The Wake by Anna Teresa McGrath - Staged Reading

The Wake by Anna Teresa McGrath

Directed by Emma Copland

Longlisted for the The David MacLennan Award

It’s MIMI’S wake, in a rural border town in Northern Ireland. Caught up in getting things correct for the mother she warred with, BRIGID is feeling stressed. Her estranged daughter MARIA has joined her to spend these last few waiting hours, with a woman they both had complicated relationships with.

The Wake is darkly comic, but full of heart. It explores the matriarchal relationships in a family experiencing the seismic shock of loss, as they mourn the death of the senior matriarch, MIMI.

TRIGGER WARNING: References to self-harm and suicide.

Front & Centre are proud to present a series of staged readings featuring plays that have been finalists, shortlisted, or longlisted for major UK and Ireland playwriting awards, but have yet to be programmed in Northern Ireland. Despite their accolades, these works, penned by talented women from the North, have remained under the radar.

Plays are living, breathing documents that are written to be performed. For many women of the North, their brilliant, commended plays are sitting in drawers, languishing.

Front & Centre is determined to change that! We’ve paired these remarkable writers with accomplished Northern Irish directors, offering audiences a first look at the next generation of female theatre makers from the North.

This event has kindly been supported by Queen’s University and Belfast City Council.

For other readings in the series:

Hello Charlie by Caoimhe Farren

Stuff & Things & Junk & Belonging by Carley Magee

Please note: Presale will end on the event day at 11:30am. From that point onwards, tickets will only be available on the door, paying by card.

Anna McGrath is a writer interested in exploring identity, belonging, and cultural heritage, particularly the experiences of the Irish diaspora. One of Playwrights’ Studio Scotland’s six mentored playwrights in 2024, she has strong ties to both Northern Ireland and Scotland and has collaborated with companies including Provan Hall Trust, The Brunton, East Lothian Council, and Threes Theatre Company in Belfast.

Her play The Wake, long-listed for the David MacLennan Award, explores death and the role of the matriarch, while Fallopia Japonica (Arts Council of Northern Ireland) uses dark comedy to challenge stigma around women’s health. She is currently developing Feis, a new play about the Irish dancing scandal.

Anna also creates immersive theatre experiences, from site-specific productions at Provan Hall to Lisburn to Lapland, an interactive festive adventure in Northern Ireland. Her play Saltire Rock, commissioned for all thirty-six East Lothian primary schools, explores acceptance and diversity.

Across all her work, she blends humour, cultural reflection, and storytelling that sparks conversation and connection.