‘When Limerick took on the Empire without firing a bullet’

A PIECE of living history was delivered this week as the old Cleeves factory played host to a theatre performance.

It’s curtains up for Mike Finn’s much anticipated Bread not Profits play, which takes people right back to that two week period in 1919 when workers took control.

It is significant that it is taking place in Cleeves, as it was workers here who were first out of the blocks to take strike action against the military control by the British army.

A real live action promenade play, we go deep into the former toffee factory, look in on meetings of the ‘war cabinet’ of the strike committee, and also learn about the conflicted feelings on both sides of the argument.

This reporter was lucky enough to be in attendance at a preview of Bread not Profits – whose 10 night run is now sold out – and it did not disappoint.

Gathering in the courtyard in the early summer evening sunshine under the famous chimney at Cleeves, there was a real sense of anticipation.

We were split into three groups, depending on the colour of arm-band we picked up – black, white or beige, and this would dictate the direction of our voyage around the old toffee plant.

“Everybody will see everything, but in a different order,” producer Ella Daly assures us.

The 120-strong audience (it’s limited to this for capacity reasons) were all together at the start in the war room, before splitting off.

“From now on, nothing moves in the city without our say so,” was the opening gambit from carpenter John Cronin (Pat Ryan), who led the strike committee.

Then, it was onto a recreation of the Cleeves factory – decked out with the sugar sacks of the day – where we meet heroine Sally McGowan (Georgina Miller), who was battling the obvious sexual prejudice of the day.

“I don’t just want to help out, I want to be organising. What kind of a revolution has women making the tea,” she asked.

Each scene is book-ended with original songs played by a musical cast including Emma Langford.

It was in our third scene where the Limerick Leader made an appearance – with our edition this week in April 1919 being read by British soldier Harry Lumley (Kit Thompson). It was printed by permission of the strike committee.

There were personal stories throughout the play, with the polarity of the power struggle between the strike committee giving permission for businesses to run, letters to be sent and trades to be operated, juxtaposed with British soldiers carrying out the orders of Her Majesty’s government.

“We are taking on an empire without firing a bullet,” was how Billy Sheahan (Aidan Crowe), who was plucked from obscurity to join the committee, said.

There was a focus on local opposition to the Soviet – baker Pat Dalton (Charlie Bonner) fearing the impact it would have on his family business.

Throughout the play, John Cronin played a big role – and one of his descendants was present to witness it.

Gerry Casey is the great grandson of the strike committee leader.

“It was very surreal really to be in the same room as your great grandfather, reliving what he went through. It was fascinating. The format is fantastic in that you are literally on stage with the actors, you could see the emotion of it all,” he said, “When you’ve heard so much about it, its incredible to see it re-enacted in front of you.”

Miriam Duffy, St Joseph’s Street said: “It was absolutely incredible. This is the Mike Finn touch.”

“Living history” was how Parteen man Frank Sheahan described the play, saying: “It was literally like being inside what was happening at the time. I’d heard about the soviet, but not known anything about it until tonight.”

The play concluded with the whole cast in the war room reflecting on the impact of the two-week strike. We then marched en-bloc into the Cleeves courtyard alongside the cast as images of the Soviet were projected onto the wall.

An epic performance, an epic night.

Sadly, tickets are now sold out for all ten performances.