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- Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Valley&State Backpage O&E Sports Archives Classifieds Faith&Beliefs Obituaries Revels September 30, 2004 The 'Beauty' of Oregon Stage Works The Beauty Queen of Leenane" opens at 8 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 30, at Oregon Stage Works in Ashland's A Street Market Place. Martin McDonagh's prize-winning drama limns the joys, sorrows, laughter and menace of life in the forbidding landscape of western Ireland. A Londoner just 24 at the time, McDonagh rocketed to fame when the dark comedy had its premiere in Galway's tiny Druid Theatre and later moved to London's West End. The play depicts the bitter conflict between a woman teetering on the edge of middle age and her adder-tongued mother. The wit and rhythms of McDonagh's dialogue was a hit with audiences on both sides of the Atlantic. A New York production won four Tony Awards, including one for best drama. By the ripe old age of 27, McDonagh, who cultivates a bad boy image, had four plays simultaneously on London stages. His plays combine manic energy and physical violence in a way that is both hilarious and shocking. According to one London critic, "McDonagh's treatment of rural life in Ireland is not especially reverential." Bruce Hostetler, who directed OSW's recent reading of "Nickel and Dimed," will direct. He served three seasons as an assistant producer for the Oregon Shakespeare Festival and mounted "Driving Miss Daisy" for Actors� Theatre. He has taught at Carnegie Mellon, and the University of California at Santa Cruz. Heading the cast is Caroline Shaffer, whose last OSW appearance was in the reading of "Nickel and Dimed." She has worked with many regional theaters, including three seasons with OSF, where this season she understudied roles in "The Royal Family" and "Humble Boy." She staged "The Weir" and "Panama" for OSW. Brandy Carson will take on her fourth role with OSW. After a career in television and film in Los Angeles and New York, she acted in "Inspecting Carol," "Lettice and Lovage" and the recent "Waiting for Godot." Cast member Shad Willingham is completing his second year at OSF. This year he was seen in "The Visit" and "Much Ado about Nothing." Willingham has acted frequently on television. Rounding out the cast is Colin Mullane, an Ashland resident making his acting debut. Born in Limerick, Ireland, Mullane studied business. During rehearsals for OSW's "The Weir," he was pressed into service as a dialect coach to make sure the players in that comedy sounded like Galway boyos. "Beauty Queen of Leenane" will run at 8 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays and 2 p.m. Sundays through Nov. 7. Tickets are $15 at Grocery Outlet in Medford and the Music Coop in Ashland. Call 482-2334. Previews (held Monday and Wednesday, Sept. 27 and 29) are $10. DailyTidings.com Home Page Valley&State | Backpage | O&E | Sports | Archives | Weather | Classifieds Columnists | Faith&Beliefs | Obituaries | Revels | Subscribe | Contact Us Copyright 2004 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers All Rights Reserved Click Here Site Search: .:Advertisements:. RESOURCES - Mail Tribune News - ODOT Road Cams