DANCING at Lughnasa brings down the curtain on the year at Leamington’s Loft Theatre.
Brian’s Friel’s award winning play is set in the fictional Donegal town of Ballybeg during the long, hot days of August 1936, and the celebrations for Lughnasa, the Celtic harvest festival.
But is also semi-autobiographical, being loosely based on the lives of his mother and aunts.
In a house just outside Ballybeg live five unmarried sisters, along with their brother – a priest recently returned from years of missionary work in Uganda – and the seven-year-old son of the youngest of the sisters.
Over the course of two days in the Mundy family’s life, Friel reveals not only the inner world of individuals trapped in their domestic situation, but also the societal tensions – public and private, Christian and pagan – which impact upon them.
The five sisters dance through memories filled with laughter and hope, tenderness and heartbreak, while the world is on the brink of irrevocable change.
Regarded as one of Ireland’s most beloved and powerful plays, it was also adapted into a film, starring Meryl Streep, in 1998
The production runs from December 3 to 13.
Visit www.lofttheatrecompany.com for further details.
