Stage Door News
Stage Door News
The Toronto Irish Players will present Midden, the Toronto premiere of the acclaimed play by Morna Regan, February 21-23, February 28-March 2, March 7-9 at 8 p.m. and February 24 and March 3 at 2 p.m., at the Alumnae Theatre, 70 Berkeley Street, Toronto. Tickets to the Opening Night and Reception (beginning at 7 p.m.) are $50. All other performances are $20 for regular adult tickets, $18 for students and seniors, with a PWYC performance on February 28 (suggested minimum of $10). For tickets and information, call 416-440-2888 or order on-line at torontoirishplayers.com.
Midden is the moving and funny story of three generations of women. Ruth has deserted her fiancé and run back to Derry after 15 years building a fashion business in America. On the eve of launching a branch in her home town, she looks for approval and assurance from her mother, her sister and her beloved but unstable grandmother, as old family grudges and deeply buried secrets are unearthed and brought to light. By definition, a midden is a domestic burial mound and, in common Irish usage, it’s a heap of refuse; in the play, it’s a metaphor for the layers of family history, fragments of memory, emotion and lies. Midden was first produced in 2001 by Rough Magic for the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and went on to be produced often in Ireland, Scotland and England, winning numerous awards.
The cast features Lucy Farrell as prodigal daughter Ruth; Barbara Taylor as her mother, Dolores; Cliona Kenny as Ruth’s grandmother, Dophie, whose fading and confused memories dredge up the past; Sharon Taylor (Barbara’s own daughter) as Ruth’s under-appreciated sister Aileen, and Jennifer Hough as Ruth’s boisterous business partner, Mabs McGinty. The play is directed by Maureen Lukie (who has directed James Joyce’s The Dead, Moonshine and Red Roses and Petrol for TIP), but all of the women bring extensive stage experience to the table in a strong collaborative relationship. Sharon Taylor is also producing the play.
The Toronto Irish Players, established in 1975, have just been named Irish Person of the Year by the Irish Person of the Year Selection Committee and Ireland Canada Chamber of Commerce for their contribution to Irish culture in Canada.
2013-01-22
Toronto: Toronto Irish Players premiere “Midden” by Morna Regan February 21-March 9