Performances were to have started Jan. 15 but were delayed due to a family emergency in the cast. The new opening night is Feb. 1, following previews. John Tillinger directs at Irish Repertory Theatre, 132 W. 22nd St.
The play won the Irish Times Award for Best New Play. It's billed as "a hilarious and heartbreaking portrait of good times gone bad. As Breda (Byrne) plans a night out with her husband Billy (O'Reilly), she has no clue that he has other plans…with another woman."
Byrne's recent New York appearances include Molly Sweeney (Roundabout), Dancing at Lughnasa (Broadway), Aristocrats (Lincoln Center Festival) and Wonderful Tennessee. She trained at the Abbey School of Acting and joined the Irish Theatre Company, where she worked for three years. Byrne then joined the Abbey Company and played in Hamlet, Da, Tarry Flynn, The Cherry Orchard, The Merchant of Venice, Sive, A Whistle in the Dark and The Field.
Most recently, she appeared in The Plough and the Stars in London’s West End. Ciarán O'Reilly was last seen on the Irish Rep stage as Danny Mann in The Colleen Bawn. He has appeared at the Abbey Theatre in Dublin and made his Broadway debut in The Corn is Green. His many Off-Broadway credits include two productions of The Shadow of a Gunman; Brendan Behan's The Hostage; Hugh Leonard's Da, Summer and The Au Pair Man.
As an actor, playwright O'Brien has worked with Storytellers, Corn Exchange, Bickerstaffe, Calypso, Barnstorm, Loose Canon and Glasshouse theatre companies. He appeared in the Abbey Theatre production of Tarry Flynn, which toured to the Royal National Theatre, London. His film and television work includes "Trojan Eddie," "Durango," "A Secret Affair," "Soap," "Life in the Fast Lane," "The Birthday," "Bite to Eat," "Ballykissangel," "DDU" and "Fair City." He has written two monologues, America 87 and Checking for Squirrels, both produced by Black Box Theatre Company. Tillinger's most recent directing credits include Say Goodnight Gracie, Tea at Five, Judgment at Nuremberg, Night Must Fall, Getting and Spending, What the Butler Saw (London), Love Letters (London), House and Garden, Comic Potential, Dealer's Choice, Sylvia and A Perfect Ganesh.
For more information, call (212) 727-2737 or visit www.irishrep.org.
