Theatre Exile Presents The Lieutenant of Inishmore, Closes 3/13

Theatre Exile brings the long-awaited Philadelphia premiere of Martin McDonagh's The Lieutenant of Inishmore to Plays and Players Theatre in February, 2011. Directed by Matt Pfeiffer with a star-studded artistic team, The Lieutenant of Inishmore closes March 13. The Lieutenant of Inishmore has been supported by The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage through the Philadelphia Theatre Initiative.

Martin McDonagh's The Lieutenant of Inishmore drops audiences into the eye of a firestorm, where citizens of a small Irish town are locked, loaded and ready to go. McDonagh's storytelling is like a well-oiled machine, twisting and tightening the plot with every reload. The New York Times lauded the show as "appallingly entertaining," adding that "more improbably, you should also find it enlightening." McDonagh rips through the ethos of nationalist violence, exposing the human cost of our political convictions. It's the sort of high-voltage theater that has made Exile the region's home for the "genuine mind-blowing theater experience" (City Paper). With 60 rounds of ammunition, gallons of blood, exploding cats and a final scene that defies the laws of the theatrically possible, this will be the biggest, boldest theatrical event of the season!

Director Matt Pfeiffer has assembled some of the most exciting designers to bring this gore ballet to life with meticulous precision. Waldo Warsaw comes to Philadelphia from the original Broadway production to create jaw-dropping special effects that will have the audience ducking for cover. Nationally acclaimed puppet artist Aaron Cromie designs the theatrical magic needed to bring an untimely death to several cats and half of the inhabitants of Inishmore. Philadelphia's Renaissance man, Thom Weaver, designs the lightscape that includes the most heart-pounding 30-second blackout ever to darken a Philadelphia stage. And Brian Sidney Bembridge, winner of the LA Stage Scene award in design and named one of the 50 Top Players of Chicago, comes to Philadelphia to create the playground of splatterpunk fun that the Lieutenant calls home. The Lieutenant of Inishmore will raise the bar in theatrical design, putting the spotlight on holistic theatrical storytelling.

To delve even deeper into this production, Exile expands their programming to include two free design workshops during the run of Lieutenant: one on the backstage magic of the show, run by Aaron Cromie (for general audiences); and one on Lieutenant's special effects, run by Waldo Warsaw (for theatre artists only). Stay tuned for schedule and registration information!

It takes a hell of an ensemble of actors to make McDonagh's smart and scalpel-sharp language live and breathe. Pearce Bunting, last seen in Exile's powerful Blackbird and soon to resume filming the second season of HBO's Boardwalk Empire, returns as Donny, the menacing patriarch of Inishmore, with Robert Daponte of American Buffalo as his unfortunate sidekick, Davey. The ever-versatile William Zielinski from Shining City and Brian McCann from Glengarry Glen Ross storm the Exile stage again as the deadly assassins Christy and Brendan. Matinee idol Keith Conallen, formerly seen in Exile's Shining City, returns as the strung-out and strung-up dope pusher, James. Exile is pleased to welcome Elena Bossler as the shotgun-toting beauty of Inishmore, Mairead, and Andrew Kane as Joey, the killer with the heart of gold. First-time Exile Paul Felder leads the riots with double pistols blazing as the dangerous and dashing Padraic. And taken from the streets of South Philly, Miss Thomasina is currently in residence with director Matt Pfeiffer, preparing for her stage début as Wee Thomas, the cat.

The Lieutenant of Inishmore is part of the Philadelphia Irish Theatre Festival, running now through May 2011: six companies presenting eight Irish plays in six months. To order Irish Mix Tix packages, discounted 20% with the purchase of tickets to two or more plays, go to http://mixtix.phillytheatretix.com.

Cast, director and design team are available for phone or email interviews; please contact Tenley Bank at 215.218.4022 to schedule. Press photos are available for download at http://theatreexile.org/press.

Select Bios
Matt Pfeiffer (director) is the Associate Artistic Director of Theatre Exile, where he's directEd Barrymore nominated productions of Shining City, American Buffalo, Glengarry Glen Ross, and Bug. Matt's extensive credits include: Arden Theatre (Romeo And Juliet, A Moon For The Misbegotten, Go Dog, Go!), Walnut Street Theatre (An Infinite Ache), Lantern Theatre (The Foocy), 1812 Productions (Beautiful Boy), Flashpoint Theatre (Run, Mourner, Run), and 14 seasons with the Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival. Matt is a 5-time Barrymore Nominee and recipient of the F. Otto Haas Award for an Emerging Theatre Artist.

Waldo Warsaw (special effects) has been designing and choreographing special effects such as atmospherics, pyrotechnics, blood and firearms for theater, television and film for over two decades. He has designed nine productions of Lieutenant including the original Broadway production, making him the international expert on the effects of McDonagh's explosive show.

Aaron Cromie (crafts & additional effects) is a director, performer, and mask and puppet designer whose work has been recognized with two Barrymore Awards and grants from the Jim Henson Foundation, the Philadelphia Theatre Initiative, and the Independence Foundation. He has designed for the Folger, the Wilma, the Shakespeare Theatre and the Arden, recently creating the puppets for the oversized fairy-tale world of Arden's The Borrowers.

Martin McDonagh (playwright) has written numerous plays including A Behanding in Spokane, The Lonesome West (Tony nominee, Best Play 1999), The Beauty Queen of Leenane (Tony nominee, Best Play 1999) and The Pillowman, which was a Tony nominee for Best Play 2005 and an Olivier Award winner in 2004. Other works include Suicide on Sixth Street, Shit on Illinois, Seven Psychopaths, In Bruges and Six-Shooter (Oscar- Best Short 2006).