Friel, << freel, >> Brian (1929-2015), was a popular Irish dramatist. Friel’s plays are set in Ireland, and many of them deal with the mixed feelings that the Irish people have about their country and heritage. A large number of Friel’s dramas also explore the strength of family ties, or the importance of community for rural people.
Friel’s first successful work was Philadelphia, Here I Come! (1964). The play portrays a young man, divided into a public and private self, leaving Ireland for a new life in the United States. He is torn between excitement about his opportunities and guilt about leaving his family and friends. The Mundy Scheme (1969) satirizes corrupt politicians and what the author sees as an Irish love for get-rich-quick schemes.
Two of Friel’s major plays look at Ireland as a colonized nation. One, The Freedom of the City (1973), deals with the tragic conflict between Protestants and Roman Catholics in Northern Ireland. The other, Translations (1980), describes how English mapmakers in the 1830’s replaced traditional Irish place names with English versions, thus robbing the people of ties to their past.
Dancing at Lughnasa (1990) shows a family overcoming hard times and disappointments with the help of Irish folk music and traditions. Molly Sweeney (1994) tells how two men try to restore the sight of a blind Irish girl. Friel’s other plays include Lovers (1967); Volunteers (1975); Aristocrats and Faith Healer (both 1979); The Communication Cord (1982); Give Me Your Answer, Do! (1997); Afterplay (2002); Performances (2003); and The Home Place (2005).
Friel was born on Jan. 9, 1929, in Omagh in Northern Ireland. He helped found the Field Day Theatre in Derry. Friel died on Oct. 2, 2015.
