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Fiach Mac Conghail

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Fiach Mac Conghail
Senator
In office
May 2011 – April 2016
ConstituencyNominated by the Taoiseach
Personal details
Born(1964-08-04)4 August 1964(age 59)
Dublin,Ireland
SpouseBríd Ní Neachtain
Children2

Fiach Mac Conghail(born 4 August 1964) is CEO of theDigital Hub Development Agency.[1]He is a former Director of theAbbey Theatrefrom 2005 to 2016.[2]He is a formerSenatorfrom 2011 to 2016 and was appointed by theTaoiseachEnda Kenny.[3][4]

Early life[edit]

His father,Muiris Mac Conghail,was a filmmaker and broadcaster who served as Government Press Secretary and was Controller of Programmes atRTÉ;his mother is a notedgenealogist.Mac Conghail was raised in the Dublin suburb ofRathgarand attendedColáiste Eoinand laterTrinity College Dublin,where he studied Economics and Politics.[2][5][6]

Career in the arts[edit]

Mac Conghail was the artistic director at theProject Arts Centrefrom 1992 to 1999.[7][8]He was the Director of Ireland's participation at theExpo 2000world fair and acted as Cultural Programme Commissioner during the IrishPresidency of the European Unionin 2004.[9]With his brother Cuan, he established the production companyBrother Filmsin 1996.[5]

Mac Conghail was a special adviser to theMinister for Arts, Sport and TourismJohn O'Donoghuefrom 2002 to 2005. In 2005, he was appointed as Director of the Abbey Theatre.[10]

When Mac Conghail announced his 2016 programme, "Waking the Nation", for the centennial year of the 1916 Rising, a storm ensued. Only one of the ten plays on the programme was written by a woman and only three directed by women. This sparked a campaign called "Waking the Feminists" to demand gender equality in theatre. Mac Conghail acknowledged that he had "failed to check his privilege".[11]

Public life[edit]

He was appointed toSeanad Éireannin May 2011 and sat as anIndependent.He was the chairman of theWe the Citizens,an initiative that aims to encourage the participation of the public in political affairs.[12][13]

Personal life[edit]

Mac Conghail has two daughters with actressBríd Ní Neachtain.

References[edit]

  1. ^"Abbey Theatre director Fiach Mac Conghail to lead Digital Hub".The Irish Times.Archivedfrom the original on 24 December 2016.Retrieved24 December2016.
  2. ^abFiona Looney (6 February 2005)."Steadying the boards".Sunday Tribune.Retrieved3 June2011.[permanent dead link]
  3. ^Michael Brennan (21 May 2011)."Kenny hands Seanad seat to the President's husband".Irish Independent.Archivedfrom the original on 24 May 2011.Retrieved3 June2011.
  4. ^"Fiach Mac Conghail".Oireachtas Members Database.Retrieved3 June2011.
  5. ^ab"FIACH & CUAN MAC CONGHAIL THE CV".Irish Independent.19 March 2006.Retrieved3 June2011.
  6. ^Collins, Stephen(2011).Nealon's Guide to the 31st Dáil and 24th Seanad.Dublin: Gill & Macmillan. p. 212.ISBN9780717150595.
  7. ^"Abbey's new director spells out vision".Breakingnews.ie.1 February 2005.Archivedfrom the original on 25 September 2012.Retrieved3 June2011.
  8. ^"Theatre Forum Ireland -Who's Who".Theatre Forum Ireland. Archived fromthe originalon 11 May 2011.Retrieved3 June2011.
  9. ^"MacConghail takes charge at Abbey Theatre".The Stage.15 February 2005.Archivedfrom the original on 11 June 2011.Retrieved3 June2011.
  10. ^Brian Lavery (25 March 2006)."The Abbey Theater's Fiach Mac Conghail Takes a Cue From Yeats".New York Times.Archivedfrom the original on 9 August 2012.Retrieved3 June2011.
  11. ^"Waking the FeministsIrish Independent, 15 November 2015 ".13 November 2015.Archivedfrom the original on 14 April 2019.Retrieved27 September2021.
  12. ^Jack Horgan-Jones (11 May 2011)."Grassroots can renew Irish politics, meeting told".The Irish Times.Archivedfrom the original on 24 October 2012.Retrieved3 June2011.
  13. ^Genevieve Carbery (1 June 2011)."Reform group praises public's positive views".The Irish Times.Archivedfrom the original on 24 October 2012.Retrieved3 June2011.

External links[edit]

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Fiach_Mac_Conghail&oldid=1235055294"