LIMERICK’S iconic Theatre Royal will open its doors once more after 30 years this October for the reimagining the life of Limerick-born Hollywood actress Constance Smith in CONNIE.
Written and created by local artists Joanne Ryan and Ann Blake, people will be transported back to Limerick’s Wolfe Tone Street in 1929 for the series of events that led Constance Smith to Hollywood fame in the 1950s.
Starring in over 30 films and presenting at the 1952 Academy Awards, Constance was known for her defiant stand against the pervasive casting couch culture.
Inspired by Constance’s remarkable life and enraged by her “brutal mistreatment and erasure”, Limerick theatre-makers Ann Blake and Joanne Ryan have spent almost six years in the research, development, and planning of a landmark production that will unravel the complex journey of the overlooked Hollywood icon and challenge the airbrushing of “difficult” women from history.
Ann and Joanne remarked that “Constance Smith’s incredible story is an important, forgotten piece of Irish and Hollywood history. We hope that CONNIE will bring her legacy to life while also asking deeper questions about fame, identity, and erasure”.
“Like most Limerick people, The Theatre Royal is a building that both of us have very special memories of from our childhood and teens and we’re thrilled that CONNIE will bring this historic landmark back into use after almost 30 years. CONNIE is more than a show; it’s a cultural homecoming,” they added.
The all-female cast will be staged in the old Theatre Royal, the only city cinema still standing that originally screened Constance’s films in the 1950s.
CONNIE will blend live performance, archival film, and an original score recorded with the Irish Chamber Orchestra to give audiences a thrilling and unforgettable experience.
The production marks the first time that cultural institutions across Limerick, including Ormston House, Lime Tree Theatre, Dance Limerick, and the Irish Chamber Orchestra, have come together for a single project.
As an exciting legacy of the project, Limerick artist Mary Conroy has designed a Hollywood Star for Constance that will be cast in bronze and installed in Limerick’s People Park ahead of the production.
The show runs from Saturday October 18 to Sunday November 2. Tickets are available on limetreebelltable.ie.
