Misterman, the Galway Arts Festival and Landmark co-production, came to a close in New York yesterday, following a highly successful run and much critical acclaim.
The play enjoyed such success that two additional performances had to be added due to the overwhelming demand for tickets. The show marked Cillian Murphy’s New York stage debut and was staged in St Ann’s Warehouse theatre.
“It’s been an honour to present Enda Walsh’s Misterman,” said St Ann’s artistic director Susan Feldman. “Night after night, the brilliant Cillian Murphy moved the audience to stunned silence followed by standing ovations as the intensity of his epic performance sank in.
“Working with Galway Arts Festival and Landmark Productions to bring Misterman to New York has been so gratifying. I hope this will be the first of many collaborations among our organisations.”
The play has received great acclaim during its run with Scott Brown in The New York Magazine describing Murphy as, “a remarkably labile performer powered by a strange and luminous inner violence…Murphy’s unstoppable force is the closest you’ll get to time-travel on a stage, or anywhere on this plane of reality.”
Entertainment Weekly praised Murphy’s, “mesmerising, bravura solo performance” describing Walsh and Murphy “as the perfect pairing of unorthodox playwright and fearless actor”.
The New York Post described Misterman as "A harrowing trip through a doomsday of the mind.” Vogue wrote, “Cillian Murphy gives a blazing, not-to-be-missed performance…single-handedly conjuring up a kind of small-town Irish Walpurgisnacht.”
“The festival is delighted with the reception Misterman received from both audiences and critics in New York,” said Galway Arts Festival chief executive John Crumlish. “It was a privilege to be there on opening night and see the reaction to the production.
“All those involved with the festival and all those who support the festival should take credit for making that night possible. In particular I would like to thank Culture Ireland and the Arts Council who have been key in helping us get the production to New York.”
