THE UNITED STATES VS ULYSSES
by Colin Murphy

The United States v. Ulysses is a bawdy courtroom drama that tells the true story of the New York trial that liberated James Joyce's Ulysses from American censorship and made Joyce a household name.

Ulysses had been banned on first publication in the States, and for ten years the only copies available were contraband or bootlegs. That was until a hungry young publisher and an ambitious lawyer teamed up to take on the puritans.

Can they convince the judge that Ulysses is not obscene? And what happens when Ulysses gets under their skin - and Molly Bloom gets into their heads?

The new play from Colin Murphy, whose A Day in May (with Charlie Bird), Haughey/Gregory, Bailed Out! and Guaranteed! have previously played at Pavilion Theatre to great acclaim.

Premiered November 2023 at the Pavilion Theatre.

The United States vs Ulysses started life as a play for zoom during the pandemic, which was presented by AboutFace Theatre and commissioned by the James Joyce Centre, and was in part based on Declan Dunne’s novel Set at Random. RTÉ Drama on One then commissioned a radio play, which was directed by Conall Morrison and broadcast on RTÉ Radio 1 on 13 June 2021, with funding from Coimisiún Na Meán.

Funded by the Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon.