By Martin McDonagh
Directed by Lynn Ann Bernatowicz

 . . . . . . .  About  . . . . . . 

   . . . .  Notes  . . .   

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Note on the Director

Dramaturg

Setting: Leenane, a small town in Connemara, County, Galway

Cast

Cast and Crew

About the Play

By Liz Egan

Life in the Folan’s rural Ireland home is never dull! Dependent upon her spinster daughter Maureen, semi-invalid Mag and her daughter use any method they can to hilariously irritate and manipulate each other. When a handsome neighbor interrupts their téte-a-téte, a series of events develop that lead to the drama’s surprising ending. Recommended for mature audiences (language, violence, sexual content).

About the Author

About the Author

Martin McDonagh was born in 1971 to expatriate Irish parents. His Connemara father and Sligo mother left their native land to work in construction and domestic service and raise their family in London, England. Though brought up in south London, McDonagh's summer vacations were spent in his parents' native Galway, where he was immersed in the language and sound of his Irish ancestry. McDonagh explains that "In Connemara and Galway, the natural dialogue style is to invert sentences and use strange inflections. Of course, my stuff is a
heightening of that, but there is a core strangeness of speech, certainly in Galway. "

Martin McDonagh left school at the age of 16 in rebellion over the audacity of teachers who dared to sit in judgement of his writing. He submitted work to Ireland's Druid Theatre in Galway and the Royal Court. He was 25 years old when he wrote his first play, The Beauty Queen of Leenane (premiered in 1996 in Dublin), which won him the Evening Standard Award for most Promising Playwright. Beauty Queen was the first play of the Leenane trilogy and was followed by A Skull in Connemara and The Lonesome West. His plays eventually found their way to the Royal National Theatre, where McDonagh's gift for storytelling was rewarded with a fellowship in the Developing Writers Program. The Cripple of Inishmaan is the result of this fellowship and was the first of his Aran Islands Trilogy (which also included The Lieutenant of Inishmore and The Banshee of Inisheer). He was soon an artist in residence at the Royal National Theatre.

At 27, McDonagh was the youngest playwright to have four plays running simultaneously in London: The Cripple of Inishmaan at the Royal National Theatre and the Leenane Trilogy at the Royal Court Theatre. His work has been honored with Tony, Drama Desk, Drama League, Lucille Lortel, and Outer Critics Circle awards. The Beauty Queen of Leenane was honored with four Tony Awards for its 1998 run on Broadway.

Dramaturg's Diary
By Beth Hubbartt

About the Setting

Connemara

The name Connemara comes from the tribe of Conmac, or Conmaicne, a warrior tribe that was sent to the area by the ancient Gaelic Kings of Connacht to ensure their hegemony. The branch of the tribe that migrated to the coastal area became known as Conmaicnemara, or "the tribe of Cormac by the sea." This name was shortened to Connemara in the 18th century. Connemara is one of the finest wilderness areas surviving in Europe today. Connemara boasts a rugged, craggy coastline that is frequently battered with winds from the Atlantic Ocean. The routine weather report is rainy, gloomy drizzle with frequent heavy downpours. Although the soil in most of the County of Galway is completely unproductive, Connemara marble is harvested from deposits found among the mountains known as the Twelve Bens and is often referred to as "The Green Gold of Connemara."

Leenane

Leenane is a tiny village located in the west of Ireland in the region of Connemara in the County of Galway. Western Ireland is known for holding to old Irish traditions (Gaelic is still spoken in many parts of western Ireland), for its rural lifestyle, for its sparsely populated land, and for the peat bogs that cover much of the landscape. The tiny village of Leenane (population 14) is considered to have the smallest population of any village in Ireland and is famous as the location for the movie The Field starring Richard Harris and Tom Berenger. The village is the crossroads for Connemara and as such is a very busy place. The Leenane Cultural Centre acts as an outlet for local knitters and also houses a sheep and wool museum.

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Production Credits

Director
Lynn Ann Bernatowicz
Technical Director
Troy Lee Brasuell, Jr.
Stage Manager
Denny Wise
Assistant Stage Manager
Arlene Page
Costume Designer
Carolyn Redding
Costume Crew
Linda Bremer, Marilyn Darnall, Mary Dempsey, Jan Quinn, Dorothy Tressler
Dialect Coach
Martin Aistrope
Dramaturg
Beth Hubbartt
Hospitality Chair
Carol Clarke
Hospitality Crew
Chuck Berglund, Ellen Berry, Mark Berry, Tony Dawson, Al Dreifke, Darla Goudeau, Astrid Heymann, Dennis Hudson, Cassandra Johnson, Terry Locke, Ixta Menchaca, Rick Pavia, Christa St. Peter, Anna Thiel, and Marilyn Weiher.
Lighting Designer
Mary Ellen Schutt
Lighting Crew
Linda Auer, Rob Snyder, Carol Suda
Makeup Designer
Mary Ellen Druyan
Makeup Crew
Eileen Crow, Mary Ellen Druyan, Bonnie Hilton, Pat Huth, Mary Pavia, Katie Pecis
Properties Designer
Carol Dapogny
Properties Crew
Mike DeKovic, Angelee Johns, Christa St. Peter, Stephanie Robey
Set Designer
Troy Lee Brasuell, Jr.
Set Construction Chairs
Joe Delaloye, Mark Favoino
Set Construction Crew
Byron Abramowitz , Lee Brasuell, Joe Delaloye, Mike Huth, Rob Snyder, Peter Sonnenberg
Set Painting Chairs
Rob Cramer, Mark Favoino
Set Painting Crew
Patti Roeder, Donna Sauers
Sound Designers
Charlie and Liz Egan
Sound Crew
Peggy Jacoby, Becky Stiles
Box Office Chair
Lori B. Proksa

Front Row Center
Joe Petrolis
House Manager Chair
Bill Wilson
House Managers
Dave Bremer, Mike DeKovic, Joe Delaloye, Jim Dutton, Peter Hilton, Harry Hultgren, Bill Rotz, Bill Wilson
Production Coordinator
Karen Holbert
Poster Design
John Vilhauer
Production Coordinator
Karen Holbert
Poster Distribution
Kathleen Kusper
Program Advertising Sales
Cheri Campbell
Program Editor
Bonnie Hilton
Program Crew
Alison Burkhardt, Cheri Campbell
Publicity Chair
Donna Sauers