Sean Millar is a musician and theatre maker from Dublin. He mainly works in three areas: as a recording and performing artist, as a creator of music based theatre performance, and as an artist/facilitator in community based creativity, music and education programs.
Recording and performing artist
Sean began his career as lead singer and main songwriter in Doctor Millar and the Cute Hoors - a fast, thrashy, literate, Irish rock and roll band, with whom he toured Ireland, Britain and mainland Europe.
They performed several times on Television and Radio in the UK, Ireland and mainland Europe, They received generally positive reviews and were Time Out recommended gig of the month twice (once notably ahead of both David Byrne and Morrissey). They played at several British festivals including Reading Festival and The Fleadh in Finsbury Park. They split in 1992 and Sean began his long career as solo singer songwriter and recording artist.
- In 1995 Sean was nominated solo performer of the year, at the Heineken Hotpress awards (along with Van Morrison, Paul Brady and Gavin Friday).
- His first Solo album “The Bitter Lie” was later voted one of the Best Irish Albums of all time by both TodayFM and The Sunday Tribune.
- His second solo album “The Deal” in 1997 was one of the Sunday Times top five albums of the year. It has since been included in Tony Clayton Lea’s defining “101 Irish albums you must hear before you die”.
- His third solo album “Always coming home”, prompted The Irish Times, in its five star review, to proclaim him “An Irish national treasure”.
- His fourth album “Of the People” won more praise and The RTÉ Guides review called him Ireland’s greatest lyricist.
- His fifth album “C48” was one of the best reviewed albums of 2013 and was hailed by several critics as ‘a masterpiece’ (Hotpress/Irish Mail/Sunday Business Post/The Slate magazine, reviews below) and was RTÉ Arena critics end of year round up Best album of 2013.
Theatre maker
Silver Stars
(Author / Composer)
Brokentalkers theatre company Dublin Theatre Festival 2009.
Sean has gained widespread acclaim both nationally and internationally for his work on ‘Silver Stars’. Toured internationally.
Independent critics Voted number one in ‘Theatre in the Noughties: the decade’s top ten Irish Independent’s Review of the Decade’. January 31, 2009.
The Last Ten Years
(Director / Author / Composer)
Made with RADE participants, Tiger Dublin Fringe 2012.
Nominated for two Fringe awards 2012
Songs of Grievance and Hope
(Director / Author / Composer)
2014 Projects Arts Centre Dublin.
The Blue Boy
(Composer)
Brokentalkers theatre company, Dublin Theatre Festival 2010. Toured internationally.
Winner: Grand Prix Award, Kontakt International Theatre Festival, Poland.
History
(Composer)
Theatre Club, Project arts centre 2013, Abbey Theatre 2016.
Frequency 783
(Composer)
Brokentalkers theatre company, Dublin Theatre Festival.
Circus Animals Desertion
(Composer)
Brokentalkers theatre company, Dublin Theatre Festival 2016.
Dinner and a show
(composer)
Neil Watkins, Dublin Tiger Fringe 2016.
My son My son
(Music Director / Songwriter)
Veronica Dyas, project arts centre, Mermaid Arts Centre, Ballymun Axis, 2018.
Shame
(Composer / Author / Associate Director - with Pom Boyd)
Pom Boyd, The Abbey Theatre Peacock Stage, 2018.
Nominated for two fringe awards
Socially engaged collaborative and community based work.
For 20 years, Sean has worked extensively across a wide range of Communities in Dublin, both making pieces for performance around specific issues, and helping to create ongoing music programs, some of which continue to run today.
Among the most successful of these have been:
The Monument Song
Written and performed by young adults from NCCCAP about the heroine epidemic in the North inner city. It was performed by the writers at the launching of the monument on Sean McDermott Street.
Tower Songs
Sean was one of the artist team working with communities on a creative response to regeneration. Sean's pieces were made collaboratively and performed sometimes in the tower blocks themselves by residents of Fatima Mansions, Ballymun and Dolphin House, with a string section, shortly before their demolition.
The Last Ten Years
A song cycle written with recovering addicts from RADE recovery program about the pharmaceutical industry, performed in St Patrick’s Cathedral as part of Dublin Fringe festival 2012. It was nominated for two Fringe awards.