about karen

In her work as a theatre-maker and facilitator, Karen Minihan strives to capture the pathos and humour of the shared experience through careful and considered direction, support, encouragement and expectation. Essential to this process is the importance of inspired relationships and open connection between all the participants; actors, designers, directors and audiences.

Years of experience working with people through workshops, theatre productions and community projects have lead Karen to the realisation that sharing stories through creativity and performance can be deeply transformative and illuminating; that there is no beginning and no end to the relationships between people; and that this shared experience brings greater compassion.

Currently Karen is continuing to explore her own story and to guide others to find their creative voice through projects involving performance, writing and storytelling.

She is a member of the West Cork-based PlayActing Theatre, which continues to push the boundaries of what is possible in theatre-making, working on small intimate productions and larger explorations of performance.

Realising the importance of the shared experience she is documenting her wealth of knowledge of theatrical practice via her blog and podcasts.

 ongoing project

 Extraordinary, Ordinary Women: Untold Stories from the Founding of the State.

This project began by inviting the people of West Cork to tell the stories of ordinary women who lived during the War of Independence and Civil War. In order to comprehend our history from that time – and what followed – Karen believes these untold stories must be heard. Her aim is to give voice to these women, for the purposes of understanding and reconciliation. 

The first book of Extraordinary, Ordinary Women: Untold Stories from the Founding of the State was published in 2022. Another book of stories from West Cork, More Extraordinary, Ordinary Women: Untold Stories from the Founding of the State was published in 2024.

Creative responses to the stories in the form of poetry, a short play and song lyrics are included in the books and continue to influence Karen Minihan’s onging work remembering these remarkable women.