Exploring the drama around a scandalous incident

A scandalous incident happened in south Leitrim in the early 1920s,” begins the press release promoting Killian McGuiness’s new play.

The synopsis proceeds to outline that a young unmarried housekeeper working in the parochial house in Aughavas became pregnant. The child was born and shortly afterwards the local doctor was shot dead in nearby Mohill.

Where the “scandal” resides in these broad brush strokes is intriguingly ambiguous.

“Probably the housekeeper being pregnant,” observes Killian of the twisted moral code of Irish society at the time.

Sadly Killian explains these few points do have a basis in fact: a priest’s housekeeper did become pregnant and a local doctor, Paddy Muldoon was later shot dead.

The crime remains unsolved, however the incident was the subject of a book co-authored by Ken Boyle and Tim Desmond: ‘The Murder of Dr Muldoon: A Suspect Priest, A Widow’s Fight for Justice’.

“It was in the back of my mind, having heard about it growing up, and I never passed much attention,” Killian McGuinness tells the Celt. “Then I was talking to a man from Aughavas and he filled me in on the whole thing, long before the book. It intrigued me always, and the idea that it happened in the parish where I was actually born.

“I was going to write an actual historical drama, using the same names,” recalled Killian who may have Aughavas roots, but was reared in Mullahoran.

Killian has form for writing historical dramas, having previously penned ‘Tom Clarke’s One True Love’ about the 1916 leader. It was that experience which informed his approach with ‘The Door on the Left’.

“I found if you do something that is historically accurate, it does curtail you, so I decided I’d write something that was inspired by that incident.”

Hence the pregnancy of the girl, and the murder of Dr Muldoon are the jumping off point for Killian’s drama which has different character names bears very few other links with the real events.

“At first I was going to write about the priest as the main character in the play - him having to go away and using the money of the parish in good hotels in Dublin, and being involved in incidents with Sinn Féin and all that.

“Then I wrote about Bronagh [the doctor’s wife], the fact that she lost her husband and having to rear three kids on her own.

“Then Maura my wife said, ‘What are you writing about those two for? Why don’t you have the play set around the girl?’”

Killian wisely took her counsel on board and the play is now built around Mary, the priest’s housekeeper played by Candy Fitzgibbon.

You could do a trilogy, suggests the Celt only half jokingly.

“Oh Jes’ no,” Killian says laughing off the suggestion. “I’m an old man.”

He admits to have found it difficult to enter the mind of a teenage girl in he beginning.

“I imagined her in each of the situations, the first was the fact she was coming from a very very poor family, coming into the local parochial house, and she develops from there.

“Hopefully by the end of the play she’s an autonomous human being, able to cope on her own.”

He also intertwined the pivotal historic incidents which provided the backdrop and context of the time, namely the Treaty and the resulting fall-out.

“I’m not a writer – I’m not one of these people who writes from nine o’clock in the morning and finishes at two in the afternoon or anything like that. I’m only drawn to write about something if I find it interesting, and it nearly always has an historical aspect to it,” he says.

“Because I’ve been in drama for the last 40 years, I always think of it in terms of a play you could make out of it.”

A major part of our history, although only recently acknowledged is the horrific treatment faced by women who did not conform with societal expectations of the time.

“It’s not so much to give out about how it was in the past, it’s to show people what did happen in the past and how people were treated.

“These are the things that happened. Women being ‘churched’ - having to be blessed after having a baby, that was real - that wasn’t a concoction on my part.”

While he admits it’s a “sad” story, he insists there is light relief in parts, particularly in the character of Lizzie, a role played by Maura. She still carries out an important role in the story:

“She’s that kind of character who knew everything that was going on, but just covered it up, the way society covered it up.”

Both Killian McGuinness and Cornmill Theatre have a proud history when it comes to the All-Ireland Drama Festival, having previously picked up the biggest prizes on offer. He’s honoured to have one of his own creations on the festival circuit.

“When I was writing it I never set out to have it staged anywhere – I thought our group might read it, and then it was decided at a meeting we’d do the play for the festivals. I didn’t mind, I was quite happy about that.”

They bring ‘The Door on the Left’ to the Shercock Drama Festival on Monday, March 21 and then the Cavan Three Act Drama Festival in the Townhall Cavan on Tuesday, March 22. He looks forward to these shows, which along with Ballinamore and Kiltyclogher they regard as their four “home shows”.

Early shows have reportedly “gone down very well” giving him hope they might make the finals.

“If you do a comedy, and you do it well, you’ll always get a full house, but sometimes if a play is a bit serious, people aren’t as interested. I would hope that it’s good enough to attract good local audiences, and it’s getting that at the moment.

“But obviously the ultimate goal is to get to Athlone absolutely.

“Everybody likes to get to Croke Park!”