Irish Rep, Fishamble & The Apollo Launch Transatlantic Commissions Program

Irish Repertory Theatre and Fishamble: The New Play Company have expanded their collaboration on the Transatlantic Commissions Program for 2026–2027, and will now be in association with The Apollo.

Launched in 2022, the Transatlantic Commissions Program supports and fosters diverse voices in Irish theatre by commissioning Black Irish writers and artists of colour to develop new work. 

The 2026–2027 cohort is comprised of Tishé Fatunbi, Dafe Orugbo, Esosa Ighodaro, and Seán Gallen. The selected writers are commissioned to develop new full-length plays over the course of the program and they will work under the mentorship of playwright and producer Kelley Girod, Director of New Works at The Apollo, with additional dramaturgical support provided by Gavin Kostick, Literary Manager at Fishamble, and Nicola Murphy Dubey, Director of New Play Development at Irish Repertory Theatre. The program began in April 2026 and will culminate in public staged readings in Dublin and New York in Spring/Summer 2027.*