Eimear McGovern
Thu 29 Aug 2024 at 11:45
The team behind The Marian Hotel
The Northern Ireland survivor of a mother and baby institution has written a new play she hopes will dispel shame and address the trauma faced by young women forced to give up their babies.
Caitriona Cunningham gave birth to her daughter in the Marianvale home in Newry. She based the moving drama The Marian Hotel on her experiences.
Ms Cunnigham eventually got her daughter back but said she wants the term “given up for adoption” rethought.
She said: "I hope that audiences will get a sense of how things were for unmarried pregnant women, how 'given up’ for adoption should have been termed 'taken for adoption’. These institutions are part of our recent history, the effects they have had on our society still reverberate today.”
Between 1922 and 1990 over 10,500 women entered mother and baby homes in Northern Ireland; birth mothers and adoptees – many taken away without their mothers’ consent.
Ms Cunnigham continued: “I was one of the lucky ones. When I came out of Marianvale I got my daughter back at three months old and went on with my life. But I was very ashamed of having been through the system. I didn’t talk about it until recently but I always thought about the other women, especially around my daughter’s birthday.
“Many women and their children were never reunited, for some it is too late but I hope that this play will help to open up discussions and that ultimately there will be no more shame,” she added.
The play is set in 1979 against the backdrop of the Troubles and follows 19-year-old Kitty from Derry who goes into the home after becoming pregnant. She meets other young women in a similar situation and they form a bond coping with the strict regime and rigid discipline of the institution. It is packed full of humour in adversity, as they cope with the Spartan conditions, poor food and hard work in the laundry. The girls sarcastically label the institution ‘The Marian Hotel’.
The play is being staged as part of a creative heritage project taking place this autumn which will also involve a series of workshops, oral history recordings and a digital exhibition and has received a major grant from The National Lottery Heritage Fund.
It’s produced by the Derry-based theatre company Sole Purpose and opens in September - coinciding with the sitting of an expert panel that is currently taking evidence from survivors ahead of a full public inquiry.
The production will tour venues in Newry, Londonderry, Letterkenny, Strabane and Belfast.
Sole Purpose Artistic Director Patricia Byrne said: “The play is a searing portrayal of a dark time in Irish history. The inquiry in the North of Ireland has just got underway after a three year delay and this play is a call to all those impacted to come forward and raise their voices so that they may never again be silenced and shamed for being human.
“Victims suffer ongoing trauma related to abuse in the institutions, reflecting the legacy of a deep culture of shame about unmarried mothers in Irish society. As a direct testimony from a survivor, this play can connect in a unique way and may help to encourage those impacted to come forward to give their testimony to the Inquiry.”
A series of heritage outreach and engagement activities running alongside the tour aims to encourage people to come forward and share their experiences. With support from WAVE Trauma Centre, the project will create a space to explore and understand the important stories of the birth mothers, adopted children and families affected.
Stella Byrne, Head of Investment for The National Lottery Heritage Fund in Northern Ireland said: “Thanks to money raised by National Lottery players, we are supporting Sole Purpose with an award of £58,000 towards The Marian Hotel: Memories from Northern Ireland Mother and Baby Homes Project.”
The Arts Council of Northern Ireland Commissioning Programme also supported the development of the play.
The play will be premiered in Newry Town Hall on September 20, with other venues including An Grianán Theatre, Letterkenny; The Playhouse in Derry city; The Alley Theatre, Strabane and the Lyric Theatre, Belfast.
On selected dates the tour will include Q&A sessions with Professor Phil Scraton from the School of Law, Queen's University Belfast, a member of the Independent Panel set up to investigate the institutions and co-author of its report, Truth, Acknowledgement and Accountability.
For more information and how to book tickets for The Marian Hotel go to: www.solepurpose.org
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