From West Kerry to plains of East Limerick, Mick lays bare his tale
EAST Limerick native Michael O’Sullivan lays bare his father Mick’s life story in a night of hilarious storytelling guaranteed to resonate with all when his two-act play, Lord Spare Us Da Health, comes to St John’s on Friday, July 6 next. Doors open at 7.40pm.
Described as an ‘intimate drama between father and son, sprinkled with humour and fun’, it’s set to take all back to times when life was hard, but mediated by a practical wisdom far thicker on the ground than it is now. Few were wiser than Dingle native Mick, who had a pithy aphorism on hand for most situations – fondly remembered by his son Michael in a piece presented by Humorfit Productions.
“My father was a practical, no-nonsense man full of wisdom, humour, honesty and useful advice. Work was pretty much his be all and end all, and man woman and child were measured by this yardstick,” Michael explained.
“He was the oldest of nine children born near Dingle in 1915, and his travels took him to England in his mid-20s and eventually back to farming in Limerick. He gave 92 years to this life and a lot of wisdom to all who listened and some who didn’t. This is his story.”
Among his choicest observations were ‘ your back pocket is your best friend,’ and ‘ you come into this world with nothing and you leave it the same way’. This one-man play in the style of storytelling tells the tale of a simple life sprinkled with local stories and humour.