Dancing at Lughnasa

three women

Brian Friel (Writer), Ellen Hemphill (Director)

Fall, 2018

The pagan hilltop rituals of Lughnasa, the ancient Gaelic harvest festival, were abandoned after the Christianization of Ireland.  Or were they?  In Brian Friel’s play, dancing and sacrifice continue to feature in the lives of five sisters, one ex-priest, and one illegitimate child, as they struggle to stay afloat emotionally and financially in 1930s Ireland.  Music and movement carry this seemingly simple story, revealing the inner lives, the passions and obsessions of the sisters. The sisters’ riotous dancing offers hints of the old (and perhaps ongoing) celebration of life juxtaposed against the strict Catholic tradition of the household and the town itself.

Please join director Ellen Hemphill (Duke Theater Studies professor and artistic director of Archipelago Theater), guest composer Allison Leyton-Brown and the cast of Duke undergraduates for this microcosmic exploration of the human struggle to maintain joy against all odds.  

November 8-11 and 15-17 at 8p, November 12 & 18 at 2p

Tickets $15 general, $10 student, For tickets, visit https://tickets.duke.edu/online/article/lughnasa18

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Cast, Creative & Production Team

Cast

  • Ahnna Beruk - Kate
  • Theo Holt - Michael/Narrator
  • Jacob Allen - Gerry
  • Bryant Lewis  - Jack
  • Tara Maier - Maggie
  • Samantha Steger - Chris
  • Samantha Streit - Rose
  • Anna Waters - Agnes

Creative Team

  • Ellen Hemphill, Director
  • Derrick Ivey, Scenic and Costume Designer
  • Ross Kolman, Lighting Designer
  • Alex Maness, Video Projection Designer
  • Allison Leyton-Brown, Music Arranger
  • Badger Koon, Sound Designer
  • Kirby Wahl, Dialect Coach
  • Megan Kelly Tisdale, Irish Dance Instructor
  • Natasha A. Jackson, Stage Manager
  • Michael O'Foghludha, Consultant
  • Joshua Kopen, Assistant Stage Manager
  • David DiGuiseppe, Musician
  • Rob Sharer, Musician
  • Tim Domack, Props Master
  • Sonya Drum, Scenic Painter
  • Aaron Lopez-Barrantes, Poster Designer

Run Crew

  • Maria Zurita Ontiveros, light board operator
  • Jessica Minor, master electrician
  • Eddie Roberson, video operator
  • Scott Silver, audio operator
  • Costume, hair & make-up crew: Grace Abels, Banu Priya Karuppaiah Alagar, Katie Cannon, Micki Haralson, Reilly Johnson

Production Team

  • Marcy Edenfield, Production Manager 
  • Rich Kless, Technical Director
  • David Berberian, Scene Shop Manager
  • Erin M. West, Costume Shop Manager
  • Dierdre Reynolds Shipman, Producer & Publicist
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