A double tribute was paid to late Wexford Festival Opera chief executive Jerome Hynes in NUI Galway last night when details of a new theatre award were announced in his honour.
The annual award will be presented to the best director/writer of a one-act play, and is named after the former Galway university graduate for his contribution to the arts.
Sculptor John Coll was commissioned by the university's alumni association to design a piece in Mr Hynes's memory. This was unveiled last night in the Aula Maxima. It will be displayed permanently in the Bank of Ireland theatre on campus.
Arts Council chair Olive Braiden was among the attendees at last night's event, when a dramatic tribute was also performed by Marie Mullen of Druid and members of the university's Dramsoc.
NUIG alumni association vice chair Catherine Hickey-Ó Maoláin said the college was "tremendously proud of Jerome as one of our own, one who contributed so much to this country's cultural life. Before his untimely death, Jerome was in line to be honoured with a prestigious alumni award and we thought it fitting that we pay tribute to him in another way - a way in which we hope he would approve".
Jerome Hynes, brother of Druid Theatre Company artistic director Garry Hynes, died suddenly at the age of 45 in September 2005. He was a native of Galway and was appointed administrator of Druid in 1981. He later became general manager, overseeing its development on the national and international stage.
He was appointed the first managing director of Wexford Festival Opera in 1988 and became its chief executive. He was nominated to the Arts Council in 2003, serving as deputy chair.
