Mr Bergmann of Deadman’s Point is on in the Civic on Thursday
Photo by Ste Murray Photography and Design
Mysterious and comic tale that explores legacy
“I STARTED to think about legacy and what makes one person wish to just pass away with no care for what’s left behind and someone doing the opposite,” explains writer and performer Ronan Dempsey.
‘Mr Bergmann of Deadman’s Point’ is based on the extraordinary true story of the so-called Peter Bergmann, Ireland’s most famous unidentified man.
Back in 2009, he spent three days in Sligo town deleting his identity, giving false names/addresses and discarding every one of his possessions.
He was then found deceased at Rosses Point. To this day he has never been identified. The story is told through the eyes of a fictional embalmer.
It is a mysterious and comic tale that explores legacy, reputation and what it is to live close to death in the form of a one-man show using magic, a half-mask and traditional address.
Ronan recounts that he first came to know the story of Peter Bergmann back in 2022 when he first read an article in the Irish Times about him.
He made a mental note of it at the time, thinking to himself that it could make a “nice piece of theatre” at some point.
He was fascinated by the “anonymity of it all and how daring it all was”.
Ronan left it for a while until a friend of his going through end-of-life care inspired him to start thinking about legacy.
He explains “we had a couple of nice candid chats about it,” and what he said was that he felt a massive panic to tidy up and make sure everything was in its place, spiritually, financially and in terms of how he’s remembered.
“It was very honest. Then I thought once again of Peter Bergmann.”
Initially this was just a show featuring Peter Bergmann only, which Ronan describes as “interesting, but we felt that the play needed another angle/dynamic and some opposition.”
It was a struggle at times to find the answers and the right balance. Then Ronan and his crew introduced “Balmy” Corrigan into the piece.
Balmy is a fictional embalmer who is in a race against time to cement his own legacy. Ronan and his team then had the balance of “high stakes and a nice bit of humour”.
It was an almost 18 month production process from the first idea to the debut in Galway in 2025.
Ronan cites his favourite part of the production process as when he started working with Helen Tennison, an Edinburgh Scotsman Fringe First-winning director.
It was a “game changer” as they flipped the whole script on its head and started all over again.
It was “terrifying but so brilliant”. In both Dublin and London, they intensely focused on improvisation, mask work, magic, and movement to quickly uncover the core of the piece and build it from there.
When asked about challenges, Ronan reflects that “I had to completely rethink everything after a few drafts of the play and go all the way back to the beginning.”
He describes it as “very daunting”, but when you have good peers, many chats, and when you believe and trust the material, then “that is the way back”.
“It never feels it at the time,” continues Ronan, “but scrapping everything is sometimes the best possible way forward.”
Financially it has been “extremely challenging in this climate”.
It is “miraculous” that work gets made, and Ronan takes his hat off to anyone who gets a project over the line.
Ronan hopes theatregoers can take away their own version of why Peter Bergmann did what he did and also enjoy putting the phones away and being in the “haven of theatre” for 70 minutes.
They start a national tour off in Sligo on April 15, then on to the “great gang” at The Civic for four shows from April 21 – 23, then on to Source Arts in Thurles, The Mill, Dundrum and Draiocht, Blanchardstown.
They will then undertake the entire Edinburgh Fringe in August, and then they will be back for the second leg of the Irish tour: Dundalk, Roscommon, Wexford and Leitrim.
For helping to make this production possible, Ronan would like to thank Caoimhe Connolly and Cliona Dukes as the “first seed was sown” at the 2024 Scene and Heard Festival of New Work at Smock Alley Theatre.
He would also like to thank Lauren and Eve from the Seamus Ennis Arts centre in Naul and Emer and the team in Draiocht, Blanchardstown.
Gratitude is extended to Sarah, Robbie and Psych at the Galway Theatre Festival; Donal Shiels at the Civic and peers and friends Christina, Helen, Raymond, Chris, Rachel, Hamish and Bob.
“Without these types of folks, nothing gets made,” concludes Ronan.
‘Mr Bergmann of Deadman’s Point’ will be performed in the Civic Theatre from April 21 to 23, with performances at 7:30pm on each of the three evenings, as well as a 1pm performance on April 22.
The show is presented by Nth Degree Productions, and each performance is around 65 minutes long with no interval.
For more details and to book your tickets, be sure to check the Civic website.
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