The Guthrie Theater today announced that Artistic Director Joe Dowling will direct legendary stage actor Brian Dennehy in John B. Keane's The Field in a limited run at Dublin's Olympia Theatre beginning January 13. Dennehy plays the iconic role of ‘The Bull" McCabe in Keane's award-winning play. The Field returns to the Olympia Theatre where it premiered more than 45 years ago and will run from January 13 through to February 12, then transfer to the INEC, Killarney, from February 15 through 17, followed by a transfer to the Royal Theatre, Castlebar, from February 24 through 26.
The Field captivated audiences in 1965 and has been doing so ever since. Its dark story burrows deep into the heart of rural Ireland in the late 1950s. At its core is the enduring link between the Irish people and the land. It is based on the true story of the 1959 murder of Moss Moore, a bachelor farmer. His neighbor, Dan Foley, with whom Moore had a long-standing dispute over a right of way, was believed to have committed the murder. Foley's family denied the charge and no one was ever brought to justice. The play does not hide from the truth, and the dark portrayal of life in North Kerry has struck a cord with audiences throughout the world.
The Field is presented by
Pat Moylan, Donal Shiels, Breda Cashe, in association with Lane Productions and MCD. Tickets are on sale now and available at
www.ticketmaster.ie.
Joe Dowling has been the artistic director of the Tony award-winning Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis since 1995. He is well-known in Ireland for his work as Artistic Director of
The Abbey Theatre and the Gaiety Theatre and has directed plays in London, New York, Washington, D.C. and Montreal. He has long been connected with Irish theatre having founded Ireland's premiere drama school, the Gaiety School of Acting. He served as artistic director of the Irish Theatre Company and the Peacock Theatre and founded the Young Abbey, Ireland's first theater-in-education group. Select New York directing credits include: Philadelphia, Here I Come!, London Assurance and Tartuffe at the Roundabout, Juno and the Paycock on Broadway and Othello at the New York Shakespeare Festival (with
Raul Julia and
Christopher Walken). He has directed more than 35 productions at the Guthrie, including A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Playboy of the Western World, Much Ado About Nothing, The Importance of Being Earnest, Julius Caesar, Twelfth Night, Macbeth, Amadeus, Hamlet and The Real Thing. As part of the 2007/2008 season, he directed the American premiere of The Home Place by
Brian Friel and in the 2009/2010 season, he directed and performed in Friel's play Faith Healer. During his tenure at the Guthrie, he has overseen a period of unprecedented growth, including record-breaking subscription and ticket sales and the opening of a new home on the banks of the Mississippi River in Minneapolis. Designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Jean Nouvel, the Guthrie Theater houses three state-of-the-art stages, production facilities, classrooms and dramatic public lobbies.
Dowling was awarded the National Corporate Theatre Fund's 2006 Achievement in Theatre. He holds an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from University of St. Thomas, St John's University and St. Olaf College, Minnesota; an Honorary Doctorate of Letters from the National University of Ireland; and an Honorary Doctorate of Laws from Gonzaga University.
Brian Dennehy has appeared in more 150 films and television shows. He has twice won the Tony Award for Best Actor: for playing James Tyrone in
Eugene O'Neill's Long Day's Journey Into Night, and for playing Willy Loman in
Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman. The television version of Death of a Salesman subsequently earned Dennehy a Golden Globe Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award and an Emmy Award nomination. He revived the role of Willy Loman in London's West End in 2005 for which he received the coveted Olivier Award for Best Actor. Most recently, he played Ephraim Cabot in the Broadway production of Desire Under the Elms. Film work includes First Blood (opposite
Sylvester Stallone), Silverado, Best Seller, Cocoon, Semi Tough, Foul Play, Legal Eagles, Presumed Innocent, FX Murder By Illusion and Righteous Kill (
Al Pacino &
Robert De Niro). His TV appearances include Kojak, Lou Grant, Dallas, Miami Vice, Dynasty and Law and Order (SVU).
JOHN B KEANE was born in Listowel, Co. Kerry, in 1928. He published 46 works, but is best known for his plays which include Sive, Sharon's Grave, The Man from Clare, The Year of the Hiker, The Field (which was adapted as a film), Many Young Men of Twenty, Big Maggie, Moll, The Crazy Wall, The Buds of Ballybunion, The Chastitute and Faoiseamh. His novels are The Bodhran Makers, Durango, The Contractors and A High Meadow. He has published many books of humorous essays and letters, including Letters of a T.D., Love Bites and Owl Sandwiches. He has published one book in Irish, Dan Pheadí Aíndí. His biography is Man of the Triple Name. He died in 2002 aged 73 years.
Photo Credit: Walter McBride/WM Photos
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