What are People Saying About it?

Key Quotes from Reviews of CATCO's Production:

Read the full reviews:

'The Seafarer' delivers a powerful experience
--The Columbus Dispatch

Drinking and gambling their way to Christmas....True holiday message of redemption
--The Other Paper 

'The Seafarer' navigates the holidays
--Examiner.com Cleveland

Key Quotes from Reviews of Other Productions :

"'The Seafarer' turns out to be a thinking-person's
alternative to 'It's a Wonderful Life.'"
The New York Times

"Wonderful, gritty, Irish version of 'It's a Wonderful
life' and 'A Christmas Carol' combined."
Buzznews.net

"A rich, mythic meditation on second chances and the
possibility of genuine redemption."
Charleston City Paper

"... Succinct, startling and eerie, and the funniest
McPherson play to date."
London Observer

"... Sparkling and suspenseful"
The Guardian

"... As unlikely as it sounds, 'The Seafarer' may just be the
pick-me-up play of the season."
The New York Times

Read the full reviews:
Not this time, we don't want to give anything away!

• Winner of the Olivier Award in 2006 and Nominated for Tony Award in 2008 for best new play!
• Named "The Best New Play of the Year" by the Wall Street Journal

Who's the Playwright?

Conor McPherson

Born in Dublin and educated at University College Dublin, Conor McPherson is considered one of the best contemporary Irish playwrights. McPherson writes original plays and screenplays and also is an accomplished stage director. The Weir, which won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Play in 1999, was produced by CATCO in 2006. CATCO produced St. Nicholas in 2001. His 2004 play Shining City opened on Broadway in 2006 and was nominated for two Tony Awards, including Best Play. At that time the London Telegraph described McPherson as the "finest dramatist of his generation." He directed The Seafarer both in London and on Broadway.

Play notes:

20 miles north-west of Dublin, in County Lowth, lies an ancient monument. This structure was built sometime between 5500 and 3200 BC, making it nearly 1000 years older than Stonehenge. The monument is known as Newgrange.

What is remarkable about Newgrange, though, goes far deeper than its age. Newgrange is an ancient tomb. The Irish people saw this tomb as a portal between this world and the “otherworld”, a place where the spirits of the dead could come and go at will.

At Newgrange, once every year, something amazing happens. On one day, one particular
and peculiar day, sunlight enters the tomb—through a small portal, designed for just this moment. Sunlight can only enter Newgrange on December 21—the day of the Winter Solstice—the shortest day of the year.

When Conor McPherson began work of The Seafarer, he was enchanted with the idea at play at Newgrange, namely, that light can only enter on the darkest day of the year. McPherson, a pagan, was also intrigued by the fact that this ancient celebration of life and light came so close to what Christians call Christmas. His play bridges the gap between the oldest traditions of Ireland, and the world we live in today.

It could be said that this is a play about redemption and grace. It could also be said that this is a play about drinking and playing cards. It could be said that this is a Christmas play. Conor McPherson says that this play, fundamentally, is about family. As we approach the Holiday season, I am reminded once again at how deeply intertwined all of these notions are. Perhaps, this holiday season, we can all find that little light that illuminates the Newgrange of our hearts. Perhaps The Seafarer will set us down that road.

C. Austin Hill
Dramaturge

Selected Production History:

• City Theatre, Pittsburgh, PA February, 2009
• Steppenwolf Theatre 12/08
• George Street Playhouse 2008
• Abbey Theatre in Dublin, Ireland in May 2008
• Geffen Playhouse, L.A., April 2007
• Broadway-Booth Theatre, 2007
• National Theatre, London, September 2006