"An entertainer of the first rank...a privilege for the audience that she is prepared so generously to make a show of herself"
Review by Frank L. (No More Workhorse)
The brief programme note states “An Irish raconteur shares the tales … of her life …” while a quotation from Liz Nugent, the author, states “Mary Kate can grip an audience and hold us in the palm of her gentle hand. She entertains us with her gifted storytelling…”. The total words of those two quotations comprise less than one hundred words but they contain the essence of this seventy-minute enchanting performance by Mary Kate O’Flanagan. The only other piece of substantive information the note contains is ...
"This life-affirming show is a good antidote right now in a world that seems impossibly difficult and cruel."
Review by KATY HAYES (IRISH INDEPENDENT)
A story slam is an open-mic competitive event where people tell stories without a script. The performance style is generally that of a raconteur rather than an actor. Mary Kate O’Flanagan has won a number of story slam titles both in Dublin and Los Angeles and her 75-minute solo show is a series of these slam-shaped vignettes.
There are six stories in all, and though there is no autobiography, no account of where she grew up or went to school, the stories nonetheless offer a clear picture of her life. The most striking tale is an account of an enduring friendship she struck up with ...
"she has a refreshingly grounded positivity that is infectious, and she is exactly the kind of person you would want to tell your own story to over a cup of tea"
Review by EMMA DEVLIN (REVIEWS HUB)
As Mary Kate O Flanagan will tell you (and does tell you) herself, she is a storyteller, and Making a Show of Myself is a wonderfully intimate collection of six personal anecdotes told over 75 minutes. There’s no preamble, as soon as O’Flanagan walks onto the stage she launches into the first story, making the audience laugh early doors to put them at ease and get them into the swing of it; is there anything as universal as the humour of heartbreak? It’s an endearing and ultimately uplifting opener and ...
"Stories are how we give our lives meaning"
MARY KATE In conversation with Niamh Donnelly (IRISH TIMES)
For the last 20 years, I’ve travelled the world giving workshops, screenwriting, and working as a consultant on film and television projects. I love it. My brain was designed for story. Ten years ago, The Moth Story Slam came to Dublin. I hadn’t heard of a story slam, but the best way of describing it is competitive storytelling. I went along one night. The theme was mothers, and I thought: I have a story about my mother. I put my name in the hat and won. Then I won the Grand Slam in the Abbey. A couple of months later, I entered a slam in LA and won that, too."
"A treat from storyteller Mary Kate O Flanagan coming to the Droichead" (DROGHEDA LIFE )
There’s a treat in store next month for lovers of a good story when Mary Kate O Flanagan brings her show “Making A Show Of Myself”, a celebration by the power and magic of storytelling, to the Droichead Arts Centre.
Making a show of myself is based on the premise that the most painful and embarrassing episodes of our lives can yield a gift when you turn them into a story. Here is mary kate doing just that.
MARY KATE O FLANAGAN ON IRISH NATIONAL RADIO (RTE)
"Dancing in the Dark" - a taste of Mary Kate's storytelling on Irish National Radio Station RTE
The professional reviews echo the audience experience
