Drama Circle Congratulated

The revival of a Drama Week in Sligo received the full support of members at a meeting of Sligo Corporation, on Monday, when the Mayor, Ald. J. Gannon, proposed a vote of congratulation to the Sligo Drama Circle on their recent successes at the All-Ireland Drama Festival in Athlone and at the Cavan Drama Festival. The Mayor said it gave him great pleasure to congratulate the members of Sligo Drama Circle. A special tribute should be paid to their producer, Dr. T. Mc Keogh, and to Paddy Dooney, who received a special award for his acting in Athlone. The Drama Circle was doing wonderful work in the town as the people involved had both drama and art forever in their minds. He hoped they would keep up the good work as those connected with drama in Sligo had excellent capabilities.

“We are on the threshold of a season of drama in the town. The revival is in the right hands as the people concerned have been praised by adjudicators at the top, and by rival drama groups all over Ireland. They are deserving of our congratulations and encouragement from a body like this may have the proper effect”, said the Mayor. Continuing, Ald. Gannon said their thanks were due to the other people of the town who were concerned with the revival of drama, and their congratulations could even extend outside the town, to Ballymote, as the members of that drama group also received a prize in Athlone.

Ald. G. Foley said the tribute paid to the Drama Circle was a well deserved one, because by winning the award in Athlone they had done something concrete and wonderful. The standard of acting was commented on by qualified people, and he thought that, as a group, they deserved the highest praise from the people of Sligo. They had set a standard, and it was up to them to maintain that standard. He hoped the successes would lead to a season of drama in the town as such a venture would be a wonderful tourist attraction and could put Sligo on the map. He congratulated the Drama Circle sincerely on their efforts and also extended his congratulations to the Ballymote Dramatic Society. Concluding, he paid a special tribute to Dr. Mc Keogh and Mr. P. Dooney.

from The Sligo Champion, May 9th, 1959

Cllr. J. Dolan said the Drama Circle were worthy successors of the Sligo Unknown Players. In congratulating the group he would like to refer to the revival of a drama week in Sligo Town. Under the auspices of Feis Shligigh they had a drama festival in the town about ten years ago, but it did not receive the support it should have received. He hoped the merited victories of the group would give Sligo its worthy place in the drama wrld of Ireland. The vote of congratulation was unanimously supported by all the members.