The King of All Birds is a playful, tongue-in-cheek one-person show.
It tells the story of Ireland from the sky. It is based on the story of the aerial photos that were common in Irish homes from the 1980s onwards, and expands this story to include explorations of ancient mythological birds, all the way to the present day, where airplanes, satellites and drones rule the sky.
As well as telling a story, it also includes traditional Irish music, using live electronics and effects to bring the ancient Irish tradition of song into the present day. If you like comedy, history, and deep dives into interesting topics, you’ll love The King of All Birds.
Created by by award-winning local Tallaght artist Martha Knight. Meet the Artist:
Martha Knight is a theatre artist from Tallaght. She works as a theatre maker, sound designer and composer. She is currently working as sound designer on the Abbey Theatre production ‘Do You Come From Gomorrah?’, as well as touring her solo show ‘The King of All Birds’. She was Druid Theatre’s Marie Mullen Bursary recipient for 2024.
She is a co-founder of Freshly Ground Theatre, and she is also a core artist with SoloSIRENs. Martha has been working in Tallaght and further afield for the last 8 years. Her work with Freshly Ground includes ‘Sea Legs’, ‘Sióg’, ‘This is a Blank Page’, and ‘Ode to a Postcode’. Her work with SoloSIRENs includes ‘The Tightrope Walker’ and ‘Cessair’. She also works with Tallaght Community Arts, with recent work including ‘To the Power of Three’ and ‘As If By Chance’.
Her solo show ‘The King of All Birds’ premiered at Dublin Fringe Festival 2023 where it won the George Fitzmaurice Award. It went on to tour to Toronto with the Canada Ireland Foundation in 2025, as well as completing a national tour in 2026. The Civic sees the final leg of the tour of this exciting new piece.
THE KING OF ALL BIRDS
MARCH Wed 25th 8:15pm
MARCH Thurs 26th 1pm & 8:15pm
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Martha’s other theatre credits includes ‘Three Sisters’ (Sugarglass Theatre/Once Off), ‘Attention’ (Jules Head/Georgia Bruce), ‘A Misanthrope’ (Sugarglass Theatre/Once Off), ‘UBU’ (Dublin Youth Theatre); ‘The Playboy of the Western World’ (Livin’ Dred); ‘Made From Paper’ (Foldable Theatre/Mermaid Arts Centre); ‘0800 CUPID’ (THISISPOPBABY); ‘The Cave’ (Abbey Theatre – Associate); ‘Dancing at Lughnasa’ (Gate Theatre – Associate); and ‘Bedbound’ (Landmark Productions/Galway International Arts Festival – Associate).
