a hiatus until 2004 when Noel Hogan Produced 'Big Maggie' by John B Keane. At this stage the hugely successful Scariff Drama Group was in a state of decline and some of their members joined Sliabh Aughty bringing with them invaluable talent and experience. There was a brief lapse and in 2006 Brendan Quinlivan joined the group and directed a highly entertaining 'Arsenic and Old Lace' and 'The year of the Hiker' in 2007. The group hopes to stage two one-act comedies in November 2007 and plans are afoot for a three act production for 2008.

We are always looking for new members in every capacity, actors, stage crew and producers and Joanne Allen the group secretary can be contacted on 086 8177649