In the Wake of Suicide - a one man show in The Glens Centre

“In the Wake of Suicide” is a powerful one-man theatre performance, written and performed by Stephen Doyle.

A native of Oxford, Stephen spent many years touring the UK and Europe performing one-man Shakespeare plays, which ultimately gave him a love, understanding and appreciation of the artistic and emotional power of the one-man-show.

In his latest project, “In the Wake of Suicide,” Stephen brings his audience on a journey that is wonderfully colourful and contrastingly dark.

Stephen Doyle brings his one man performance “In the Wake of Suicide” to The Glens Centre

Following the lives of four friends, the audience is invited into their world to journey with them through a snapshot in time. Will, an aspiring jazz musician, has the potential to achieve wonderful things, whilst his father, a rock to Will’s friends during their teenage years, bears a heavy cross in life which, eventually, causes all their lives to unravel and shatter.

The tragic events that unfold are as shocking as they are unexpected, with twists and turns in abundance.

Stephen’s passion and commitment to the subject are reflected in the raw and deeply moving performance he delivers.

The journey he has taken to bring the play to fruition is apparent through his delivery of the play. “I spent two years researching the impact that suicide can have on families, communities, and society as a whole. Back in 2015, having been affected by the impact of suicide, I started to toy with the idea of creating a play dealing with the subject matter of the impact of suicide. I began my research by interviewing people who had lost loved ones through suicide and gained a powerful insight into their experiences and the effects suicide had on their lives.

“The messages I gleaned from these interviews were that the interviewees were extremely grateful to be given a voice or a platform from which to have their voices heard. They were grateful to have the opportunity to talk about their experiences without judgement and were optimistic that something positive could come from their grief. My research also included a great deal of reading, internet searching and attending suicide awareness seminars. From my research, I identified key messages which I felt should be portrayed in my future play.

“I began working closely with Mike Rainsford, who was the Suicide Prevention Officer for Sligo at the time, in order to take my play to the next level. I wanted clarification from Mike about the points I was proposing to portray, to ensure I was highlighting the correct issues in an appropriate and

sensitive manner.

“It was then my job, as a professional theatre practitioner, to take those messages on board and to create a play that would communicate in a very powerful and effective way to the general public.

“I also collaborated with a community development group whom I had identified as representing a cross-section of people, each with their own experiences and stories to tell.

“From here, I began creating the characters and dialogue, allowing their stories and relationships to develop in such a way that the audience would be drawn to join them on their journey and share their experiences.”

According to Doyle, “In the Wake of Suicide” encourages people to talk, reach out, acknowledge and

realise the reverberating destruction caused by suicide. Through its gritty portrayal, it hopes to discourage people from carrying out the final, desperate act of suicide, and encourages them to reach out to the wonderful organisations which offer support, as well as seeking guidance and help from the people around them.

Stephen emphasises that “almost 800,000 people die by suicide every year across the globe. It’s time to talk about suicide”.

“In the Wake of Suicide” will be performed in The Glens Centre this Saturday, September 3.