Kiltale hosts 'The Pitch' in GAA social initiative

The publishers of Ireland's international arts and literature magazine The Moth have joined forces with the GAA Social Initiative to produce a fundraising tour of Shane Connaughton's iconic Gaelic football themed stage play 'The Pitch'. The production, sponsored by Calor, stars former Leitrim county footballer Seamus O'Rourke, and will be staged at Knightsbrook Hotel, Trim tomorrow (Thursday) 1st December, hosted by Kiltale GAA Club. The tour follows a successful summer production which featured Shane Connaughton in the leading role. "I am delighted that Seamus has taken the part. He is a huge character and an extraordinary talent who is not only perfect for the role but has made a massive contribution to the direction of the play. I had certain ideas as to how I wanted the play to look but Seamus has the experience and creativity to bring it to life. It was a major coup to get him on board! We are all very excited about coming down to Knightsbrook," says Will Govan, the producer. The play's central character Philly lived and played for his team, the jersey, the parish, his friends − the very pitch his enemies are now trying to take from him to turn into a housing estate. Accused of fathering an illegitimate child, and now threatened with retirement to a nursing home, he holds firm to the memory of the Herculean feats of his youth, he replays the events of that fateful day when his club won the county championship for the one and only time and he wasn't allowed to play. For him the old pitch is sacred ground, and it is here that he will make his last stand. The GAA Social Initiative arose as a result of then President Mary McAleese and her husband, Martin, noticing an absence of older men in attendance at official functions during their many visits to local communities over the years. The President approached the GAA to establish a social activities programme and the Association agreed readily to the invitation. As a result, the GAA Social Initiative has been launched as a club-based, island-wide project, utilising the GAA club network as a vehicle to achieve the greatest reach into all our communities. The President's commitment is clearly illustrated by her willingness to serve as Patron to the Initiative. In addition, Senator Martin McAleese is serving as a Director of the Trust established to implement the Initiative. Shane Connaughton, who grew up in Duleek, has appeared in many stage and screen productions, and his screenwriting credits include 'My Left Foot', for which he was nominated for an Academy Award, 'The Playboys' and 'Dollar Bottom', which won an Academy Award for 'Best Live Action Short'. He was one of a family of five of Duleek Garda Sergeant Brian Connaughton and his wife, Eilish. His father was transferred to Duleek in the 1950s, and his brother, also Brian, was a well-known cyclist who won the Ras Tailteann with the Navan Road Club. Shane Connaughton was born in Kingscourt, where his father was stationed before being transferred to Redhills in Cavan. In Duleek, he recalled playing for the local football club in a county semi-final, when the big stars at the time were Ollie Shanley and Pat Collier. After secondary school at the Christian Brothers School in Drogheda, he trained as an actor at the Bristol Old Vic, and the Abbey Theatre, Dublin. As an actor, he performed with the National Theatre in London, and also won the Hennessy Award for New Irish Writing Title in 1985. In recent years, he had lived at Kilshane Cross near Ashbourne. 'The Pitch' is staging in The Knightsbrook Hotel, Trim, tomorrow (Thursday) 1st December. To book tickets contact Ann on (087) 287 5070 or Dominic on (086) 213 2288. Knightsbrook is offering Special accommodation rate available to attendees, of €99 per twin /double room per night including breakfast - call Knightsbrook's reservations team on 1890 43 42 41. A special dinner menu available of two courses €20, or three courses €25 - call Rococo Restaurant on (046) 948 2100 to make a reservation.