-Brenda Hillegas
photo by Ashley Smith of Wide Eyed Studios
The pub was packed on Sunday afternoon as Philly theatre-goers stopped in to witness a brand-new adaptation of J.M. Synge’s The Playboy of the Western World.
Inis Nua Theatre Company, Philadelphia’s home for contemporary productions from Ireland, England, Scotland and Wales, presents a modern day version of this play- which first premiered in 1907- by Nigerian playwright Bisi Adigun (founder of Ireland’s only African theatre company) and Irish writer Roddy Doyle. With the intimate setting of The Drake’s Proscenium Theater, you’ll feel like a fly on the wall as the intense story unfolds.
In this new version, set in Dublin around present day, Nigerian refugee Christopher Malomo (Moboluwaji Ademide Akintilo) arrives to who arrives at the pub owned by Michael (Tony Lawton). Pegeen (Taylor Congdon) is closing up and attempting to send her dull finance home (played by Michael Stahler). Suddenly, the late evening becomes much more exciting to everyone still in the bar as Christopher tells the gripping story of why he escaped to Dublin. The bar crew offers him a job and safety… until the rest of the town, including a group of young ladies and a recent widow, find out why he’s here and they all want a piece of him!
As other characters enter and truths are uncovered, The Playboy of the Western World becomes an “edge of your seat” production and you won’t be sure where the story is headed next! When act 1 ends, you’ll likely be tempted to sit back, exhale, and wish you could pour yourself a pint of Guinness from the set’s working taps (you can’t, but you can purchase drinks in the lobby to bring in)! Christopher Haig‘s set design is flawless, almost as if the Drake always had this run-down pub hidden behind a door somewhere.
Inis Nua is one of my favorite theatres in Philly. Every single production the past few seasons has wowed me. But The Playboy of the Western World is an excellent way to kick off the 2024-2025 season, and I cannot wait to see how they could possibly top it.
Tickets: https://inisnuatheatre.org/show/playboy-western-world
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