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Benjamin Reilly's 1960s Ireland Play MORTAL SIN to Make Edinburgh Fringe Debut

The coming-of-age two-hander will run at Gilded Balloon's Wee Room as part of Culture Ireland.

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Featured Topic Edinburgh Festival More Coverage Benjamin Reilly's 1960s Ireland Play MORTAL SIN to Make Edinburgh Fringe Debut

Irish performer and playwright Benjamin Reilly will bring Mortal Sin to the Edinburgh Fringe, a two-hander set in 1960s Catholic Ireland following two friends navigating small-town life in the wake of JFK's assassination. Performances will run from August 5-31. 

JFK's been shot - and Colm and Peggy want a day off school. Sure, they got one when the Pope died!? Making his Edinburgh Fringe debut, emerging Irish performer and playwright Benjamin Reilly presents a bold new play about two youths finding their way in 1960s Catholic Ireland: Mortal Sin. With dreams of reaching a brighter and better future, two friends battle 'being different' with small town public opinion in this hilarious and poignant two-hander.  

It's November 1963 in the rural Irish village of Cundannon and Colm and Peggy are protesting for a day off school to mark the funeral of assassinated American president JFK. Sure, they got one when the Pope died! Funny, subtle and deeply honest, Mortal Sin explores growing up, dreaming of escape, and a church that controlled everything from confession to the classroom. 

From Sunday Mass to Audrey Hepburn, through rapid-fire monologues, character switches, and flashes of fantasy Colm and Peggy paint a vivid portrait of their parochial world. Intelligently blending satire, nostalgia, and righteous teenage frustration, Mortal Sin is ultimately a celebration of friendship, paired with a small but defiant stand against the silence and shame that shaped a generation. Join Colm and Peggy this Fringe as they stick it to the man… well, Sister Aumpta anyway!



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