Author Colm Toibin to Speak at New Repertory Theatre

New Repertory Theatre presents the special Spotlight Symposium: An Evening with Colm Toibin, Thursday, March 17, 2016 at 7:00pm in the Commander's Mansion at the Arsenal on the Charles, 441 Talcott Avenue, Watertown, MA.

Tickets are $75 for this special fundraiser and include a private cocktail reception with Mr. Toibin, scenes from his play The Testament of Mary featuring Paula Langton, an interview conducted by WGBH's arts reporter, Jared Bowen, and a question and answer session. Tickets are limited to 100 seats.

Following the interview, local non-profit More Than Words will have copies of Mr. Toibin's books available for purchase during a book signing.

"It is an honor to welcome author and playwright Colm Toibin to New Rep for this special Spotlight Symposium event," says Artistic Director, Jim Petosa. "Following the great success of our production of The Testament of Mary, this evening is an excellent opportunity for our audience to hear from the author directly, providing an epilogue to his play and the chance to examine how his background and his identity shaped this profound piece of theatre. We'll also explore some of his other works, in particular his highly acclaimed novel Brooklyn, which is now a major motion picture being considered for three Academy Awards. Please join us for what will surely be a spectacular and unique event."

Colm Toibin was born in Enniscorthy, County Wexford in 1955. He studied at University College Dublin and lived in Barcelona between 1975 and 1978. Out of his experience in Barcelona he produced two books, the novel The South (shortlisted for the Whitbread First Novel Award and winner of the Irish Times/Aer Lingus First Fiction Award) and Homage to Barcelona, both published in 1990. His work as a journalist and travel writer includes Bad Blood: A Walk Along the Irish Border (1987) and The Sign of the Cross: Travels in Catholic Europe (1994). His other novels include The Heather Blazing (1992, winner of the Encore Award); The Story of the Night (1996, winner of the Ferro-Grumley Prize); The Blackwater Lightship (1999, shortlisted for the IMPAC Dublin Prize and the Booker Prize and made into a film starring Angela Lansbury); The Master (2004, winner of the IMPAC Dublin Prize; the Prix du Meilleur Livre E?tranger; the LA Times Novel of the Year; and shortlisted for the Booker Prize); Brooklyn (2009, winner of the Costa Novel of the Year). His play Beauty in a Broken Place was performed at the Peacock Theatre in Dublin in 2004. He has received honorary doctorates from the University of Ulster, University College Dublin, and the University of East Anglia. He is currently Mellon Professor in the Department of English and Comparative Literature at Columbia University. In 2012, his novel The Testament of Mary was published, and it was short-listed for the Man Booker Prize in 2013. In April 2013, The Testament of Mary opened on Broadway starring Fiona Shaw, directed by Deborah Warner and was nominated for a Tony Award for Best New Play. The production transferred to the Barbican in London in May 2014. In July 2014 it opened in Barcelona in a Spanish production, with the actress Blanca Portillo. In 2013 it was released as an audio book narrated by Meryl Streep.

New Repertory Theatre is the award-winning, professional theatre company in residence at the Arsenal Center for the Arts in Watertown, MA. For over 30 years, New Rep has been a leader of self- produced theatre in greater Boston, producing contemporary and classic dramas, comedies, and musicals in both the 340-seat Charles Mosesian Theater and the 90-seat Black Box Theater. Annually, New Rep serves over 40,000 patrons, including 2,000 season subscribers. In addition to its mainstage productions, New Rep produces Next Voices, a program dedicated to developing new plays with four playwrights through three staged readings and one world premiere production. Under its Lifelong Enrichment Arts Programs (LEAP), New Rep also produces its Classic Repertory Company, Page To Stage, Insider Experiences, and Spotlight Symposium Series.

New Repertory Theatre produces plays that speak powerfully to the essential ideas of our time. Through the passion and electricity of live theater performed to the highest standards of excellence, New Rep expands and challenges the human spirit of both artists and audience. New Rep presents world premieres, contemporary and classic works in several intimate settings. We are committed to education and outreach, including special dedication to the creation of innovative in-school programming and providing access to underserved audiences. New Rep is an active advocate for the arts and a major voice in the national dialogue defining the role of theater in our culture.