ON THE SPOT

American-born, Dublin-based theatre director Aoife Spillane-Hinks talks about her new play, Spotless, and

shares her arts hit list.

TELL ME ABOUT SPOTLESS…

Gary Duggan, the playwright, approached me about it two years ago. I love the grit, ambition, and cinematic quality of Gary’s plays, and I had a great time directing the world premiere of his play Run / Don’t Run in 2015. There’s a lot to surprise and excite audiences in Spotless: it’s a sharp and witty thriller, set just outside the Phoenix Park, all about the moral grey areas into which love and lust can lead us. This is the kind of play where you’ll be on the edge of your seat, watching for the next twist. Ciara O’Callaghan and Emma Willis play Genevieve and Jen, two complicated women drawn into relationships with

the same mysterious young man.

And Ciara and Emma both also play the man at the centre of the love triangle.

WHAT ELSE IS IN THE PIPELINE FOR 2019?

I’ve got an exciting new project in development with my company, Then This Theatre, all about sex, power, and God. I’ll also be heading back to the US later this year to direct a well-known Irish play. WHAT PROJECTS ARE YOU HOPING TO CATCH IN THE COMING MONTHS? The Thing About December, a stage adaptation of Donal Ryan’s acclaimed novel, presented by Decadent Theatre Company in Galway this June; Citysong, a new play at the Abbey

May 25 to June 8, directed by Caitriona McLoughlin (one of my favourite directors); and Max Richter’s Sleep (an “eight-hour minimalist opus”) at Carlow Arts Festival in June.

THIS SUMMER, I’LL BE… Reading Viv Albertine’s new book, To Throw Away Unopened Listening to lots of old Jacques Brel recordings, for a show I’m developing Seeing as much as I can in the Galway International Arts Festival Catching

up on Fleabag Redesigning our sitting room and dining room Admiring Alexandria

Ocasio-Cortez’s courage under fire.