I first read Paul Durcan's extraordinary collection of poems over 10 years ago, and once I had finished, immediately reread them again. They made me laugh out loud, they moved me to tears, they haunted my imagination. I realized that the huge attraction of the poems was their accessibility, and that Paul had achieved that accessibility by writing the poems in the voices of ordinary (and extraordinary) men and women. They speak directly to us, in their own distinctive ways, displaying all the passion, arrogance, vulnerability, humor, joy and sorrow that makes us human. It began to dawn on me that because of their style, they would lend themselves to performance, or at least to recital, in a more public space than my own living room.

Dearbhla Molloy and I have known each other for half a lifetime or more, and have worked together many times over the years, so I called her and asked if she had heard of Paul Durcan's work. It turned out that Dearbhla was a huge fan, who possessed and had read everything he'd ever published, and was extremely knowledgeable about that particular collection. We both agreed the work deserved a wider audience, and thus, with Paul's blessing, the idea of Give Me Your Hand as a performance was born. We rehearsed in each other's houses, we stood enthralled in front of those magnificent paintings in the National Gallery in London, with Paul Durcan's vivid imagination demanding we look at them anew. It took quite a long time for us to carry this child of Paul's imagination to full term. One or other of us would suddenly get a job, and the project would enter limbo until we were free again, but finally it was given its first performance in London in 2010. We are delighted to share it now with audiences in Washington, New York, and of course Chicago.

–Dermot Crowley

Paul Durcan (Poet) was born in Dublin, Ireland, on October 16, 1944. He was educated at University College, Cork, where he studied archaeology and medieval history.

In 1974 he won the Patrick Kavanagh Award, and published his first collection O Westport in the Light of Asia Minor in 1975. Subsequent collections include The Selected Paul Durcan (1982), Jesus and Angela (1988) and Cries of an Irish Caveman: New Poems (2001), a central theme of which is death and disintegration. His 1985 collection, The Berlin Wall Café, a series of poems about the break-up of his marriage, was a Poetry Book Society Choice and is regarded by many critics as his most important work.

He was Poet in Residence at the Frost Place, New Hampshire, in 1985, and Writer in Residence at Trinity College, Dublin, in 1990. He was awarded the Irish American Cultural Institute Poetry Award in 1989 and his collection Daddy, Daddy (1990) won the Whitbread Poetry Award. He was joint winner of the 1995 Heinemann Award. His most recent collections of poetry are The Art of Life (2004) and The Laughter of Mothers (2008).

Paul Durcan lives in Dublin.

Dearbhla Molloy
Druid Theatre Company: The Cripple of Inishmaan (2008/09 Irish and UK tour, New York). Other Theater: Dancing at Lughnasa, Aristocrats, The Misanthrope, Translations, Ivanov, Living Quarters, Mrs Warren's Profession, A Life (Abbey Theatre); Juno and the Paycock, Dancing at Lughnasa, A Touch of the Poet (Broadway); In Celebration, Arcadia, Hamlet, As You Like It, Much Ado About Nothing (West End); The Cripple of Inishmaan, Hinterland, On the Ledge (National Theatre); The Hostage, Shadow of a Gunman (RSC); Doubt (Tricycle); Macbeth (Bristol Old Vic); Phaedre, Uncle Vanya, The Philanthropist, Come on Over (Gate, Dublin); The Plough and the Stars (Gaiety). Awards: 2 Drama Desk Awards; Theatre World Special Award; London Critics Award; 2 Irish Theatre Awards; US Audie Award. Nominations: Tony Award; Royal Television Society Award; IFTA; Grammy Award. Film and Television: The Damned United, Tara Road, Blackwater Lightship, New Tricks, Midsomer Murders, Waking the Dead, Foyle's War, Touch of Frost, Home for Christmas, GBH, 55 Degrees North.

Dermot Crowley
Druid Theatre Company: The Cripple of Inishmaan marks Dermot's debut with Druid Theater Company. Other Theater: House of Games (Almeida); Breakfast at Tiffany's (Haymarket); Calico (Duke of York's); The Weir (Duke of York's / Gate, Dublin / Broadway); Translations (Broadway); Juno (New York City Center); Dealer's Choice (Manhattan Theatre Club); Stuff Happens, Scenes from the Big Picture, Amadeus, The Double Dealer, Richard III, The Woman (National Theatre); The Hostage (RSC); A Whistle in the Dark (Abbey Theatre / Royal Court). Film and Television: Holy Water, Babel, The Legend of Bagger Vance, The Son of the Pink Panther, Octopussy, Wilt, The Return of the Jedi, Giro City, Luther, Margaret, Foyle's War, Midsomer Murders, Bleak House, Spooks, Rebel Heart, Jonathan Creek, Falling for a Dancer, Father Ted, The Sculptress. Radio: Frequent broadcasts on BBC radio include the William Trevor novels, Love and Summer and The Story of Lucy Gault, for Book at Bedtime.