Dorset Theatre Festival Stages John Patrick Shanley's OUTSIDE MULLINGAR, Now thru 8/15

Dorset Theatre Festival will stage John Patrick Shanley's Outside Mullingar, a Tony-award nominated romantic comedy from the Academy Award winning writer of Doubt and Moonstruck. The production will be directed by John Gould Rubin and will run from tonight, July 30th to August 15th.

"I'm so excited to be bringing this play to Dorset. John Patrick Shanley is one of our greatest living playwrights, and this play is his love letter to Ireland." says Dina Janis, Artistic Director.

The play centers on Anthony and Rosemary, two middle-aged, introverted misfits. Painfully shy, Anthony has spent his entire life on a farm in rural Ireland. Rosemary lives next door, as she always has, determined to have him. With Anthony's father threatening to disinherit him and a border dispute brewing between their families, Rosemary has every reason to fear an unhappy conclusion to her dreams of romance. But in this deeply Irish story with a surprising depth of poetic passion, these awkward would-be lovers struggle towards some kind of happiness. Their journey is equal parts heartbreaking, funny, and deeply relatable.

The cast features stars of stage and screen, including Jonathan Hogan as Tony Reilly, who recently starred in the hit Netflix series House of Cards opposite Kevin Spacey. He has appeared in a number of film and television roles and on Broadway in Comedians, Otherwise Engaged, Fifth of July, The Caine Mutiny Court Martial, Burn This, Taking Steps, The Homecoming, and As Is, for which he was nominated for a Tony and a Drama Desk Award for Best Actor. Jennifer Harmon will portray Aeife Muldoon who has performed on Broadway in The School for Scandal, The Sisters Rosensweig, Rumors, Blithe Spirit, The Dinner Party, and The Glass Menagerie. She has appeared on hit television shows including The Good Wife, Rescue Me and Law and Order.

Returning to Dorset for her fourth season, DTF favorite Mary Bacon, familiar to regional audiences for her work in Theresa Rebeck's Mauritius and The Scene will play Rosemary Muldoon. Bacon's other credits include The Tribute Artist at Primary Stages, Mary Lincoln in The Widow Lincoln at Ford's Theatre, The May Queen at Chautauqua Theatre, and Children at Williamstown, as well as roles on The Good Wife, MildrEd Pierce and Law & Order. Rounding out the cast is Michael Hayden as Anthony Reilly, a graduate of The Juilliard School whose portrayal of Billy Bigelow in the Royal National Theatre/Lincoln Center production of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Carousel earned him Theatre World and Drama League Awards, along with nominations for the Olivier, Outer Critics Circle and Drama Desk Awards. He also played Rolfe in the National Actor's Theatre production of Judgement at Nuremburg, opposite Maximilian Schell, for which he received a Tony Award nomination.

Playwright John Patrick Shanley is the author of more than 20 plays, including Doubt, for which he won the Pulitzer Prize, the Drama Desk Award for Best Play and the Tony Award. He also wrote and directed the film adaptation of Doubt, starring Meryl Streep, Amy Adams and Philip Seymour Hoffman. His screenplay for Moonstruck, starring Nicholas Cage and Cher won the Academy Award for Best Screenplay.

Director John Gould Rubin is an accomplished and prolific director, having directed, among many other productions: Hedda Gabler and Playing with Fire for The Private Theatre, Peer Gynt at the International Ibsen festival in Oslo, The Cherry Orchard at The Actors Studio (featuring Ellen Burstyn), The Seagull at Harold Clurman LAB, and Little Doc at Rattlestick. He has also directed a number of productions at LAByrinth Theater, including John Patrick Shanley's A Winter Party. He is the Artistic Director and a founding member of The Private Theatre.

Special Event programming for this production includes a post-show talk-back with the cast and creative team following the matinee on August 1st, as well as the second special "Get Your Play On" event for local Young Professionals which will feature special discounted tickets and cafe fare including microbrewery beer for members of Young Professionals organizations throughout the region, on August 15th.

Ticket prices range from $20- $49 for adults. Student tickets are $20 and youth (12 and under) pay only $8 for any performance. Save up to 15% over single ticket prices by purchasing a subscription for the Summer 2015 Season. For more information and details about these and other special events at The Playhouse, call 802-867-2223 or visit dorsettheatrefestival.org.

Pictured: Jonathan Hogan, Jennifer Harmon, Mary Bacon, and Michael Hayden. Photo courtesy of DTF.