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Prime the Pump

Catholicism, Arts Policy and the Post-war Irish Amateur Drama Movement 1949 to 1969

by Ian G. Kennedy (Author)
©2025 Monographs XIV, 334 Pages
Series: Reimagining Ireland, Volume 143

Summary

For over seventy years, An Chomhairle Ealaíon/the Arts Council of Ireland has played a critical role in Irish cultural development. The interface between Arts Council policy, Catholicism, and amateur drama, which this book examines, provides an access point for understanding how people responded to the socio-economic crisis facing post-war Irish society. Exploring the cultural impact of amateur drama on the modernization of Irish society, the book argues that the movement challenged resistance to change from more traditional aspects of Irish social, political and theological life. The book analyses a cross-section of plays performed at the All-Ireland, Western, Clare, North Cork and other drama festivals between 1953 and 1969, which highlighted and challenged social issues, including emigration, poverty, housing, and the institutionalization of vulnerable women and children. Matters of national importance that continue to impact contemporary Irish society.

Details

Pages
XIV, 334
Publication Year
2025
ISBN (PDF)
9781803745992
ISBN (ePUB)
9781803746005
ISBN (Softcover)
9781803745985
DOI
10.3726/b22660
Language
English
Publication date
2025 (May)
Keywords
Post-War Ireland Catholicism Catholic Social Teaching Twentieth Century Ireland Roman Catholic Church Cultural Communities Theatre Social Policy Cultural Policy Arts Policy Modernization Society Social Change Arts Council Amateur Drama
Published
Oxford, Berlin, Bruxelles, Chennai, Lausanne, New York, 2025. xiv, 334 pp., 13 fig. b/w.
Product Safety
Peter Lang Group AG

Biographical notes

Ian G. Kennedy (Author)

Ian Kennedy, a graduate of the University of Galway and the University of Wales, has worked in education, community and cultural development for over twenty-five years. A member of the library team at ATU St Angelas, Sligo, his research interests include the cultural, political, social, and religious changes in post-war Irish society

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Title: Prime the Pump