Proving there’s nothing more revealing than the stories we choose to tell, Conor McPherson’s The Weir is a beautifully crafted, award-winning play that brings together the great Irish tradition of bar room tales at Arts Centre Melbourne from 20 August 2015.
In a small rural pub in the west of Ireland, the old regulars and their host fall into swapping ghost stories, the sort of local legends and anecdotes that over the years get stretched in the telling. It’s not their usual entertainment for a week night. They’re just showing off, as fellas do, throwing around a little blarney for the benefit of an attractive stranger in their midst.
And Valerie, who has just moved from Dublin into town seems to be enjoying the stories. What’s the harm in it? Who could know how deeply these stories strike home and that the most moving story is waiting to be told?
Led by MTC Associate Artistic Director Sam Strong, celebrated actors Greg Stone, Ian Meadows, Robert Menzies and Peter Kowitz join Nadine Garner in this modern classic that has mesmerised audiences from the West End to Broadway and back again, and is now on stage in Melbourne for the first time.
“The Weir is a contemporary classic that Melbourne audiences have waited too long to see,” says Director Sam Strong. “This beautiful play is a rare combination of elegance, understatement and power; it’s a play that tickles your funny bone, gives you a scare, breaks your heart and then gives you a hug. Conor McPherson has a unique gift for bringing to life not just ghost stories, but the things that actually haunt us – lost love, loneliness and regret.”
Conor McPherson is a playwright, screenwriter and director who was named by The New York Times as ‘the finest playwright of his generation’. He won an Olivier Award for Best New Play in 1999 for The Weir and a George Devine Award for St Nicholas in 1997.
His recent work includes an adaption of Strindberg’s The Dance of Death and The Night Alive which premiered in the UK and transferred to New York in 2013. He received a Tony Award nomination for his play Shining City and an Olivier Award nomination for The Seafarer. His directing credits include The Veil for the National Theatre and The Eclipse, which marked his debut as a screen director.
Director: Sam Strong Featuring: Nadine Garner, Peter Kowitz, Ian Meadows, Robert Menzies, Greg Stone Set & Costume Designer: Dale Ferguson Lighting Designer: Matt Scott Composer & Sound Designer: Steve Francis Assistant Director / Voice & Dialect Couch: Leith McPherson
The Weir
Fairfax Studio – Arts Centre Melbourne, 100 St. Kilda Road, Melbourne
Season: 20 August – 26 September 2015
Bookings: (03) 8688 0800 or online at: www.mtc.com.au
Theatre Royal, 29 Campbell Street, Hobart
Season: 30 September – 3 October 2015
Bookings: (03) 6233 2299 or online at: www.theatreroyal.com.au
For more information, visit: www.mtc.com.au for details.
Image: Nadine Garner and Greg Stone to feature in The Weir – courtesy of MTC