Daniels to Direct DANCING AT LUGHNASA at Seattle Rep, 11/12-12/5

An all-star Seattle cast teams with inventive director Sheila Daniels to revisit Brian Friel's touching Irish family drama Dancing at Lughnasa, playing at Seattle Repertory Theatre Nov. 12-Dec. 5, 2010.

Tickets are available now through the Seattle Rep Box Office at 206-443-2222 as well as online at www.seattlerep.org.

Well regarded for her work in the Seattle fringe theatre scene, Sheila Daniels is making her Seattle Rep directorial debut with Dancing at Lughnasa. Daniels became associate director at Intiman in 2007, and helmed two of their most exciting productions in recent years: A Streetcar Named Desire and Crime and Punishment. She was also recently heralded for her work on Electra at Seattle Shakespeare Company and Breaking the Code for Strawberry Theatre Workshop.

"I've been wanting to bring Sheila to the Rep for a while now, and this is the perfect piece for her," said Seattle Rep Artistic Director Jerry Manning. "She has her own Irish heritage, and she will bring a deep respect and a fresh perspective to this beautiful play."

Continuing Manning's commitment to Seattle artists, the cast is comprised of entirely Seattle actors: Mari Nelson, Gretchen Krich, Linda K. Morris, Cheyenne Casebier, Elizabeth Raetz, Todd Jefferson Moore, Ben Harris, and Troy Fischnaller.

Creating the world of Donegal, Ireland, 1936-when the play takes place-is imaginative set designer Etta Lilienthal (Betrayal, Opus); costumer designer Constanza Romero, who recently received a Tony nomination for her design of Broadway's Fences (written by her late husband August Wilson); lighting designer L.B. Morse; and composer Paul James Prendergast, who is also creating music for the Rep's Three Tall Women.

The play is set in the rural kitchen of the five fiercely proud Mundy sisters, a place for talking, laughing, and lively dancing-moments that defy the hardships of their daily life. Their brother, a missionary, has just returned from Uganda, and the sisters find themselves each on the brink of momentous change. Friel's Tony-Award-winning play captures a beautiful and exuberant sliver of these women's lives, a summer where love-and everything else-seemed possible.

Seattle Rep last produced Dancing at Lughnasa in 1995. "I love this play, and I really wanted the opportunity to bring it to a new generation of theatre-goers," Manning said.

SPECIAL EVENT Whiskey & Fiddle: Irish Night at Seattle Rep, Saturday, Nov. 20, 6 p.m.
Come early to the Saturday evening performance (show at 7:30 p.m.) for Irish dance lessons from The Baile Glas Irish Dancers, music by Mooncoyne, and food and drink tastings. Dance and music free with theatre ticket; food and drinks available for a small additional charge. 

Performance Details: Performances of Dancing at Lughnasa are at 7:30 p.m., Wednesday through Sunday, with 2 p.m. matinees on most Saturdays and Sundays and select Wednesdays. There is a Captioned Performance on Thursday, Nov. 18 at 7:30 p.m.; an Audio-Described performance Saturday, Dec. 4 at 2 p.m.; and an American Sign Language (ASL)-interpretedperformance on Sunday, Dec. 5 at 2 p.m. Post-play discussions will be held after the performances on Sunday, Nov. 21 at 2 p.m.; Tuesday, Nov. 23 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, Nov. 28 at 2 p.m. The Pay-What-You-Can Performance is Nov. 16, 7:30 p.m. There will be no performances on Thanksgiving, November 25.

For additional information on Moon Coyne, visit: http://www.mooncoyne.com or
http://twitter.com/mooncoyne

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