Marie Jones
Encyclopedia
Sarah Marie Jones is a Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...

-based actress and playwright. Born into a working class family, Jones was an actress for several years before turning her hand to writing.

Charabanc/DubbelJoint

She helped found the Charabanc Theatre Company, an all-women touring group. It was created to help counteract the lack of roles for women, and which produced a series of collaboratively written original works. The group’s first play, Lay Up Your Ends, based on a strike by mill girls in the early part of the 20th Century, was an immediate hit. She remained with Charabanc until 1990 when she left and co-founded the DubbelJoint theatre group in 1991.

Plays

She wrote five plays for the Replay Theatre Company,
including Under Napoleon’s Nose (1988). The play for which she may be best-known is Stones in His Pockets
Stones in His Pockets
Stones in His Pockets is a two-hander written in 1996 by Marie Jones for the DubbleJoint Theatre Company in Dublin, Ireland.-Plot summary:...

, a play based on the idea of a Hollywood film company filming a movie in a small Irish village and the resulting impact on that community. This was performed on Broadway to critical acclaim.

She has written a number of stage and television plays, including
Tribes (1990), The Hamster Wheel (1991), Fighting the Shadows (1992), Wingnut and the Sprog (1994) and
A Night in November (1994). A Night in November
A Night in November
A Night in November is a 1994 monodrama written by Marie Jones about one man's struggle with national identity during The Troubles in Northern Ireland.-Plot summary:...

, about The Troubles
The Troubles
The Troubles was a period of ethno-political conflict in Northern Ireland which spilled over at various times into England, the Republic of Ireland, and mainland Europe. The duration of the Troubles is conventionally dated from the late 1960s and considered by many to have ended with the Belfast...

, was performed in London's West End and in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

 off-Broadway. Most recently, she wrote the book for a new musical, The Chosen Room, performed in Belfast in August 2008 by Youth Music Theatre: UK
Youth Music Theatre: UK
Youth Music Theatre UK is the United Kingdom's biggest provider of music theatre projects for young people. It is one of nine recognised National Youth Music Organisations ....

. She then wrote Act 2 of this musical, which was staged again the following year in 2009 at the same venue.

Film roles

As a film actress, she is best known for playing "Sarah Conlon" in
In the Name of the Father, a film about The Troubles
The Troubles
The Troubles was a period of ethno-political conflict in Northern Ireland which spilled over at various times into England, the Republic of Ireland, and mainland Europe. The duration of the Troubles is conventionally dated from the late 1960s and considered by many to have ended with the Belfast...

.

Awards

  • 2001 Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Comedy - 'Stones in His Pockets'
  • John Hewitt Award for outstanding contribution to culture, tradition and the arts in Northern Ireland
  • 1999 Irish Times/ESB Theatre Award for Best Production
  • Awarded the OBE
    Order of the British Empire
    The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...

    (in 2002)

External links

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