The Abbey Theatre's THE PLOUGH AND THE STARS Heads to NJ This October

Sean O'Casey's masterpiece about Ireland's 1916 Easter Uprising, THE PLOUGH AND THE STARS, will make its New Jersey debut at Peak Performances, October 20th through October 23rd, directed by Sean Holmes.

"Th' time is rotten ripe for revolution." Set amidst the tumult of the Ireland's 1916 Easter rising, Sean O'Casey's searing The Plough and the Stars is the story of ordinary lives ripped apart by idealism and revolution. The play opens with the domestic hum of a Dublin tenement and its residents just before the uprising's violence sweeps through the streets and dramatically impacts their lives.

Once the smoke has cleared, what kind of Ireland awaits them? The Plough and the Stars was first performed at the Abbey Theatre in 1926 and caused riots by Nationalists who thought it defamed the patriots. Now considered a masterpiece, it has become essential in our understanding of the forces that rocked Ireland in 1916, one hundred years ago and included members of The Abbey Theatre. The Plough and the Stars is the third play in O'Casey's Dublin Trilogy which began with Shadow of a Gunman and Juno and the Paycock.

Sean Holmes won the Olivier Award for Sarah Kane's Blasted and brings a new perspective to Sean O'Casey's timeless and absorbing play. "An appropriately irreverent handling of a legendarily irreverent script. This vigorous performance...convincingly reinforces the mettle of O'Casey's great play," Washington Post. The cast for this production includes: Ian Lloyd Anderson, Kate Stanley Brennan, Tony Clay, Lloyd Cooney, David Ganly, Rachel Gleeson, James Hayes, Liam Heslin, Ger Kelly, Janet Moran, Ciaran O'Brien, Nima Talghani, Eileen Walsh and Nyree Yergainharsian. Set design is by Jon Bauser; costumes are by Catherine Fay; lighting is by Paul Keogan and music and sound design are by Philip Stewart. Founded by W.B. Yeats and Lady Gregory in 1904 as the voice of an emerging nation, the Abbey proudly remains Ireland's national theater and the birthplace of great plays that have achieved worldwide recognition as classics, among them The Playboy of the Western World, Sean O'Casey's Dublin Trilogy, Brian Friel's Faith Healer and Dancing at Lughnasa, among many others. The Abbey Theatre's acclaimed production of Quietly is currently on view at The Irish Repertory Theater and has extended its run. These productions come at the end of Fiach Mac Conghail's successful 12 years as The Abbey's Artistic Director in which he found even more new ears for the glorious music of Irish plays. Honored with a Citation for Excellence from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, Peak Performances continues to honor its audience by presenting daring, world class entertainment at an affordable (and astonishing) $20 ticket.

IF YOU GO:
The Abbey Theatre, The Plough and the Stars, Directed by Sean Holmes
Performances: Thursday, October 20th at 7:30 pm, Friday, October 21st at 7:30 pm, Saturday, October 22nd at 8 pm and Sunday, October 23rd at 3 pm.
Running time: 2 hours and 32 minutes, 2 intermissions.
Admission: $20 for all performances.

Tickets are $20, and are available at the box office, www.peakperfs.org, or by calling 973-655-5112.

The Alexander Kasser Theater at Montclair State University is located at 1 Normal Avenue, Montclair, New Jersey 07043.

Charter bus service is provided from Port Authority Bus Terminal to the Alexander Kasser Theater ($10 per person, round trip) for all Saturday and Sunday performances. Bus reservations may be made by calling 973-655-5112 or by visiting www.peakperfs.org.

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