Cast & creative team announced for 25th anniversary production of STONES IN HIS POCKETS

Photo credit: Neil Harrison

The full cast and creative team involved in the 25th anniversary production of award-winning tragicomedy Stones in his Pockets have been announced, ahead of its run at the Barn Theatre in Cirencester from 27 July-22 August.

Currently rehearsing at Vault Artist Studios in Belfast, the piece is directed by Matthew McElhinney, son of the playwright and the play’s original director Ian McElhinney. This new production promises to bring an authentic rediscovery of the worldwide phenomenon, which has won numerous awards including both the Olivier and Evening Standard Awards for Best New Comedy, as well as three Tony nominations on Broadway.

Set in rural Ireland, Stones in His Pockets follows a small village that is turned upside down by the arrival of a Hollywood studio to film the latest historical blockbuster. Told through the eyes of local lads Charlie Conlon and Jake Quinn, who are employed as extras, it soon becomes clear that Tinseltown’s romanticised dream of Ireland is a long way from reality.

The production will star Northern Irish actors Shaun Blaney as Jake and Gerard McCabe as Charlie, and features design by Gregor Donnelly, choreography by Fleur Mellor, lighting by Sam Rowcliffe-Tanner, sound by Harry Smith, and AV design by Benjamin Collins and Alex Tabrizi.

McElhinney said: “Stones in his Pockets began life in small community halls and regional venues in Ireland before going on to run for four years on the West End and then Broadway, winning two Olivier Awards and several Tony nominations and has now been translated into over 30 languages. A dream come true; but as a consequence of its success, throughout its many iterations it slowly began to drift away from its original essence and into the more farcical, the pantomime and the Irish with a capital O. This production, on the year of its 25th anniversary, is an opportunity, for us, to reclaim the story.”  

Tickets for the Cirencester run of Stones in his Pockets can be purchased here.