Cathal Ryan, a Tipperary native whose love for GAA runs as deep as his passion for acting, is set to bring his sell-out, one-man show ‘Pucked’ to Glór Ennis on Wednesday February 26.
After its triumphant debut in 2022, “Pucked” returns to the stage for a second 13 show run, offering a humorous yet thought-provoking exploration of the world of GAA, ambition, and masculinity.
‘Pucked’ tells the story of Matty Daly, a young and ambitious hurler, whose sole dream is to play for his senior club team. However, when Matty finally gets the call-up, he soon learns that playing senior isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.
Written and performed by Lir graduate Cathal Ryan, ‘Pucked’ features Ryan in the role of Matty, as well as 30 other characters, each portrayed with energy and wit in a whirlwind 80-minute performance. With direction from Jack Riordan, Ryan transforms between each character before the audience using movement sequences, facial expressions and physical acting techniques.
“The majority of it is me kind of jumping back and forth between characters. And what’s brilliant about Jack’s direction is he’s put in a couple of movement sequences or there’s one stage where I play a match all on my own,” explained Ryan speaking to The Clare Echo ahead of Wednesday’s show. “I think that’s the biggest thing about doing a one man show is trusting the audience and knowing that you don’t have to spell it out for them, that they will catch on to which character you are pretty quick.”
Although ‘Pucked’ is not a true story, Ryan used his own life experiences growing up in rural a town in Tipperary, where hurling is a part of everyone’s daily life, to create a story, which he hopes, everyone can relate to.
Following the success of the play’s first run, Ryan hopes that this time round more “GAA heads” will give the show a chance. “I think GAA people really have resonated with it and it’s that thing of like, we just want GAA people to give it a chance and to try a night at the theater, it won’t hurt and see how much they might enjoy it.”
‘Pucked’ is a brilliantly written, witty comedy that encapsulates the chronically Irish feeling of loyalty to the Gaelic games institution. With set and costume by Jack Culligan, lighting by Eoin Lennan and sound by Mick Stapleton the one man production provides audiences with 80 minutes of non-stop entertainment while also sneaking in an important moral message.
