And there's no dark like a winter night in the country. And there was a wind like this one tonight, howling and whistling in off the sea. You hear it under the door and it's like someone singing. Singing in under the door at you. It was this type of night now. Am I setting the scene for you?
The tallest tales reveal the deepest truths.
Each performance is finely tuned. Phillips maintains icy distance as Valerie, restrained by her grief which slowly smothers her. Vaughan-Lawlor’s Finbar sparks with boyish vivacity, but we sense gently that it masks an inner vacuum beneath the sparky surface. If McPherson falters, it is in his overly wrought direction. Sequences are staged a little too cosily, rhythms a little too predictable, the dark comedy too caricatured. But the play’s spell remains. The Weir is not really about the supernatural at all. It is about the things we try to bury, the regrets that haunt us.
Gleeson’s understated performance of Jack is outstanding, offering affection and understanding amongst the dry humour he presents throughout. However, the ensemble around him is what makes the production flow flawlessly. Vaughan-Lawlor’s energetic Finbar acts as a class clown, adding superb physical humour to the play. Some of the biggest laughs of the night came from McGinley’s reserved Jim, cutting through moments of intensity with cracking one liners and impeccable comedic timing.
| 1999 | Broadway |
Original Broadway Production Broadway |
| 2013 | Off-Broadway |
Irish Repertory Theatre Production Off-Broadway |
| 2014 | West End |
West End Revival Production West End |
| 2015 | Off-Broadway |
Irish Repertory Off-Broadway Production Off-Broadway |
| 2025 | Off-Broadway |
Off-Broadway |
| 2025 | West End |
West End |
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