VOLTA presents OTHELLO by William Shakespeare Directed by Liam Hourican

Theatre Education

Monday 1 - Friday 5 March 2027

€20 (Students) / Teachers Go Free
Early Bird Student Ticket: €17 (available up until Friday 23rd October)

Performance Times: 10am & 1PM
Duration: Approx 1hr 40mins
***EARLY BOOKING ADVISED***

School Shows: To Book please contact Box Office directly either by phone on 053 912 2144 or email boxoffice@nationaloperahouse.ie

If you’re studying Othello for your 2027 Leaving Cert this is your chance to experience Shakespeare’s famous tragedy live on stage. This wonderful tale of poisoned love and lethal jealousy is brought to the National Opera House by Volta, Ireland’s premier classical theatre company.

Set in the powerful and glamorous world of Venice, Othello follows Desdemona, a young woman from a wealthy family who falls in love with Othello, a respected and highly decorated soldier.

But their relationship causes a scandal. Othello is an outsider in Venetian society — he is an African and a Moor — and Desdemona’s father cannot understand how his daughter could have fallen in love with him.

Desdemona makes it clear that Othello won her heart through his words, his stories and the way he tells them. It seems that love has overcome prejudice and the couple are ready to begin their life together.

But not everyone is happy for them.

Some Schools told us what they thought of past productions...

'What a marvellous production . We were blown away !It was wonderfully creative and full of originality as well as highly engaging. Thank you to the wonderful actors who put their hearts into their performance! A thousand thanks and I look forward to seeing further productions of Shakespeare for students from Volta …students gave it 10/10'

- Good Counsel College New Ross

'Our students and teachers were very impressed with the beautiful Opera House and with the excellent production of 'Macbeth'. We would recommend this production very highly as it is one of the better school productions we have seen in years.'

- Tullow Community School

‘Having brought two class groups to see Hamlet in the NOH last year, we would definitely bring students to see Macbeth in NOH in Feb or March of 2026. We also had a workshop at our school which was well worth it & we would love to be able to avail of this again!’

- Bridgetown College

The Volta Theatre Company was founded in 2023 with a mission to breathe new life into the classics, and has quickly established a reputation for excellence with its adaptations of works from Joyce and Shakespeare. Founders Liam Hourican and Jim Roche are long-time collaborators in theatre, television and sketch comedy, writing, performing and devising shows for E4, Channel 4, BBC, RTE and The Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

Shakespeare productions include Hamlet (2024) and Macbeth(2025 & 2026) at the National Opera House and Smock Alley. Joyce adaptations include Stories from Dubliners at the James Joyce Centre, the National Opera House, Bewleys Café Theatre, the Draoicht and the Irish Cultural Centre in Hammersmith; Telemachus at the James Joyce Tower (Bloomsday Festival 2024/2025); and Cyclops at the Lexicon Studio and Bewleys.