Martin McDonagh

Martin Faranan McDonagh (/məkˈdɒnə/; born 26 March 1970)[1] is a British playwright, screenwriter, producer, and director. Born and brought up in London, the son of Irish parents.[2] A winner of the Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film, McDonagh has been nominated for three other Academy Awards, and in 2018 won three BAFTA Awards from four nominations and two Golden Globe Awards from three nominations for his film Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.

Martin McDonagh
McDonagh at the Toronto premiere of Seven Psychopaths in 2012
Born
Martin Faranan McDonagh

(1970-03-26) 26 March 1970
Camberwell, London, England
NationalityBritish
CitizenshipBritish
OccupationPlaywright, screenwriter, film director
Years active2004–present
Notable work

Early life

McDonagh was born in Camberwell, London, to Irish parents.[3] His mother (originally from Killeenduff, Easky, County Sligo) and his father (originally from Leitir Mealláin, Connemara, County Galway) moved back to Galway in 1992, leaving McDonagh and his brother (writer-director John Michael McDonagh) in London.[4][5]

Career

Theatre

Separated into two trilogies, McDonagh's first six plays are located in and around County Galway, where he spent his holidays as a child. The first is set in Leenane, a small village on the west coast of Ireland, and consists of The Beauty Queen of Leenane (1996), A Skull in Connemara (1997) and The Lonesome West (1997).[6] His second trilogy is set across the Aran Islands, off the coast of County Galway, and consists of The Cripple of Inishmaan (1996), The Lieutenant of Inishmore (2001) and The Banshees of Inisheer. The third play was never published, as McDonagh insisted it "isn't any good",[3][7] though he has expressed a desire to return to it when he is older.[8]

McDonagh's first non-Irish play, The Pillowman, is set in a fictitious totalitarian state and premiered at the Royal National Theatre in 2003, after a reading at the Finborough Theatre in 1995.[9]

A Behanding in Spokane is McDonagh's first play that is set in the United States and it premiered on Broadway in March 2010.[10] Lead actor Christopher Walken was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play[10] for his performance as a killer looking for the hand he lost in his youth.[11]

McDonagh also penned two prize-winning radio plays, one of which is The Tale of the Wolf and the Woodcutter.[12]

In February 2010, an announcement revealed that McDonagh was working on a new stage musical with composer Tom Waits and director Robert Wilson.[13]

The Leenane Trilogy

The trilogy starts off with The Beauty Queen of Leenane which is the story of the dysfunctional relationship between a spinster and her domineering mother, during the course of which the former faces her last chance at love, and the latter faces a rather grim end.[14] The play was well received on its opening night in Galway in 1996 and was next produced Off-Broadway at the Atlantic Theater Company in 1998.[15] The play transferred to Broadway in April 1998 and was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Play.[16]

The second part of the trilogy, A Skull in Connemara involves a Connemara man who is employed to exhume skeletons in an overcrowded graveyard and he encounters the wife whom he was once accused of killing. The play premiered in 1997 at Town Hall Theatre, Galway.[6][14] The play was presented at the Royal Court Theatre (London), and made its US premiere at the A Contemporary Theatre (ACT) in Seattle, Washington in July to August 2000. The play ran Off-Broadway in January to May 2001 at the Gramercy Theatre, produced by the Roundabout Theatre.[17][18]

The final part is titled, The Lonesome West a play involving two brothers bicker in the aftermath of the supposedly accidental fatal shooting of their father. The play ran on Broadway in 1999 and received a Tony Award nomination for Best Play in 1999.[19][20]

The Aran Islands Trilogy

The Cripple of Inishmaan, is a dark comedy in which a crippled teenager schemes to attain a role in Man of Aran. The play opened in 1997 at the Royal National Theatre (Cottesloe) in London. It opened in April 1998 Off-Broadway at the Joseph Papp Public Theater, with Ruaidhri Conroy in the title role on both occasions.[21] Also in 1998, Frederick Koehler played the title role in the Geffen Playhouse production in Los Angeles, California.[22] In December 2008, The Cripple of Inishmaan was produced Off-Broadway by the Atlantic Theater Company, in conjunction with The Druid Theatre Company of Galway, Ireland.[23]

The Lieutenant of Inishmore is the follow up play which was written as a response to the 1993 Warrington bombings when two children were killed by the IRA.[24] It is a dark comedy in which the insane leader of an INLA (Irish National Liberation Army) splinter group discovers that his best friend, a cat, has been killed. The play was produced Off-Broadway in February 2006 by the Atlantic Theater Company.[25] It transferred to Broadway in May 2006 and received a 2006 Tony Award nomination for Best Play.[26]

The finale of the Aran Islands trilogy, Banshees of Inisheer, was Unproduced and unpublished, it is "a portrait of an ageing writer with declining skills".[8] As of February 2020, McDonagh was reported to be working on a film with the same title as a name. It is not known if it is related to, or based on, the unproduced play. [27]

Other plays

The Pillowman

Main article: The Pillowman

A writer in a non-specified totalitarian state is interrogated over the content of several of his Brothers Grimm-style short stories. The play was awarded the Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Play in 2004[28] and received a 2005 Tony Award nomination for Best Play.[29]

A Behanding in Spokane

Main article: A Behanding in Spokane

A play in which the character of Carmichael has been searching for his missing left hand for a quarter of a century. The play opened on Broadway in March 2010. The play was nominated for the 2010 Drama League award, Distinguished Production of a Play.[30][31]

Hangmen

Main article: Hangmen (play)

A play following Harry Wade, England's second-best hangman, after the abolition of hanging in Great Britain in 1965. The play premiered at the Royal Court Theatre, London, in September 2015.[5][32] The play was awarded the Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Play in 2016.

A Very Very Very Dark Matter

Main article: A Very Very Very Dark Matter

A play set in a townhouse in Copenhagen that reveals the dark source of the tales of children's author Hans Christian Andersen, as well as of the writer Charles Dickens. Premiered at the Bridge Theatre, London in October 2018.[33][34]

Film

McDonagh has stated that he prefers writing films to plays, as he holds a "respect for the whole history of films and a slight disrespect for theatre." In a 1998 conversation with Irish drama critic Fintan O'Toole in BOMB magazine, McDonagh further explained,

It's not that I don't respect theatre. I'm intelligent enough to know that a play can completely inspire a person as much as a film...[but] theatre isn't something that's connected to me, from a personal point of view, I can't appreciate what I'm doing.[35]

In an interview in 2005, the New York Times writer observed that McDonagh "now seems more comfortably resigned to the storytelling powers of drama, if still dismissive of its inherent elitism. 'It's kind of weird working in an art form that's not, well ...,' he stops and starts again. 'It's strange to be working in an art form that costs $100 to participate in.'"[36] In an interview with Sean O'Hagan of The Guardian, McDonagh said theatre "is never going to be edgy in the way I want it to be",[37] when discussing his absence from London theatre and promoting his new play Hangmen.

2000s

In 2006, McDonagh won an Academy Award for his short film Six Shooter (2004), which is his first film that he wrote and directed.[38] Six Shooter is a black comedy (as are his plays) that features Brendan Gleeson, Rúaidhrí Conroy, David Wilmot and Aisling O'Sullivan. It was shot on location in Wicklow, Waterford and Rosslare. In the short film, Gleeson's character encounters a strange, and possibly psychotic, young man during a train journey homeward following his wife's death.[39][40]

McDonagh entered into an agreement with the Focus Features film production company to direct In Bruges, a feature-length film based on his own screenplay. Two Irish hitmen hide in the Flemish city of Bruges after a problematic job. Released in the US in 2008, the film features Colin Farrell, Ralph Fiennes and Brendan Gleeson. In Bruges was the Opening Night film for the 2008 Sundance Festival and the Jameson Dublin International Film Festival, and McDonagh received a nomination for Best Original Screenplay at the 81st Academy Awards.[41][42][43]

In a 2008 interview with Stop Smiling magazine, McDonagh said, "I've got a couple of film scripts that are ready to go. I'm not going to do anything with them for a couple of years, until I've travelled and had some fun. But there's one called Seven Psychopaths; if I do another film, that'll be it. I hope you like it."[44] The production of the film was confirmed in May 2011 and it was eventually released in North America on 12 October 2012. Colin Farrell, Sam Rockwell, Woody Harrelson, Christopher Walken, and Tom Waits star in the film.[45][46]

2010s

McDonagh wrote and directed his drama-dark film Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017), starring Frances McDormand, Woody Harrelson, and Sam Rockwell, which premiered at the Venice Film Festival on 4 September[47] and won the People's Choice Award at the Toronto International Film Festival on 17 September 2017. Three Billboards won four awards at the 2017 Golden Globes, including Best Screenplay for McDonagh.

Personal life

As of 2018, McDonagh is in a relationship with writer and actress Phoebe Waller-Bridge.[48]

Work

Film
Year Film Director Writer Producer Notes
2004 Six Shooter Yes Yes No Short film; Directorial Debut
2008 In Bruges Yes Yes No Feature Length Directorial Debut
2012 Seven Psychopaths Yes Yes Yes
2017 Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri Yes Yes Yes

Executive producer

Theatre

Work as a Playwright

Year Play Notes
1996The Beauty Queen of Leenane
The Cripple of Inishmaan
1997A Skull in Connemara
The Lonesome West
2001The Lieutenant of Inishmore
2003The Pillowman
2010A Behanding in Spokane
2015Hangmen
2018A Very Very Very Dark Matter

Frequent collaborators
Actor Six Shooter (2004) In Bruges (2008) Seven Psychopaths 2012) Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017) Total
Colin Farrell N N 2
Brendan Gleeson N N 2
Sam Rockwell N N 2
Woody Harrelson N N 2

Awards and nominations
Main article: List of awards and nominations received by Martin McDonagh

References
  1. "Index entry". FreeBMD. ONS. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
  2. "Seven steps to Martin McDonagh". The Irish Times. 6 November 2012. Retrieved 3 May 2013.
  3. McDonald, Henry. "Profile" The Guardian, 25 April 2008
  4. O'Hagan, Sean. "Interview. The wild west" The Guardian, 23 March 2001
  5. O'Hagan, Sean. "Martin McDonagh interview: 'Theatre is never going to be edgy in the way I want it to be'" The Guardian, 13 September 2015
  6. Hicklinh, Alfred. "'A Skull in Connemara' review – a sprited revival that redefines the concept of graveyard humour The Guardian, 28 May 2015
  7. The Pillowman (2006–2007) at Berkeley Repertory Theatre. Retrieved 5 March 2009. Archived 26 January 2007 at the Wayback Machine
  8. Jason Zinoman (2 March 2010). "Is He Mellower? Ask the Guy Missing a Hand". The New York Times. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
  9. Wolf, Matt. "Review: The Pillowman " Variety, 26 November 2003. Retrieved 7 May 2016
  10. " A Behanding in Spokane Broadway" Playbill (vault). Retrieved 7 May 2016.
  11. Finkle, David. "Review" theatermania.com, 2 March 2010
  12. The Tale of the Wolf and the Woodcutter Archived 21 March 2007 at the Wayback Machine
  13. "New Musical From Tom Waits on the Horizon". Tom Waits. Tom Waits & ANTI Records. 2 February 2010. Retrieved 14 April 2013.
  14. Russell, Richard Rankin."Appendix: Chronology of Martin McDonagh's Life and Works" Martin McDonagh: A Casebook, Routledge, 2007, ISBN 1135868093, pp.178–180
  15. "'The Beauty Queen of Leenane' Off-Broadway" lortel.org. Retrieved 4 April 2016
  16. "'The Beauty Queen of Leenane' Broadway" Playbill (vault). Retrieved 4 April 2016
  17. McBride, Murdoch. "Martin McDonagh's 'A Skull In Connemara' Closing at Gramercy, May 20" Playbill, 20 May 2001
  18. Ehren, Christine. "McDonagh's Skull Rises Out of Seattle's ACT July 27-Aug. 20" Playbill, 27 July 2000
  19. "1999 Awards" broadwayworld.com. Retrieved 6 April 2016
  20. "'The Lonesome West' Broadway" Playbill (vault). Retrieved 4 April 2016
  21. "'The Cripple of Inishmaan' Off-Broadway" lortel.org. Retrieved 4 April 2016
  22. Hoffler, Robert. "Review: 'The Cripple of Inishmaan'" Variety, 29 October 1998
  23. Healy, Patrick (16 January 2014). "Daniel Radcliffe Returning to Broadway in 'Cripple of Inishmaan'". The New York Times. Retrieved 17 January 2014.
  24. Review,Tale of cats and mad dogs, Culture section, Sunday Times, 9 February,2020
  25. "'The Lieutenant of Inishmore' Off-Broadway" lortel.org. Retrieved 4 April 2016
  26. "'The Lieutenant of Inishmore' Broadway" Playbill (vault). Retrieved 4 April 2016
  27. https://deadline.com/2020/02/martin-mcdonagh-colin-farrell-brendan-gleeson-reteam-next-film-1202862064/
  28. "Olivier Awards, 2004" olivierawards.com. Retrieved 4 April 2016
  29. " The Pillowman Awards" ibdb.com. Retrieved 7 May 2016
  30. Brantley, Ben (5 March 2010). "Packing Heat, and a Grudge". The New York Times. Retrieved 19 October 2011.
  31. "'A Behanding in Spokane' Broadway" Playbill (vault). Retrieved 4 April 2016
  32. Clapp, Susannah. "'Hangmen' review – a tremendous, terrifying return by Martin McDonagh" The Guardian, 27 September 2015
  33. "A Very Very Very Dark Matter | The Bridge Theatre". The Bridge Theatre. Retrieved 18 March 2018.
  34. "Jim Broadbent to star in new Martin McDonagh play at Bridge Theatre". WhatsOnStage.com. Retrieved 18 March 2018.
  35. Fintan O'Toole (Spring 1998). "Martin McDonagh". BOMB Magazine. New Art Publications. Retrieved 14 April 2013.
  36. McKinley, Jesse. "Suffer the Little Children" The New York Times, 3 April 2005
  37. O'Hagan, Sean. "Martin McDonagh interview: 'Theatre is never going to be edgy in the way I want it to be'"
  38. "2006 Oscars". Retrieved 6 April 2016.
  39. James, Caryn. "Martin McDonagh Finds His Inner Thug as Film Director", The New York Times, 4 April 2006
  40. "Who is Martin McDonagh - the Oscar nominated Irish writer of "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri"". IrishCentral.com. 3 March 2018.
  41. Tim Robey (18 April 2008). "Film reviews: In Bruges, Fool's Gold, Street Kings and more". The Telegraph. Retrieved 14 April 2013.
  42. Wally Hammond (15 April 2008). "In Bruges (18)". Time Out London. Retrieved 14 April 2013.
  43. "In Bruges (2008)". Rotten Tomatoes. Flixster, Inc. 2008. Retrieved 14 April 2013.
  44. "Q&A: Martin McDonagh, director of in Bruges". Stop Smiling. Stop Smiling Media, LLC. 15 February 2008. Retrieved 14 April 2013.
  45. "'Seven Psychopaths' Listing" tcm.com. Retrieved 4 April 2016
  46. Zinoman, Jason (7 March 2010). "Is He Mellower? Ask the Guy Missing a Hand". The New York Times. Retrieved 25 April 2011.
  47. Tartaglione, Nancy (4 September 2017). "Frances McDormand On 'Three Billboards' Role: She's 'Fargo's Marge, "Grown Up" – Venice". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 4 September 2017.
  48. Hess, Amanda (14 February 2019). "Phoebe Waller-Bridge Will Make You Laugh So Hard It Hurts" – via NYTimes.com.
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