The Five Lamps: Roddy Doyle story adapted for stage comes to Civic

Five Lamps Arts Festival and Co-Motion Media are presenting a new stage work by Roddy Doyle, which is showing at the Civic in Tallaght this week, writes Ryan Butler. 

‘The Five Lamps’ show is an adaptation of a story of the same name from the ‘Life Without Children’ collection by Roddy Doyle, published in 2021.

Eoin O’Sullivan is the show’s star and Joe O’Byrne the director and adapter.

Joe has directed many stage shows, including ‘Frank Pig Says Hello’ by Pat McCabe and ‘The Woman Who Walked Into Doors’ by Roddy Doyle.

His own plays have included ‘En Suite at the Abbey’ and in film he has directed ‘Pete’s Meteor,’ and for radio he has written ‘Yardstick.’

Most recently, he directed the filmed version of ‘The Cordelia Dream’ by Marina Carr.

This week, we sat down with Joe to discuss the show, which is performing in The Civic this week from March 12 to14.

What is the synopsis of ‘The Four Lamps?’

The action of the story takes place just after the beginning of the COVID lockdown and is about a man who makes the irrational decision to come to Dublin to look for his son, whom he has not seen in four years.

His search takes him on an odyssey through inner city Dublin, and small acts of kindness light up his search as he hopes against hope to find his son in the deserted city.

The story is a gentle hymn to the inner city, and as in all of Roddy Doyle’s writing about Dublin, his stories explore the humour and emotions of people on the edge, but despite this, ‘The Five Lamps’ becomes a truly life-affirming story.

What inspired you to want to adapt this story?

Well, I had worked with Roddy [Doyle] before, when I directed an adaptation of ‘The Woman who Walked into Doors’, 20 years ago, so I was already acquainted with him.

I had also liked the story he told in ‘The Five Lamps’; I thought it was a story told with real emotion and heart, and I decided I really wanted to adapt it and bring it to the stage for theatrical audiences to experience.

What processes were involved in the production of this show?

I had to ask Roddy Doyle’s permission to adapt ‘The Five Lamps’ and, thankfully, he agreed.

I had to think very carefully about how to appropriately transform a short story into a play to present on stage. I had to cast actors that I felt best fit the characters. I was doing all of this on quite a small budget, so it was a bit of a challenge, to say the least, but I am happy with the progress I’ve made. 

How long has this adaptation been in the works?

I have been wanting to adapt this story ever since I read it in the Life Without Children’s collection when it was first published in 2021.

After going through the processes that I previously mentioned, I was delighted to present the show for the first time when it had four performances in the Lark Concert Hall in Balbriggan last year.

I was very pleased with the reception that it got, and I was glad to see that audiences took to it positively, and that made me want to see if I could take it on the road and see if I could present it in more theatres around the country.

What’s next for you after the Civic performances?

Well, I’m working on multiple projects at the moment, so I’ll be kept busy anyway! One of them includes a film! I don’t really know what to do first right now; I’m up to my ears.

I’m just hoping that I can get more financing and get some of these projects off the ground.

Who would you like to thank for helping you with this show?

I would like to thank the Five Lamps Art Festival for presenting the show, Roisin Lonergan for helping me get in touch with the right people, such as The Echo, to help promote the show, Michael Dawson and the Lark for taking a chance on the show by allowing us to use your stage to give our first performances, and finally, Donal Shields, Mary Sheehan, and the staff at the Civic for giving us the space for these upcoming performances.

Book tickets on the Civic website HERE.