How I wrote a 5-star show in three months and got called “a female Hamlet”

Join Alfrun Rose, actor, writer, producer on a whistle-stop tour of the creation of her critically acclaimed solo show ‘Dead Air’. How I wrote a show in three months and got called “a female Hamlet” by The Guardian What does it mean to write what you know when you don’t really know anything? How do you turn an idea into something real? And how can artists contribute meaningfully to the debate around AI? Writer and performer Alfrun Rose shares how pulling a sickie from work to eat ice cream and watch documentaries, including one about AI resurrection tools, led to her critically acclaimed solo show, Dead Air. In this behind-the-scenes session, she’ll talk about the first spark of an idea, the writing process and the creative choices that brought the show to life. A lecture on storytelling, getting shit done and creatively engaging with big existential topics. Ending with a Q&A facilitated by her mum, Anna Hildur, who will set straight the lies told about her in the show and ask some thoughtful questions about creativity. Anna Hildur is Programme Director for Creative Industries at Bifröst University in Iceland and a PhD researcher at the University of Galway. This is an honest, behind-the-scenes look at creating and performing a show, with inspiration to get your own idea, whatever it is, off the ground. Alfrun Rose is a writer, actor, and producer. Her acting credits include major film, TV, and video game productions, such as Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga and Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald. Dead Air comes to The Mick Lally Theatre on Wednesday 28 and Thursday 29 October 2026 at 8pm, following performances in the UK and internationally. Arts in Action is the flagship public arts, performance and creative engagement programme of the Institute for Creativity at the University of Galway.