The USA is continuing its love affair with Druid Theatre by giving standing ovations and rave reviews to the Galway company’s productions of The Cripple of Inishmaan and Penelope.
The Cripple of Inishmaan by Martin McDonagh and Penelope by Enda Walsh have played to capacity audiences this week in Chicago’s Shakespeare Theatre and Washington DC’s Studio Theatre.
Among the many positive reviews for The Cripple was The Chicago Sun Times verdict that it “may very well be McDonagh’s finest play, or at least this Druid production makes you believe it is””.
The review went on to say: “Put the words of an Irish playwright (and in this case he is Martin McDonagh ), into the mouths of his most gifted thespian brethren (the uncannily brilliant actors of the Druid Theatre Company of Galway, Ireland, and their masterful director, Garry Hynes ), and a certain thrilling magic is sure to happen.”
Enda Walsh and Druid’s artistic director Garry Hynes were in Washington DC for the opening night of Penelope, as was An Taoiseach Enda Kenny who also met the cast after the show.
Ms Hynes was also a guest of Irish Ambassador Michael Collins at a special reception to honour the Taoiseach and his wife Fionnuala at the Ambassador’s residence.
The Washington Post called Penelope a “snarling, mesmerising howl of a black comedy” and continued by saying, “the production is a 90-minute wrangle with some captivating metaphors, a match of verbal wit that compels you to wonder anew at what we’ve all been put here to accomplish
