Irish Writers Online / Author
Sebastian Barry
Sebastian Barry was born in Dublin in 1955.
His plays are The Pentagonal Dream (Damer Theatre 1986);
Boss Grady's Boys (Abbey Theatre, Peacock stage, Dublin 1988),
which won the first BBC/Stewart Parker Award; Prayers of Sherkin (Abbey Theatre, Peacock stage, Dublin 1990, where he was Ansbacher Writer-in-Residence); White Woman Street (Bush Theatre, London 1992);
The Steward of Christendom (Royal Court Theatre Upstairs, London, 1995) Writers' Guild Award (Best Fringe Play) - Nominated for Olivier Awards (BBC Best Play) - Best Play of 1995 in The Guardian, Daily Telegraph and Time Out - Best Drama Award, Brighton Festival;
The Only True History of Lizzie Finn (Abbey Theatre, Dublin 1995); Our Lady of Sligo, (The National Theatre, London, Summer 1998 and The Gate Theatre Dublin September 1998); Whistling Psyche (London, Almeida Theatre, 2004); and The Pride of Parnell Street (London, The Tricycle Theatre/Dublin Theatre Festival, The Tivoli Theatre/Bray, The Mermaid Art Centre, 2007).
His plays are published as Boss Gradys Boys and Prayers of Sherkin (Methuen, 1992); The Only True History of Lizzie Finn, The Steward of Christendom (Metheun, 1995); White Woman Street (London, Methuen, 1995); Our Lady of Sligo (London, Methuen, 1998); Hinterland (Abbey Theatre, 2002); Whistling Psyche/Fred and Jane (London, Faber and Faber, 2004); and The Pride of Parnell Street (Faber and Faber, 2007).
His translation of Lorca's The House of Bernada Alba was staged by the Abbey Theatre in 2003.
His novels are Macker’s Garden (Dublin, Writer’s Co-Op 1982); Time Out of Mind/Strappado Square (Dublin, Wolfhound, 1983); and The Engine of Owl-Light (Manchester, Carcanet, 1987); The Whereabouts of Eneas McNulty (London, Picador, & New York, Viking 1998); A Long, Long Way (London, Faber & Faber, 2005/New York, Viking, 2005), which was short-listed for the Man Booker Prize, 2005; and The Secret Scripture (Faber & Faber, 2008).
His poetry collections are The Water Colourist (Dublin, Dolmen 1983); The Rhetorical Town(Dolmen 1985); Fanny Hawke Goes to the Mainland Forever (Dublin, Raven Arts Press, 1987); and The Pinkening Boy (Dublin, New Island Books, 2004 [limited signed edition, Oxford, Joe McCann, 2004]).
For children he has written Elsewhere (Dolmen 1985). He has been Writer Fellow, Trinity College Dublin, during 1995-1996, and has won numerous awards.
He lives in Wicklow and is a member of
Aosdána
