Druid mourns the passing of the award-winning actress Anna Manahan who has died at the age of 84. Garry Hynes, Artistic Director, Druid commenting on her death said “Anna was a true star of the theatre and not just because she won a coveted Tony Award on Broadway for her stunning performance in The Beauty Queen of Leenane. She was a star because in a long, distinguished and incredibly hard working career she gave so much pleasure to so many all across Ireland and abroad. She graced the work of many writers including her beloved John B Keane and helped bring Martin McDonagh’s work to bright and startling birth in Galway in 1996. She was a much loved member of the Druid community and I personally will miss her very much.”

Anna appeared in four Druid productions – I Do Not Like Thee Dr. Fell (1988), The Beauty Queen of Leenane (1996), A Skull in Connemara (1997) and Sive (2002). She won a Tony Award in 1998 for her part as Mag in Martin McDonagh’s The Beauty Queen of Leenane. Speaking from London, Martin McDonagh, the Award winning playwright expressed his sadness at the news “To have met and gotten to work with an actress as bright and brilliant as Anna on my very first play was one of the most rewarding experiences of my whole life. She was one of the true greats of Irish stage and screen, and a lovely woman, and I’ll miss her very much.”

If you would like a further comment from Garry Hynes please contact Kate Bowe on 086 2675018.

Biography

Born in Co Waterford, Anna Manahan trained at the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin and worked with many famous names, including Michael MacLiammoir and Hilton Edwards at The Gate. She went on to become an internationally recognised actress on stage, television and film. Her television roles included parts in The Riordans, The Irish RM and Fair City, while her extensive stage work included Big Maggie, which was written for her by John B Keane. She was nominated for a Tony Award 1969 and won a Tony in 1998 for her part as Mag in Martin McDonagh’s The Beauty Queen of Leenane. She had recently spoken out on the rights of elderly people and was a patron of Active Retirement Ireland. Tragically widowed in her early 30s, she never remarried, and had been living with her brothers in Co Waterford. She was granted the Freedom of Waterford city in 2002.