A Man Of No Importance Tickets

Audiences are to be given a chance to go back in time to the working class Dublin of the 1960s this February as the stage musical adaptation of Albert Finney’s 1994 independent film “A Man of No Importance” makes its way to the Arts Theatre. It features Paul Clarkson in the lead role of Alfie Byrne, the poetic and theatrical bus conductor at the heart of the story.

“A Man of No Importance” was given a musical makeover by Stephen Flaherty early in the last decade, finally appearing on stage for the first time at the Lincoln Center in New York City in 2002. Lyrics for the proceedings had been provided by Lynn Ahrens, with a book by Terrence McNally and together they put together a show that proved to be a big success, wining the Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Off-Broadway Musical in 2003.

But “A Man of No Importance” started out its life as a small independent movie with Albert Finney in a lead role. It was released in 1994 under the direction of Suri Krishnamma and dealt with themes of homosexuality and theatre.

The story of the show focuses on the character of Alfie Byrne, a Dublin bus conductor who spends his time reciting poetry to the passengers onboard his bus. But beyond the world of bus conducting he is also an amateur theatre director, helming productions at a local community theatre that presents numerous productions from the confines of the neighbourhood church. The productions mirror his bus journeys as the passengers he encounters are his performers, but as the musical progresses, Alfie must face some uncomfortable truths about himself that have been bubbling under his renditions of Oscar Wilde plays for some time.

The musical features songs such as “A Man of No Importance”, “The Streets of Dublin”, “Man in the Mirror”, “Love Who You Love”, “Confusing Times”, “Welcome to the World” and “Love’s Never Lost”.

Paul Clarkson appears alongside a large cast of actors, with Roisin Sullivan also starring with Anthony Cable, Dieter Thomas, Paul Monathan, Jamie Honeybourne, A.J. O’Neill, Joanna Nevin, Ruth Berkeley, Kimberley Ensor, Emily Juler, Nicola Redman, Niall Sheehy, Daniel Maguire, Patrick Joseph Kelliher, Barra Collin and Adam Davenport.

“A Man of No Importance” is at the Arts Theatre from Wednesday 10th February 2010 to Saturday 27th February 2010.