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Last night was the first full dress rehearsal of “Banshee,” where all the elements — staging, costumes, dance and music came together as we prepare for Friday’s opening night.

“Banshee,” my play about legacy, myths and ancestry, is not a musical. It is, however, a play with music, a crucial element to the storytelling. Having grown up (as I mentioned in a previous post) on the Clancy Brothers and the Chieftains as my entry into Irish culture, I see music as foundational to the story — especially when the story involves ancient mythological spirits.

Along the way in the creation of the play, I drew inspiration from a deep well of Irish folk songs. These five are a sampling from the playlist I made when writing “Banshee.” Only one appears in the show, but the rest helped provide inspiration as I built the story. 

1. “The Rising of the Moon”

A song abou the 1798 rebellion, with a reference to the “banshee’s lonely croon” thrown in for good measure. The lyrics were written in the 1800s by John Keagan Casey and the song set to the tune of “The Wearing of the Green,” another nationalist ballad.

“The Rising of the Moon” has been covered about a million times, but the first, and best, cover for me is the one by The Clancy Brothers.

Unfortunately, I have yet to find a version of the song that includes the final verse, acknowledging the rebels’ defeat:

Well they fought for poor old Ireland,

And full bitter was their fate

(Oh ! what glorious pride and sorrow

Fill the name of Ninety-Eight).

Yet, thank God, e’en still are beating

Hearts in manhood’s burning noon,

Who would follow in their footsteps

At the risin’ of the moon!

2. “Wild Mountain Thyme”

A lovely ballad with a gentle rhythm and beautiful lyrics about finding, and losing, love. Its melody makes for great background music while writing. 

3. “Red-Haired Mary”

The song that introduced me at a young age to the concept of tinkers. In Sean McCarthy’s song, set in the remote Irish town of Dingle, two men fight over the affections of the title character. It’s great fun, a rousing drinking song and not at all conducive to writing. 

4. “Oro Sé Do Bheatha Bhaile”

A rousing song in Irish. I don’t know what the lyrics mean, but it has a stirring melody. Patrick Pearse altered the lyrics as an anthem for the Irish Republican Brotherhood in the years leading up to the 1916 Easter Rising. 

5. “The Lilting Banshee”

Aside from the original music that Marty Bonk wrote for the play, this traditional reel is the dominant song in the play. I chose it partly for the title, but also because its 6 /8 time signature lends itself to adding lyrics. This song has been living in my head for at least the past three years and I’m happy to have someone else — anyone else — obsess over it for a while.