Donal O'Kelly's THE CAMBRIA Opens at Irish Arts 3/17

The Irish Arts Center, in association with Classical Theatre of Harlem, presents a one-week only
special engagement of Donal O'Kelly's The Cambria, directed by Raymond Keane and starring Mr. O'Kelly and Sorcha Fox.  The Cambria opens on Tuesday, March 17 for a strictly limited engagement through Sunday, March 22. The performance schedule is Tuesday – Friday at 8:00 PM; Saturday at 2:00 PM and 8:00 PM; and Sunday at 3:00 PM. Performances take place at the Donaghy Theatre at the Irish Arts Center (553 West 51st Street, between 10th and 11th Avenues). Tickets are $40 ($35 for Irish Arts Center Members) and are available by calling SmartTix at (212) 868-4444 or www.smarttix.com.

Frederick Douglass is one of the great iconic figures in American history and a forerunner to our new American president, Barack Obama.   At the 1888 Republican convention in Chicago, he became the first African-American to have his name placed in nomination for the presidency by a major party.

But forty-three years earlier, as a relatively unknown escaped slave, he was forced to flee the United States after publishing his life story, A Narrative of The Life of an American Slave.  With false papers – and a bounty on his head from enraged slaveholders – he boarded the Cunard Line paddle-steamer The Cambria out of Boston bound for Ireland.    He was greeted like a hero by the Irish people and  spoke to mass meetings on platforms with Daniel O'Connell, the leading Irish politician of the day.

The Cambria is the thrilling tale of the historic voyage in which Douglass' identity was revealed – placing his life in mortal danger. Written by Ireland's master theatrical storyteller Donal O'Kelly, who recently dazzled IAC audiences with his virtuosic Catalpa, The Cambria tells the story of how Douglass survived to become what Abraham Lincoln called "the most impressive man I ever met", and the rhetorical inspiration for Barack Obama's successful campaign for the American Presidency.

The Cambria was called "Entertaining, thought provoking and beautifully crafted," by Fintan O'Toole at the Irish Times. And The Guardian, in its four star review, called The Cambria "A first class ticket to Dublin … wonderful to watch."

Special Performance on St. Patrick's Day (Tuesday, March 17) begins with a pre-performance reception at 7:00 PM. Following the 8 PM performance will be an intimate conversation on race and progress in Ireland and America with Oscar-nominated film director/screenwriter Terry George (Hotel Rwanda, In the Name of the Father), playwright/performer Donal O'Kelly, Classical Theatre of Harlem Artistic Director Alfred Preisser, and moderated by renowned New York Times journalist
and author Marcus Mabry.

Donal O'Kelly's The Cambria is part of March Madness at the Irish Arts Center, a month-long celebration of Irish arts and culture in honor of St. Patrick's Day. Other March Madness events include Ardal O'Hanlon Live, the Center's annual free Open Day on March 15, the special literary event The McCourt Memoirs, a screening of Paddy Hayes' Ceolchuairt and the launch of the gallery exhibition A Different Land: Irish Bogland Interpretations, featuring the work of artists from
County Kerry, Ireland.

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