Teresa Deevy (21 January 1894 – 19 January 1963) was an Irish dramatist and writer, who was deaf from the age of 19. Best known for her works for theatre, she was also a short story writer, and writer for radio.

Early life

Teresa Deevy was born on 21 January 1894 in

Waterford, Ireland Waterford ( ) is a city in County Waterford in the south-east of Ireland. It is located within the province of Munster. The city is situated at the head of Waterford Harbour. It is the oldest Deevy attended the Ursuline Convent in Waterford and in 1913, aged 19, she enrolled in

University College Dublin University College Dublin (), commonly referred to as UCD, is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a collegiate university, member institution of the National University of Ireland. With 38,417 students, it is Ireland's largest ...

, to become a teacher. However, that same year, Deevy became deaf through

Ménière's disease Ménière's disease (MD) is a disease of the inner ear that is characterized by potentially severe and incapacitating episodes of vertigo, tinnitus, hearing loss, and a feeling of fullness in the ear. Typically, only one ear is affected in ...

and had to relocate to

University College Cork University College Cork – National University of Ireland, Cork (UCC) () is a constituent university of the National University of Ireland, and located in Cork (city), Cork. The university was founded in 1845 as one of three Queen's Universit ...

so she could receive treatment in the Cork Ear, Eye, and Throat Hospital, while also being closer to the family home. In 1914 she went to London to learn

lip-reading Lip reading, also known as speechreading, is a technique of understanding a limited range of speech by visually interpreting the movements of the lips, face and tongue without sound. Estimates of the range of lip reading vary, with some figures as ...

and returned to Ireland in 1919. She started writing plays and contributing articles and stories to the press around 1919.

Nationalist movement

Deevy returned to Ireland in 1919, during the

Irish War of Independence The Irish War of Independence (), also known as the Anglo-Irish War, was a guerrilla war fought in Ireland from 1919 to 1921 between the Irish Republican Army (1919–1922), Irish Republican Army (IRA, the army of the Irish Republic) and Unite ...

, and this greatly influenced her writing and ideology. She was strongly involved in the nationalist cause, and much admired

Constance Markievicz Constance Georgine Markievicz ( ; ' Gore-Booth; 4 February 1868 – 15 July 1927), also known as Countess Markievicz and Madame Markievicz, was an Irish politician, revolutionary, nationalist, suffragist, and socialist who was the first woman ...

. She joined the

Cumann na mBan Cumann na mBan (; but in English termed The Irishwomen's Council), abbreviated C na mB, is an Irish republican women's paramilitary organisation formed in Dublin on 2 April 1914, merging with and dissolving Inghinidhe na hÉireann, and in 191 ...

, an Irish women's Republican group and auxiliary to the Irish Volunteers. Her Republican, and even proto-feminist, views can be clearly seen in plays such as ''

Katie Roche ''Katie Roche'' is a 1936 expressionist play by Irish playwright Teresa Deevy. It has been staged by the Abbey Theatre eleven times with the most recent revival being in 2017. Described as a "reputed favourite with amateur dramatic societi ...

'' and ''The King of Spain's Daughter.''

At the Abbey Theatre

In 1930, Deevy had her first production at the

Abbey Theatre The Abbey Theatre (), also known as the National Theatre of Ireland () is a theatre in Dublin, Ireland. First opening to the public on 27 December 1904, and moved from its original building after a fire in 1951, it has remained active to the p ...

, ''Reapers''. Many more followed in rapid succession, such as ''In Search of Valour'', ''Temporal Powers'', ''The King of Spain's Daughter'' and ''

'', the play she is perhaps best known for. These works came just after writers such as

W. B. Yeats William Butler Yeats (, 13 June 186528 January 1939), popularly known as W. B. Yeats, was an Irish poet, dramatist, writer, and literary critic who was one of the foremost figures of 20th-century literature. He was a driving force behind the ...

and

Lady Gregory Isabella Augusta, Lady Gregory (; 15 March 1852 – 22 May 1932) was an Anglo-Irish dramatist, folklorist and theatre manager. With William Butler Yeats and Edward Martyn, she co-founded the Irish Literary Theatre and the Abbey Theatre, and wrot ...

and many believed she would be among those who would take up the mantle as part of a new generation of Irish playwrights for a theatre whose reputation had always rested on its writers. Her works were generally very well-received with some of them winning competitions, becoming headline performances, or being revived numerous times. Her plays were often quietly subversive, many being written just before or during the birth of the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland, with a population of about 5.4 million. ...

in 1937. After a number of plays staged in the Abbey, her relationship with the theatre soured over the rejection of her play, '' Wife to James Whelan'' in 1937. This was later produced by Daisy Bannard Cogley at her Studio Theatre Club, Upper Mount Street in 1956.

Work on radio

After Deevy stopped writing plays for the Abbey, she mainly concentrated on radio, a remarkable feat considering she had already become deaf before radio had become a popular medium in Ireland in the mid-to-late 1920s. Deevy had a prolific output for twenty years on

Radio Éireann Radio is the technology of communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 3 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmitter connected to ...

and on the BBC. including adaptations of previous works such as ''Temporal Powers'' and ''

'' and also an adaptation of

Anton Chekhov Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (; ; 29 January 1860 – 15 July 1904) was a Russian playwright and short-story writer, widely considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time. His career as a playwright produced four classics, and his b ...

's ''Polinka''. Her play ‘Within a marble city’ was awarded first prize in the Radio Éireann drama competition (1948). Two of her plays were eventually broadcast on television by the BBC while they have also enjoyed several stage-revivals since her death, most recently by the

Mint Theater Company Mint Theater Company was founded in 1992 in New York City. Their mission is to find, produce, and advocate for "worthwhile plays from the past that have been lost or forgotten". They have been instrumental in restoring the theatrical legacy of sev ...

in New York.

Literary themes

The themes that are most common with Deevy plays are those where options for women are severely limited in society, where women are trapped by domestic life, or must choose between a loveless marriage or a life of drudgery. Deevy was often critical of the intensely Catholic society she lived in for its oppressive and repressive views on women. She was critical also of the Irish theater scene and especially of literary censorship, questioning the roles, rights, and power of the censor, and also how to remove them. She wrote about the women who struggle for survival and the lust over wanting a better life, how this privilege might seem attractive, until it is revealed that the "better life" comes with its set of struggles too. She also explores the "individual’s negotiation between self and society where the personal is political."

Later life

In 1954, Deevy was elected to the Irish Academy of Letters in recognition of her contribution to Irish theatre. Deevy enjoyed renewed interest in her work from the mid-1950s onwards after Irish poet John Jordan published a study of her plays in the ''University Review'' in 1956. Deevy returned to Waterford after the death of her sister Nell, with whom she had lived in Dublin and on whom she was very reliant as a lip-reading interpreter. Deevy became a familiar figure in

Waterford city Waterford ( ) is a city in County Waterford in the south-east of Ireland. It is located within the province of Munster. The city is situated at the head of Waterford Harbour. It is the oldest

Legacy

'', ''Temporal Powers'', ''Wife to James Whelan'' and ''The Suitcase Under the Bed'' were staged and produced by

in New York, under the "Teresa Deevy Project" that aims to acknowledge and honour what some describe as "One of Ireland’s best and most neglected dramatists." An honorary blue plaque is hung in honour of Deevy in the city of Waterford, on Passage Road, by courtesy of the Waterford Civic Trust. In 2011, Deevy's papers were deposited with the

Maynooth University Maynooth University (MU) (), is a constituent university of the National University of Ireland in Maynooth, County Kildare, Ireland. Maynooth University was formerly known as National University of Ireland, Maynooth (NUIM; ). It was Ireland ...

library & archives. The holdings include draft and finished versions of Deevy's completed works and incomplete works as well as contemporary newspaper clippings related to Deevy's works, published versions of Deevy's writings and personal correspondence. Her play, ''The King of Spain's Daughter'', is currently on the reading list for Junior Cycle English.

Published works

Stage Plays

*''The Reapers'' (lost play) (1930) *''A Disciple/ In Search of Valour'' (1931) *''Temporal Powers'' (1932) *''The King of Spain's Daughter'' (1935) *''

'' (1936) *''The Wild Goose'' (1936) *'' Wife to James Whelan'' (1937) *''Strange Birth'' (1946) *''Light Falling'' (1947) *''Within a Marble City'' (1948) *''Eyes and No Eyes'' *''The Finding of the Ball'' *''In the Cellar of My Friend'' *''MacConglinne'' *''A Minute's Wait'' *3 plays written under the alias D.V. Goode, ''Practice and Precept'', ''Let Us Live'', and ''The Firstborn'' *At least 3 unfinished, untitled plays

Radio Plays

*''Wife to James Whelan'' (radio adaptation of Deevy's stage play) *''Polinka'' (radio play adaptation of Chekhov's "Polinka") (1946) *''Dignity'' (radio play) (1947) *''Light Falling'' (radio adaptation of Deevy's stage play) *''Within a Marble City'' (radio adaptation of Deevy's stage play) *''Holiday House'' *''Going Beyond Alma's Glory'' (radio play) (1949) *''Concerning Meagher, or How Did He Die?'' *''In the Cellar of My Friend'' (radio adaptation of Deevy's stage play) *''Supreme Dominion'' (1957) *''One Look- and What it Led to'' *''Possession-Cattle of the Gods'' (ballet treatment/ libretto)

Short stories

*''Strange People'' (1946) *''Just Yesterday: A Story'' *''The Greatest Wonder in the World: A Christmas Story'' *''Alen'' *''Brian of the Boers'' *''Lisheen at the Valley Farm'' *''John Potter's Story'' *''Flash Back'' *''Adventure''

Essays

*''Patricia Lynch: A Study'' (1948) *''Man Proposes''

References

External links

*The Teresa Deevy Archive, Digital Repository of Ireland istributor Maynooth University epositing Institution https://doi.org/10.7486/DRI.95944b38t *
Active Speech: Critical Perspectives on Teresa Deevy
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Deevy, Teresa 1894 births 1963 deaths Abbey Theatre Writers from County Waterford 20th-century Irish dramatists and playwrights Irish women dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Irish women writers Deaf writers Irish deaf people People with Ménière's disease Alumni of University College Cork Alumni of University College Dublin