Bernard McKenna collection related to Irish theater and writers

The Bernard McKenna collection related to Irish theater and writers comprises three series of materials related to University of Delaware professor and literary scholar Bernard McKenna’s research toward the Dictionary of Irish Literature (1996) and his own research of Irish authors and theaters spanning the dates between 1983 and 1996. The collection consists of books, playbills, letters, posters, typescripts, and other ephemera related to the represented writers and theater companies. The collection is arranged in three series: I. Research toward the Dictionary of Irish Literature; II. Writers; and III. Theaters.

Series I. consists of material from five Irish theater companies, and letters (1994-1995) from Robert Hogan, Irish literary scholar and professor emeritus of English literature at the University of Delaware. McKenna, an associate editor of the Dictionary of Irish Literature, collected the materials in the course of his own study of Irish theater and in the process of preparing entries for the Dictionary of Irish Literature. Hogan’s letters to McKenna, written in his capacity as editor-in-chief of the Dictionary, pertain to McKenna’s contributions to the Dictionary. Also included in this series are playbills and other material McKenna received from five Irish theater companies: Charabanc Theatre Company of Belfast, The Lyric Theatre of Belfast, Field Day Theatre Company of Derry, The National Theatre Society Limited (Abbey and Peacock Theatres) of Dublin, and The Passion Machine of Dublin. From 1994 to 1995, McKenna conducted research on Irish theater productions since October 1968. October 5, 1968, was the date of a violent protest march by Catholics in Derry, Northern Ireland. It is generally considered to mark the start of “the Troubles” in Northern Ireland.

Series II. consists of items related to various Irish authors, several of whom McKenna contacted for inclusion in the Dictionary of Irish Literature. Represented in this series are items related to the individual author’s work, including photocopied typescripts, reviews, and correspondence with McKenna. This series represents an addition to the original collection.

Series III. includes material representing Irish theaters and includes items from the Red Kettle Theatre Company and the Druid Theatre Company. This series represents an addition to the original collection.

Several inscribed books included the collection have been removed for cataloguing with imprints in Special Collections.