Relevant. Absorbing. Intense. Thought-provoking. Riveting. Ambitious.
This is powerful theatre that plumbs the depths. It does not allow you to breathe. It’s rewards are rich and will stay with you.
Based on the acclaimed novel of the same name, A Girl is a Half-formed Thing follows the inner narrative of a girl, played by Jenn Murray (Brooklyn, Maleficent, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them), from birth until the age of twenty with vivid intensity and originality. I saw it live at Irish Rep in New York and it was thrilling. Now, the production is STREAMING ON DEMAND BEGINNING TODAY JANUARY 14 THROUGH JANUARY 30, 2022. Tickets ($25) available at IRISH REP.
Irish actress Jenn Murray stars in A Girl is a Half-formed Thing. Photo: Carol Rosegg
In scathing, furious, unforgettable prose, this is the story of a young girl’s devastating adolescence as she and her brother, who suffers from a brain tumor, struggle for a semblance of normalcy in the shadow of sexual abuse, denial, and chaos at home. Plunging you inside the psyche of a girl isolated by her own dangerously confusing sexuality, pervading guilt, and unrelenting trauma, the writing carries echoes of Joyce, O’Brien, and Woolf.
Adapted for the stage by Annie Ryan for The Corn Exchange, A Girl is a Half-formed Thing premiered at the Dublin Theatre Festival 2014. The show had its North American premiere at the Baryshnikov Arts Center in New York City in April 2016. Note: This show is intended for mature audiences and depicts scenes of sexual violence.