Offaly man to appear with Irish National Opera at local theatre

BIRR man John Molloy will appear in the Irish National Opera presentation of Smetana’s 'The Bartered Bride' at Birr Theatre & Arts Centre on Saturday November 29th 2025.

Irish National Opera (INO) is delighted to continue its 2025-26 season with a national tour of Smetana’s comic folk opera The Bartered Bride. This flexible, chamber production of Smetana’s heart-warming comedy with 11 singers and five musicians will tour to seven completely new venues for INO, bringing world class opera to an even wider audience across Ireland.

Set in a busy Czech village bound by tradition and tangled in secrets, The Bartered Bride is a fast-paced comic opera where two young lovers attempt to rewrite the rules. To be together, they need to outwit a meddling matchmaker, sidestep an unwanted marriage contract and survive the arrival of a travelling circus.

At the heart of the story is Irish soprano Amy Ní Fhearraigh as Mařenka, a spirited young woman determined to marry for love but promised to a wealthy landowner’s son. Russian-Ukrainian tenor Egor Zhuravskii sings her devoted, but not entirely honest lover, Jeník. The cast also stars Birr native John Molloy as Kecal, the cunning and hilarious marriage broker.

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Smetana’s melodic score bursts with infectious folk rhythms, dazzling duets and the vibrant energy of its famous overture and dances. Irish National Opera’s energetic production brings a fresh musical perspective, with conductor Richard Peirson leading his own dynamic new arrangement of Smetana’s score. Director Louisa Muller makes her INO debut on The Bartered Bride, with set and lighting design by Ciaran Bagnall, costume design by Joan O’Cleary and choreography by Rebecca Howell.

The Bartered Bride is sung in English with English surtitles. 

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