THE BEAUTY QUEEN OF LEENANE
BY MARTIN MCDONAGH
DIRECTED BY LUDA LOPATINA SOLOMON
February 23 - March 25, 2017
Athenaeum Theatre, Studio One, 2936 N. Southport Ave., Chicago
Bluebird Arts is so proud to bring this Best Play Tony Nominee to Chicago on the heels of its 20th Anniversary. As the story goes, in a small house on a big hill in County Galway, Ireland, the Folan women live out an uneasy truce. Forty-year-old Maureen and her elderly but iron-willed mother Mag spend their days in endless rounds of petty insults and physical threats as each maneuvers for control of their isolated existence. But when an old family friend reappears and offers Maureen a chance at love and a new life, this once-benign terrain grows treacherous and the two women, bound by blood but driven by desperation, will do anything to survive. The Tony Award-winning The Beauty Queen of Leenane contains the brash humor, rich language and inventive storytelling for which Martin McDonagh has been widely praised.
MEDIA
CHICAGO READER RECOMMENDED AND "BEST BET!!" "The script is a wonderful balance of contrasts, and this cast knows how to interpret them, particularly Gray and Harris, who bring out McDonagh’s hardened themes, the most poignant of which is captivity." —Matt de la Peña, Chicago Reader
Comment as seen on Matt de la Peña's, Chicago Reader Review
PERFORMINK CRITIC'S PICK!! "...the strength of performances in Bluebird Arts’ THE BEAUTY QUEEN OF LEENANE makes for an engaging and humorous evening that should not be missed." --Bec Willett, Performink.
RECOMMENDED!! "The believability of the relationships between the four character cast was incredibly compelling. Kate Harris navigates well the character of stubborn and needy matriarch Mag....Extremely emotive performances, particularly Gray’s portrayal of Maureen’s stifled frustrations of years being her mother’s caretaker....Truly, this performance will leave you stunned." --Mary Crylen, Chicago Stage Standard
RECOMMENDED!! "The Bluebird Arts production of The Beauty Queen of Leenane will fulfill your Martin McDonagh needs." --Alexis Bugajski, Picture this Post
Our 'Beauty Queen' is a HIT! But WILL CLOSE 3.25.17
The Beauty Queen of Leenane Preview with Jaimelyn Gray and Kate Harris
The Beauty Queen of Leenane Production Photos. Credit: Dave Markowski, DavdGreat Photography
Actors Jaimelyn Gray and John Wehrman interview with Windy City Irish Radio to discuss The Beauty Queen of Leenane. More about Windy City Irish Radio at windycityirishradio.com.
The Truce Ends February 23rd
PRODUCTION TEAM
Director: Luda Lopatina Solomon
Lighting and Co-Set Design: Carl Ulaszek
Co-Set Design: Caroline Grebner
Sound Designer: Cory Vincent
Costume Designer: Bisa
Fight Choreographer: Kirk Anderson
Dialect Coach: Diane Robinson, Chicago Voice Center
Marketing and Media: Rick Frederick, Jaimelyn Gray
Prop Design: Ioana Manuela Rentea
Stage Manager: Alfredo Aguilar
Technical Direction and Set Construction: Michael Zimmer
CAST
