Writer says play has already saved lives
By Aideen O'Flaherty
A CONFRONTING play about the devastating effect that suicide has on friends, families and the wider community will be held at the Killinarden Community Centre in Tallaght on Friday, October 4, at 8pm.
Rialto woman Patricia McCann wrote the play ‘Bring Me Back Alive’ in 2013, in response to the increasing number of young people taking their lives in the local area, and since then it has been staged in numerous theatres around the country, with McCann saying that it has already saved lives.
Patricia McCann
“The play is set in a youth centre in Dublin, and it’s basically all of these friends talking about their friend, Pablo, who died by suicide,” explained Ms McCann.
“They’re talking about why he did it, and they can’t get their head around it.”
The play also features an act that centres on the experiences of Pablo’s grieving mother, who battles with anger and disbelief in the wake of her son’s untimely death.
“It’s having a remarkable effect on people,” Ms McCann told The Echo. “Last week it was in a college in Cork, and after seeing the play, four students presented themselves for help.
“It pushed them out and sent them forward for help, to places like Pieta House.
“My hope would be that schools will take the script of the play and bring it into their drama classes.”
Admission to see the play is free, and it’s being supported by the local suicide awareness charity HOPE (Hold On Pain Eases).
For anyone affected by issues raised in this article, help is available at
- • Samaritans 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.ie
- • Aware 1800 80 48 48 (depression, anxiety)
- • Pieta House 1800 247 247 or email mary@pieta.ie (suicide, self-harm)
- • Teen-Line Ireland 1800 833 634 (for ages 13 to 19)
- • Childline 1800 66 66 66 (for under 18s)
A list of HSE and HSE-funded services can be found at https://www2.hse.ie/mental-health/
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