The Lyric Theatre is delighted to announce that Brian Friel’s acclaimed masterpiece Faith Healer will return to Belfast from 10 October to 14 November, as part of the theatre’s 75th anniversary celebrations and Belfast International Arts Festival, in a major new production with Olivier Award-winning actor Conleth Hill alongside Lisa Dwyer-Hogg, Chris McCurry and directed by Emma Jordan.
One of Brian Friel’s best-known and most enduring plays, Faith Healer returns in a production that brings together three acclaimed Northern Irish actors for this powerful and haunting exploration of memory, belief and the stories we tell.The cast features Conleth Hill as Frank Hardy, Lisa Dwyer Hogg as Grace and Chris McCurry as Teddy.
Faith Healer is a poetic and deeply affecting exploration of storytelling, memory and the uncertain boundary between truth and belief. As three voices revisit the same extraordinary life, Friel creates a compelling portrait of a charismatic performer and the people whose lives are bound to him.
Hailed by The Guardian (2024) as one of the greatest plays of the twentieth century, Faith Healer has captivated audiences around the world since it was first performed on Broadway in 1979.
Travelling through remote villages across Scotland and Wales, Frank Hardy promises miracle cures to those suffering from sickness and pain. Charismatic and theatrical, Frank possesses an extraordinary gift – but one that is as unpredictable as it is remarkable.
As Frank, his wife Grace and his manager Teddy, each recount their experiences of life on the road, a very different picture begins to emerge. Through three powerful monologues, Friel presents competing versions of the same events, exploring the nature of memory, belief and truth, and leaving audiences to question what really happened and whose version they can trust.
Jimmy Fay, Executive Producer Lyric Theatre, commented:
“We are delighted to be producing Brian Friel’s extraordinary play Faith Healer at the Belfast International Arts Festival as our celebratory 75th anniversary show. In producing Faith Healer, we are honouring one of our and the world’s greatest playwrights. Brian Friel opened the new Lyric in May 2011 with his inspirational secular prayers. “I pray that this may be a sacred place because what will happen here – when it’s at its truest – really has to do with the unworldly and the spirit.” It is an honour to have Conleth Hill back at the Lyric.
Along with Conleth, we at the Lyric have assembled an extraordinary cast and creative team, led by the fearless Emma Jordan, and I am certain that collectively we will weave this play of faith, magic and lies into a memorable tapestry of theatrical wonder. This will be something really special.”
Noirin McKinney, Director of Arts Development Arts Council of Northern Ireland, said,
“The Arts Council of Northern Ireland is proud to be Principal Funder of the Lyric Theatre. Faith Healer, is a classic, world-renowned play by one of Ireland’s greatest ever playwrights, Brian Friel, and this production at the Lyric Theatre promises to be very special indeed and a theatrical highlight for the upcoming autumn/winter season.”
Chris McCreery, Artistic Director and CEO of Belfast International Arts Festival, added:
“The Lyric Theatre has been one of Belfast International Arts Festival’s closest collaborators for decades, so we’re delighted to be celebrating its 75th anniversary through this extraordinary new production of Brian Friel’s Faith Healer. There could hardly be a more fitting work to mark this milestone. Widely regarded as one of the defining plays of modern Irish theatre, it returns to Belfast with an exceptional cast led by Conleth Hill, and promises to be one of the theatrical highlights of this year’s Festival. We look forward to welcoming audiences to experience this remarkable production as part of both the Lyric’s anniversary celebrations and Belfast International Arts Festival.”
The Lyric Theatre is principally supported by the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, National Lottery funding, and Belfast City Council.
For booking details visit www.lyrictheatre.co.uk. Follow Lyric Theatre on Instagram and Facebook @LyricBelfast #LyricBelfast.
