21-25 October, 2008. The Mill Theatre, Dundrum Town Centre.
Everyone wants a part of Big Maggie and her property but she has other ideas. Immediately after burying her husband she sets about creating a better life for herself and her children. They will not repeat her past mistakes! Very quickly problems arise when her vision of the future sits uncomfortably on the shoulders of her surly family. The present day culture of freedom, education and money and, when all that fails, the safety net of indulgent parents, is far for the Kerry of Maggie Polpin in the early sixties where youth most definitely did not have its way.
The dialogue crackles with vituperative, caustic putdowns as the indomitable Maggie deals with her rebellious family and grasping suitors. JB Keane’s creation of this Irish matriarch ranks with Juno and Molly Blossom as one of the great female characters of twentieth century Irish literature.