Republic of Silence

About the show

Written and directed by Kaci Kerwick and based on true stories from Sean Ross mother and baby institution in Tipperary, Republic of Silence draws inspiration from the history of the Magdalene laundries, exploring the pressures faced by young women navigating family expectations, religion and the politics of reproductive choice. When gentle and stoic gardener Colm discovers a series of unmarked graves at Sean Ross Abbey, a reckoning with the power of the church and a movement for justice are brought to a head. In 1965, on the same site, two young pregnant girls hear whispers of stolen babies, missing girls and violence within the Abbey. When hardened Niamh witnesses the secrets of the ‘home’, the girls rage against the catholic institution that cage them.