Billy Roche's Amphibians will make their American debut Sept. 17-Oct. 24 in a joint production with San Francisco's New Conservatory Theatre and the D.E.O. Ireland Theatre Company.

On St. Martin's Eve when "no fishing boat shall sail," Amphibians finds the small village of Wexford, Ireland, so strapped by economic strife that all the fishermen except one have left the sea for factory work. Eagle, the last one to leave the sea and tied to the old traditions of the town, decides to revive an old rite of passage for his son Isaac. He must spend a night alone on an uninhabited island.

Roche, born in Wexford and currently residing there, is the author of the three play Wexford trilogy, A Handful of Stars, Poor Beast in the Rain and Belfry. A former writer in residence at London's Bush Theatre, he is currently under commission to write for both the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal Court.

Tickets are $18-$16 and are available by calling the New Conservatory box office at (415) 861-8972. The New Conservatory Theatre is located at 25 Van Ness Avenue near Market.

-- By Christine Ehren