Established in 2008, Origin Theatre Company’s 1st Irish Festival is a New York City-wide celebration of contemporary Irish theatre. For nearly two decades, the festival has provided a vital platform for Irish and Irish diaspora artists, introducing New York audiences to bold new voices from across the Atlantic. To date, the festival has presented or launched the work of more than 400 Irish and Irish-American playwrights.

 

Notable festival productions have included the New York premieres of Enda Walsh’s Disco Pigs, Larry Kirwan’s Hard Times, and Honor Molloy’s Crackskull Row, among many others. Across its history, 1st Irish has championed both established and emerging artists, offering a distinctive window into the breadth, vitality, and evolving cultural identity of contemporary Irish theatre.

 

The festival has partnered with leading Irish and American theatre institutions, including Lyric Theatre Belfast, The Abbey Theatre, Dublin Theatre Festival, AboutFACE Theatre, Fishamble: The New Play Company, Wexford Arts Centre, Collapsing Horse, Gúna Nua Theatre, Kabosh Theatre Company, Solas Nua, Inis Nua Theatre Company, Tir Na Theatre Company, 59E59 Theaters, Irish Repertory Theatre, Irish Arts Center, New York Irish Center, the American Irish Historical Society, NYU’s Glucksman Ireland House, the Consulate General of Ireland in New York, The Drilling Company, An Beal Bocht Café, The Cell Theatre, and Mint Theater Company.

 

Each year, the festival culminates in the 1st Irish Awards, celebrating outstanding artistic achievement across the festival. Competitive categories include Best Production, Best Playwright, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Design. The awards also include a Special Jury Prize and the Bairbre Dowling Spirit of the Festival Award, named in honor of the acclaimed Irish actress and longtime supporter of the festival.

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​The 2026 festival paid tribute to Tony Award-winning Irish playwright Enda Walsh, presenting a lineup that included a mainstage production of Misterman alongside staged readings of Disco Pigs, The Same, Medicine, and The Twits. Walsh was also honored at Origin’s 2026 Gala Celebration as Ard Seanchaí, Irish for “Chief Storyteller,” in recognition of his extraordinary contribution to contemporary Irish theatre.

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