'Hired Man" will satisfy both lovers of music and drama

Trim Musical Society"s 2009 production" 'The Hired Man" is a powerful and emotional story of love and betrayal set against the backdrop of economic hardship and the onset of the First World War, that will suit both drama and music lovers alike. It is the story of ordinary people in extraordinary times as they struggle to keep families and community together. The show was written by Melvyn Bragg, of South Bank Show fame, and chronicles the lives of his grandparents in Cumbria as they moved from farm working to mining and ultimately to the fields of the Somme and home again. The music is sweeping and epic and Jane Lynch as musical director has excelled herself again, with the beautiful harmonies of the very experienced cast. Director Alan Kinsella and choreographer Grace McGrath have created a poignant and dramatic vision of the lives of the characters and the sacrifices and risks they lived with daily. The central love triangle is played out between John Fagan (John), Emma White (Emily), and Niall Dempsey (Jackson). All three have been nominated in recent years at the annual AIMS awards with John Fagan taking home the award for Jekyll and Hyde. He recently performed in 'Annie" in Navan"s Solstice. There is a cast of thirty with some well known faces, Kevin Loughran, Kevin Martin, Gwen Bagnall, Dara Kenny, Sean Fox, complementing new emerging talent like Louise Cassidy, Siobhan Mooney, Eoin Kenny and a comeback from Sean Doyle. An imaginative set has been given life by Bobby White on design and Frank Connolly as stage manager. The Hired Man has long been a favourite of groups around Ireland. It is both challenging and rewarding and Trim Musical Society feels it has met and surpassed these challenges. The show opened on Tuesday night 24th February, and runs to Sunday next, 1st March, Tickets are available from (086) 0870713 and from Pat O"Byrnes Mens shop. Tickets are priced at €15. For those that still don"t know, the musical society has purchased comfy new seats so cushions and numb behinds are a thing of the past in Trim Town Hall!