Galway Theatre Festival kicks off this Friday evening and runs in venues throughout the city until Saturday, May 10.

Family entertainment is on offer this Saturday, May 3, with The Lonesome Boatman, which follows the adventures of Buttons, a corrupt local politician who settles into his bath to sail away on rising tides. However, he ends up battling the sea, the elements and his ego.

This circus theatre show which explores climate change in a fun but thought-provoking way, is a musical clown odyssey, which promises comedy, surprises and rubber ducks. The score includes new compositions as well as traditional music, performed live on instruments including banjolele, bodhrán, tin whistle, spoons and musical saw. It’s on in Nuns’ Island Theatre, at 11am and 2pm on Saturday. Tickets €15/10 and it’s suitable for 5+.

Mr Bergmann of Deadman’s Point, which is at the Town Hall Theatre Studio next Wednesday and Thursday, May 8 and 9, at 8pm, is a mysterious, comic tale that explores reputation, legacy and what it’s like to live close to death.

Inspired by a true story from 2009, it’s presented by multi-award-winning Nth Degree Productions. A man using the alias Peter Bergmann spends three days in Sligo town, a period that involves using fake names, non-existent addresses and the disappearance of all his possessions. Later, he’s found deceased at Deadman’s Point Beach.

His aim is to delete himself – and all goes to plan until an unexpected encounter with an embalmer, who is in a race against time to cement his legacy.  Tickets for this are €16/14.

Dathanna Geala Amháin/Bright Colours Only at an Taibhdhearc, is a one-woman Irish wake show that has toured from Belfast to Brazil in a hearse, getting rave reviews everywhere. The “deadly funny show” has been resurrected in Irish and is billed as “only suitable for those dying to live!”

Performed in Irish with English subtitles, it’s on at 8pm this Saturday, and from May 6-10. Tickets €18/16. Previews on Thursday and Friday cost €12.

Malaprop Theatre who recently made their off-Broadway debut, are presenting their award-winning production, Hothouse, at the Town Hall Theatre next Tuesday, May 6. This fast-paced, intergenerational story of love, loss and legacy, set on an Arctic cruise ship that’s guided by an unhinged captain, takes the audience on a journey to bid farewell to the ice caps. It’s at 8pm, with an ISL performance, and tickets are €22/18.

Carpet Muncher, in the University of Galway’s Bank of Ireland Theatre next Wednesday and Thursday, May 7 and 8, blends spoken word with surrealist costuming and physical theatre.

In a cathartic excavation of the closet, the Mothman weaves tales of queer alienation, metamorphosis and cross-border solidarity, before feasting on a pile of cloth. The show uses vibrant surrealist costuming to explore themes of queer alienation, metamorphosis, cross-border solidarity and homoerotic hot-hub encounters. It’s at 9.30pm nightly, and for over-16s. Tickets €16/14.

The Festival has many other shows, works-in-progress, exhibitions, and a festival club. Information on all events at galwaytheatrefestival.com.

Pictured: Mr Bergman of Deadman’s Point is being staged by Nth Degree Productions.