Curtain rises on a man’s world in Amy Conroy's new play

AMY Conroy’s play, Luck Just Kissed You Hello, is an exploration of masculinity and what it means to be a man today.

The play takes place in a hospital where Big Jim, a tyrannical father, is dying. It features long- estranged Mark, a transgender character who grew up as Big Jim’s daughter, Laura. There’s also Gary, the gay son, and Sullivan, a regular guy, for whom Big Jim was a father figure. The twist in the father/son theme results in difficult confrontations.

Conroy plays Mark, a challenging role but one that she relishes. “I had been watching a lot of theatre and became fascinated by how men are represented. It now feels like there’s a great sense of flux in masculinity. I know it sounds grandiose but it’s no longer acceptable to be what used to be a man. We have a massive rate of young male suicide. I don’t know if there’s a crisis in masculinity but it’s quite a problem that young men are killing themselves.”