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On Monday, January 21, we end the "art" part of our series "Arts and Sciences" with Conor McPherson's "The Weir" (1997), a "beautiful" play about the "essential value of telling stories" (New York Times). "The Weir" takes place in a rural Irish pub, where locals compete to impress a young Dubliner by telling ghost stories. Her own painful, personal tale tops them all. "Enchanting" (San Francisco Chronicle), "inspiring" (Variety), "The Weir" is "pure theatrical poetry" (Guardian) from "a phenomenally fine storyteller" (Financial Times). It's both "devastating" (Chicago Tribune) & "wonderfully funny"--"a modern classic" (London Telegraph) "not to be missed" (New York Post).
Our meeting will feature director Nick Olcott. Nick last met us in November 1999 to discuss Alan Ayckbourn's "Communicating Doors." His recent directing credits include Ayckbourn's "Woman in Mind" at Round House Theatre & the world premiere of Joshua Ford's "Miklat," opening January 6 at Theater J. Nick's radio theater productions of "Seven Days in May" & "A Lesson Before Dying" air January 13 & 27 on WETA-FM; his production of "The Weir" opens at Round House January 30.
We'll meet at Delray Vietnamese Garden, 4918 Del Ray Ave., five short blocks from Bethesda metro. Take both up escalators, turn left onto Old Georgetown Rd., walk up to Del Ray Ave. & turn right. Drivers should park above the first floor (to avoid the two-hour limit) in one of the nearby garages, on Cordell Ave. or Old Georgetown Rd. Dinner begins 6:30 p.m.; our discussion is 7:30-9:30. Make reservations by e-mailing [email protected] or calling 202-898-4825. Find "Weir" at a discount (either the TCG collection or the DPS acting edition) at Politics & Prose, 5015 Connecticut Ave., NW, & Olsson's Books & Records, 1307 19th St., NW & 7647 Old Georgetown Rd., Bethesda.
At 3 p.m. Saturday, February 2, Footlights will attend "The Weir" at Round House Theatre, 12210 Bushey Dr., between Randolph & Veirs Mill Roads in Silver Spring. Tickets are $17 & include a post-show discussion. We must receive payment by January 21. All sales are final. Mail checks to Robin Larkin, 5403 Nibud Ct., Rockville, MD 20852 (240-669-6300 & [email protected]). Ask about a lift to the theater & dinner afterwards. Robin will distribute tickets in the lobby just before the performance.
Our season's first play saw comrades clash over "art." In February's play, friends fight over science. "Copenhagen" (1998), by British playwright Michael Frayn, depicts alternate versions of the mysterious 1941 meeting of two famous physicists who ended World War II on opposite sides of the race to build an atom bomb. "Unexpectedly theatrical" (Newsday), this is an "elegant" (New Yorker), "brilliant" (Newsweek), "dazzling" play (London Telegraph), "compelling" (Financial Times), "exhilarating" (Nation) & "endlessly fascinating" (New York Times). On Tuesday, February 19, we'll discuss "Copenhagen" with physics professor Maurice Shapiro, a veteran of the Manhattan Project. Make reservations after 9:30 p.m. January 21. We have a limited number of front-section orchestra seats for the 7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 7 performance of "Copenhagen" at the Kennedy Center.Including a 6 p.m. pre-show cast discussion, tickets cost $38 ($30 for performance only). Mail your check today to Robin Larkin, 5403 Nibud Ct., Rockville, MD 20852. We must get your check by February 1, also the refund deadline.
Monday, Jan. 21: "The Weir," Delray Viet Gdn
Tuesday, Feb. 19: "Copenhagen," *Stanford in Washington
Wednesday, Mar. 13: "The Physicists," *TBA
Thursday, Apr. 18: "Blithe Spirit," Delray Viet Gdn
Monday, May 13: "The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds," *Cafe Midi Cuisine
*Note change from prior newsletters.
all meetings run from 6:30-9:30 p.m.
For more information about Footlights, check our website, www.footlightsdc.org. You can subscribe to our list & receive our monthly e-letter for free by sending any message--even blank--to [email protected].