Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, September 27, 1995 TAG: 9509270023
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-2 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: ADRIANNE BEE STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG LENGTH: Medium
Lughnasa is celebrated as a two-day festival beginning July 31 to mark the beginning of the grain harvest, the first harvest of the traditional year. In ancient times the Celtic tribes met during Lughnasa to arrange marriages, gather news, settle arguments and hold sporting events.
It is named after Lugh, the Celtic god of wisdom and illumination. At this festival the first corn is cut, baked into a loaf, and offered to the Mother Earth.
The play portrays the familial relationships of five Irish sisters in 1936 as seen through the remembrances of their now-grown nephew, Michael. He sees his maiden aunts not as "old maids," but as ripe fruit at the peak of their maturity.
Faced with their own mortality, the women and Michael come to accept the cycles of life, including moments of celebration, desire, longing, exploration and rage. Their experiences are heightened by music from an unreliable wireless radio and the traditional festivities of the autumnal Lughnasa season. The play explores the breach between what seems to be and what is and calls for a spiritual transformation of our everyday life.
Friel's work is largely based in fact. Friel, a native of Northern Ireland, created "Lughnasa" based on five sisters who lived in the town of Glenties. One of those sisters was his mother, and like in the play, he does have an uncle who was a missionary in Africa. Friel has four aunts with the same names as the characters in the play, and their individual stories are very similar to what he has written in "Lughnasa."
The inspiration for "Lughnasa" came from sharing family stories with a friend who suggested Friel write about his experiences.
Friel received a 1992 Tony Award for Best Play, the Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Broadway Play and the New York Drama Critics Circle Award for "Lughnasa."
Performances will be held in Squires Studio Theater, Thursday-Saturday, at 8 p.m., Sunday at 2 p.m. and Oct. 3-7, at 8 p.m.
Ticket reservations may be made through the Squires Ticket Office at 231-5615. Admission prices are $8 for the general public and $6 for students and senior citizens. For more information, call the Division of Performing Arts at 231-5200.
by CNB