Theatre

Damien Dempsey puts his personal journey in the frame

The singer-songwriter’s haunting production Tales from the Holywell invites the audience to partake in an almost religious reflection on his childhood and life as an Irish musician

Writer and performer Damien Dempsey in Tales from the Holywell, an Abbey Theatre production, directed by Conor McPherson. Picture: Rich Gilligan

“I don’t write hits, I write healers,” professes Damien Dempsey in the opening moments of Tales from the Holywell, a “sacred singsong” being staged at the Abbey Theatre in Dublin. The performance is sculpted from personal reminiscences, interspersed with well-known numbers from his considerable back catalogue.

The singer-songwriter first came to attention with his 1997 single Dublin Town, which showcased his fresh, folk-inflected perspective on social and political disaffection among the urban youth. He has ...