Ireland’s first lesbian musical

SKIBBEREEN Town Hall was never as colourful as it was on a recent Saturday night, where The Stonewall Builder – a West Cork Musical premiered to a full house. Ireland’s first lesbian musical, written by local resident Liz Clark and performed by a professional cast of Liz Clark, Molly O’Mahony, Míde Houlihan and Lorraine Crowley, was completely sold out prior to the event.

The event was organised by Skibbereen Community and Family Resource Centre. Community development worker Eimear Barry introduced the show and acknowledged the support that Liz Clark had received from the vast community of dynamic and accomplished lesbian activists, artists and entrepreneurs living in West Cork and expressed how thrilled the resource centre were to have had the opportunity to organise such a fantastic event.

Local technician Jack Marks was responsible for the sound and lighting and special thanks was expressed to Catherine Field and Rita Wild for their help with the production.

Theatre goers lined North Street on Saturday evening and The Maid of Eireann was waving the progress flag in their honour. The crowd was enthralled throughout the performance and the cast received an instant and deafening ovation at the bow. The cleverly crafted and deeply personal musical weaves together the beautiful, complex and often very funny tapestry of an LGBTQ+ experience while living in rural Ireland, during a tumultuous era of change. The musical explores the internal battles Liz faced in relation to coming out to the elderly people she loves to work with, and the impact that microaggressions and heteronormative language had on her professional life.

The songs also walk the audience through Liz’s experience of falling in love, raising a family and pursuing her passion for song-writing while also connecting with communities, preserving heritage, tradition, folklore and personal stories.