Dunlavin writer wins RTE playwright award
Writer Robert Barret from Dunlavin has scooped first place in the 2020 RTE PJ O’Connor Radio Drama Awards for his play, ‘Nothing Ever Happens Around Here.’
RTE’s annual PJ O' Connor Radio Drama Awards have celebrated the best in new Irish writing for over 30 years.
In 2nd Place was Wogan's Sweet Sixteen by Kenneth Sweeney while in 3rd Place was The Gypsy Girl by Rory Kirby.
The prize was awarded by a panel of international judges from around Europe, including Soila Valkama of the Finnish Broadcasting Authority and Ilinca Stihi of the Romanian Radio Broadcasting corporation. Jesper Bergman of the Danish Broadcasting Corporation said that ‘this year’s shortlist has proved once again to a jury of non-Irish radio drama specialists that Ireland is indeed fertile soil for new writing.’
The winning play, a comedy, focuses on a day in the life of Courtland Alexander, a butcher in a small Irish town. Courtland is tipped into an existential crisis which plays out through his working day as he interacts with an ensemble cast of characters including a three-legged dog and a brother and sister team of undertakers.
Robert has been writing for many years, concentrating on plays, short stories and flash fiction. He manages to fit his writing around work and family life in West Wicklow.
The Dunlavin man has been shortlisted twice for the Fish Flash Fiction Award and once for the Colm Tobin Short Story Award. An active member of the local community, he was honoured with the opportunity to open the 2019 Dunlavin Festival of Arts.
He is a co-editor of Splonk, Ireland’s foremost online magazine for flash fiction(www.splonk.ie).
The international jury was delighted with the standard of entries this year.
One of the judges, Jesper Bergmann has worked as chief dramaturg of The Royal Theatre Copenhagen and the Danish Broadcasting Corporation.
He said: "This year's shortlist has proved once again to a jury of non-Irish radio drama specialists that Ireland is indeed fertile soil for new writing, and that the radio drama genre still is attractive to new and upcoming writing talent"
Another judge, Ilinca Stihi is a graduate of The Bucharest Academy of Theatre and Film. Since 2005 she has been a director at the Romanian Radio Broadcasting Corporation.
He added: "You have such great story tellers in Ireland".
Soila Valkama is a director, a dramaturge and actress. She taught radio directing, acting and dramaturgy at Berzeit University in Palestine's West Bank, and has worked as a director, dramaturge and producer with YLE, the Finnish Broadcasting Company since 1999.
She said: "It was a pleasure to adjudicate such a high calibre of work"
It is Robert’s second time to win the prestigious award, as he also won 1stplace in 2017 for his play, ‘K.L.O. For The Doggy.’