Tryon Little Theater is proud to present “Outside Mullingar” as its next production. This award-winning play was written by John Patrick Shanley and will be directed by Catherine Gillet. After its 2014 run on Broadway, it received two Outer Critics Circle Award nominations, two Drama Desk Award nominations, and one Tony Award nomination for Best Play.

A romantic comedy set in rural Ireland, “Outside Mullingar” introduces two introverted misfits and their parents as they struggle with the ups and downs of life, death, and love. It’s full of poetic passion, humor and yearning—and has been described as “funny as hell…and a charmer of a play.”

Catherine Gillet, the director—and a playwright herself—says, “When I directed a staged reading of this play a few months ago, I knew this script would make for a beautiful production. The rural dialect translates into a special kind of lyrical poetry full of Irish humor, and the plot makes for compelling drama.”

The Writers Guild of America awarded Shanley the 2009 Lifetime Achievement Award in Writing. Shanley will be remembered for his play “Doubt” which received a Tony Award and a Pulitzer Prize. The movie version, starring Meryl Streep and Philip Seymour Hoffman, received five Oscar nominations. For his screenplay “Moonstruck,” starring Nicholas Cage and Cher, Shanley received both the Writers Guild Award and the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay.

Hailed as Shanley’s best play since Doubt, “Outside Mullingar” is an intimate, ensemble play with four characters: Tony and Anthony Reilly (father and son); and their neighbors Aoife and Rosemary Muldoon (mother and daughter). 

Playing Tony is a favorite of TLT audiences, Mark Monaghan, most recently seen in multiple roles in “Greater Tuna” as well as “Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike.” He received his degree from Florida State University School of Theatre. As well as numerous shows here and in the Upstate, he has worked on two projects for the Carolina Film Institute. 

Christopher Paul Smith plays Anthony, Tony’s son, and is new to the TLT stage. He has received classical training in acting, technique, and voice, and since 2012 has garnered numerous awards for his performances in USC Upstate productions and music videos. His expertise in dialects and accents, as well as his quick comedic timing, make him a perfect fit for his character.

Rosalind Ashford plays Aoife, the mother, and is also new to the TLT stage. Ashford has extensive conservatory training and experience, both in the UK and in New York. She’s a dialect coach with a mastery of British and foreign accents, and has appeared in numerous Off-Broadway and regional theater productions. She also narrates audiobooks and does voice-overs for film and TV.

Aoife’s daughter Rosemary is played by Tara Sweeney. Sweeney, another newcomer to the TLT stage, was trained in theater arts at Winthrop University and the Warehouse Theater in Greenville. She has many theater performances to her credit, as well as numerous TV and film appearances.

“Outside Mullingar” will run for two weekends, Nov. 9-12 and Nov. 16–19, at the TLT Workshop, 516 S. Trade St. in Tryon.  Tickets are available on the TLT website, www.tltinfo.org, or by calling 828-859-2466.

– submitted by Monica Jones