In 2004 Cork Opera House commissioned musical theatre writer/director Bryan Flynn to create a new Irish musical. Following several months of research through the annals of Irish history, Flynn arrived at the era which began in 1916 with the Easter Rising and ended in 1922 with the Irish Civil War. Sandwiched between these two epic events was a war of independence, the results of which changed the relationship between Ireland and England forever. The orchestrator of that war was Michael Collins. As Bryan Flynn delved into the short life of Michael Collins, (Collins died at the age of 31 while paradoxically trying to remove the gun from Irish politics) he discovered that in fact his story was the stuff great drama is made of. Furthermore, here was a story that would 'sing' in the traditions of all great opera. The story ticked all the boxes; the complex central character (a man willing to use violence in order to obtain peace), the love triangle between Collins, Harry Boland his friend, and the woman both men loved: Kitty Kiernan, an epic background of bloody war, and a story which still has great relevance to a modern audience. Universal themes of love, betrayal, loyalty and corruption are woven into a rich historic canvas.

While researching the character of Collins and the era in question, Flynn was interested to read of the events at the Abbey Theatre during the Easter Rising of 1916. One of the plays scheduled for performance at the Abbey during that week was 'Cathleen Ni Houlihan' by W.B Yeats. The play is set in the days before a doomed rebellion in 1798 and centres around a young man, Michael, who is about to be married to a local girl. However, events take a sudden turn when an old woman: 'Mother Ireland' arrives at the house saying she is bouyed up by 'the hope of getting my beautiful fields back again, the hope of putting the strangers out of my house'. By the end of the play, the young bridegroom Michael has followed Mother Ireland to die for his country, and she as a result has been transformed into a young girl with the 'walk of a queen'.

The scheduled performance of this revolutionary and mythical Yeats play had to be cancelled on Easter Monday 1916, due to the street theatre which was unfolding outside the theatre. In fact several of the actors on stage at the Abbey, and most of the audience, ran to the streets to take part in what would become the country's most significant political event in hundreds of years. Bryan Flynn drew parallels between Michael Collins destiny and that of the character 'Michael' from the play. This, coupled with the fact that Michael Collins was an avid patron of the theatre and, indeed fought in the Rising, led the writer to use the Yeats play as a staging convention. In 'Michael Collins - the musical drama' the play 'Cathleen Ni Houlihan' is used as a 'Theatrical Framework', within which the Collins story is told. The 'Mother Ireland' character hangs over proceedings while the Abbey Players act as narrators and commentators, rather like a Greek chorus.

With an epic story and a theatrical frame in place, Bryan Flynn set about structuring the book, composing the score and writing the lyrics. In the summer of 2005, 10 actors/singers were assembled for a workshop which concentrated on Act One of the new musical. The resulting 'read' performances were met with such positive responses by invited audiences, work continued immediately to complete the show. At this stage, musical director/arranger Trevor Knight joined what had up to now been a solo assignment. Knight, renowned for his work on many major theatrical works in Ireland, orchestrated the score over several months which consists of 20 songs along with much underscoring.

In April 2006, a 'Concert' production of Michael Collins was mounted. 20 performers rehearsed for three weeks and went on to present sold out concerts at Cork Opera House. The performances featured all of the music from the show along with some edited dialogue. The audience response was phenomenal. Although the production was just in concert format, with limited staging, the audiences jumped to their feet every night, vocalising its' approval. The encouragment garnered from this experience led all involved to the next milestone: to stage the show in its full form.

In October 2007, a fully staged production of Michael Collins was presented at the Theatre Royal, Waterford City, Souh East Ireland. This production then transfered to Cork Opera House in February 2008. At both venues the show enjoyed critical acclaim and played to full houses. The production featured a cast of 30 performers from all over Ireland.

Even though this was a fully staged production, it was considered by all involved to be a trial run, to garner feedback, judge the content and to see what reaction the piece would get in Michael Collins home county.

Cork Opera House is now launching what will be the official 'World Premiere' of 'Michael Collins'. The production will be staged at that venue in March 2009.