Martha Knight announced as the 2024 Marie Mullen Bursary recipient

18 December 2023

Druid has announced sound designer Martha Knight as the 2024 recipient of the Marie Mullen Bursary, an annual award for female theatre artists working in Ireland in the fields of design, directing and dramaturgy.

Martha is a Dublin-based sound designer, composer and director, interested in the overlaps between theatre, sound and sound technologies, music, and participation.

She most recently wrote, sound designed and performed The King of All Birds (Dublin Fringe/Project Arts Centre). Other recent sound design credits include The Tightrope Walker (SoloSIRENs/Civic Theatre), Tarry Flynn (Livin’ Dred) and Laethanta Sona: Saol ar an Creig (Company SJ/Áras Éanna).

She has also worked as associate sound designer for Minseach (Sibéal Davitt) and Bedbound (Landmark Productions). She is a core artist with Tallaght-based collectives Freshly Ground Theatre and SoloSIRENs.

Named in honour of actor and Druid co-founder, Marie Mullen, the Marie Mullen Bursary addresses the historic imbalance of female representation in theatre and supports the professional development of women in Irish theatre. The bursary provides a female theatre artist with the time, physical resources and mentoring necessary to support their work.

Martha will have multiple paid work opportunities with Druid over the coming year including the role of assistant sound designer on one of Druid’s major 2024 productions. She will also receive a stipend, mentoring, access to workshops and Druid’s other development programmes such as FUEL and Druid Debuts.

Introduced in 2018, the Marie Mullen Bursary is one of Druid’s theatre development programmes and offers:

• A residency with Druid on a company production
• A one-to-one session with Marie Mullen on working in the theatre industry
• Mentoring opportunities with theatre professionals
• For directors and dramaturgs, a contract to act as dramaturg or director for a Druid Debut
• Opportunities to engage with the Druid Ensemble
• Opportunities to attend FUEL and Druid Academy workshops and events
• A bursary award of €2,000

Previous recipients of the Marie Mullen Bursary:

• 2018-2019: Eleanor White, dramaturg
• 2019-2020: Clíodhna Hallissey, costume designer
• 2020-2021: Emily Foran, director and Sarah Baxter, director
• 2022: Katie O'Halloran, director
• 2023: Suzie Cummins, lighting designer

The Marie Mullen Bursary is supported by Thomas Campbell Jackson & Penny Jackson.

For more information on the Marie Mullen Bursary, please follow this link.