Fishamble: The New Play Company & Staatstheater Mainz
in assoc. with Pavilion Theatre & Lime Tree Theatre | Belltable

REFUGE by Deirdre Kinahan

as part of Dublin Theatre Festival 2026 | Directed by Jim Culleton

“All war... it starts with stories, starts with lies”

Fishamble and Staatstheater Mainz present the Dublin premiere of REFUGE by Deirdre Kinahan (The Saviour, Rathmines Road).

Acclaimed director Jim Culleton (HEAVEN, On Blueberry Hill) leads this Irish/German co-production with an international cast that includes Mary Murray (Cosima, Holy Mary) and Aidan Kelly (Say Nothing, Killing Eve, Poor), with music by Steve Wickham (The Waterboys).

"Why are you here?"

1710, Rathkeale, County Limerick. A community flees persecution in Germany and is offered land in Ireland that should never have been given.

REFUGE traces their journey and explores the enduring connections between displaced communities of the past and those seeking safety today. It is a thrilling new play that weaves past, present and future: music and magic. Stories of longing, love and loss tear at the human need to find place, a home, a refuge.

Co-produced by means of a Pavilion Theatre Patron Donation Award.