ABOUT US
Brú Theatre are principally supported by the Arts Council, Galway City Council and Galway County Council.
Brú Theatre
Hello agus Fáilte. Brú Theatre are a theatre company based in Galway. We work bilingually between Irish and English and tour our work internationally. We make multi-disciplinary work that explores the landscapes, language and literature of where we are from through a contemporary lens. We’ve seven full productions to date and have multiple Irish Times Theatre Award nominations for our work.
Not a Word, based on the many stories of the Irish Navvy, recently toured to the Barbican, London and Project Arts Centre, winning an OFFIE (UK) award for Best Design 2026. Ar Ais Arís, an Irish language VR experience inspired by 100 years of Iish imigration, had a sold out national tour as part of the Arts Council Brightening Air festival and the Galway International Arts Festival and has just toured to Washington DC and Toronto. The Libravian, commissioned by Baboró in partnership with Children’s Books Ireland, concluded its 3rd international tour in 2025.
In 2026, we will present two new pieces inspired by Galway writer Pádraic Ó’ Conaire a part of Galway Theatre Festival and Galway International Arts Festival.
Our core team is Artistic Director James Riordan and Producer Jill Murray.
Brú Theatre is an associate company with field:arts
James Riordan
James Riordan(he/him) is Artistic Director of Brú.
He is a writer and theatre maker from Galway and trained at LISPA (London) and the APT (Berlin).
James spent many years working in Berlin and London for companies including the ENO and Absurda Comica and was a core member of The LipSinkers (UK) for 4 years. After returning to Ireland, he set up Brú in 2018 with Jill.
In 2026, James directed Orpheus in the Gardens, a promenade Opera throughout the National Botanic Gardens in Glasnevin, commissioned by for Music Network. He will direct the Flagship Macnas Parade 2026, entitled Fiáin, this October on the streets of Dublin and Galway. He currently lectures Mask, Mime and Movement at Griffith College.
In 2024 he was Resident Director with the Abbey Theatre (https://www.abbeytheatre.ie/abbey-theatre-resident-directors-2024/) and directed the 2023 flagship Macnas Parade, Cnámha La Loba (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bvus8WGsG9k)
He was Digital Artist in Residence with the Centre for Creative Technologies at the University of Galway in 2023 and is an Irish Times Theatre Awards Best Actor nominee 2020 for his role in Brú’s Selvage.
In 2022 he directed a piece for the Abbey Theatre as part of Reel Mix and received the Abbey’s Michael Hogan Commemoration Bursary in 2021 to write a new piece of long form lament.
Jill Murray
Jill (she/her) is Brú’s Producer and co-founder. She produces all of Brú’s work, including new productions, revivals and touring. Jill is also Executive Producer with dance production company Emma Martin/United Fall, producing current, future and touring productions for the company since September 2023.
Jill previously managed Galway Dance (2017-23) steering the organisation through a period of growth and development, including producing Galway Dance’s Galway 2020 European Capital of Culture projects and securing a studio space for the company. She worked with visual artist Alannah Robins at Interface Inagh, a visual arts studio in the Inagh valley, Connemara, helping to develop Interface over a 3 year period, securing Arts Council and department funding and producing exhibitions and events at Interface from 2020-23.
Other production credits in the last 5 years include: Galway Arts Centre’s presentation of the Turner Prize winning Array Collective’s The Druithaib’s Ball in summer 2022, Maisie Lee’s Shape of Quiet Feelings as part of Baboró International Arts Festival for Children in October 2023 and Stephanie Dufresne’s After Love as part of Galway International Arts Festival in 2021.
Jill is an associate producer with field:arts and an alumni of Irish Theatre’s Institute’s ELEVATOR programme.