The original construction will be performed in the 46-seat W. Scott McLucas Theatre (the troupe's basement studio space) and runs concurrently with Bernard Shaw's Mrs. Warren's Profession, which plays Irish Repertory Theatre's Main Stage on West 22nd Street. The Shaw plays also starts performances Dec. 9.

"From the American Civil War to the trenches of World War I to the warm glow of an Irish country Christmas, The Bells of Christmas expresses the pleasure and poignancy of the holiday season," according to IRT. "The performance features passages from the works of acclaimed authors Hugh Leonard, Frank O'Connor and Henry Williamson and poems by the great Longfellow, Yeats, Kavanagh and Heaney, all interwoven with a medley of Yuletide carols, music and narratives that evoke a longing for home and hearth."

Arranged and directed by Ciarán O'Reilly with set design by Jean Moore and lighting design by Paul Jones, the production will feature Clo Bowyer (Playboy of the Western World), Keith Merrill (North Carolina Theatre's Camelot), Jay Lusteck (Beowulf) and Julie Price (The Sound of Music), with musical direction by Mary Feinsineur.

Performances of The Bells of Christmas are Wednesday– Saturday at 8 PM. Matinees are Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday at 3 PM. Additional performances are scheduled on Dec. 20 at 8 PM and Dec. 27 at 8 PM; no performance at 8 PM on Dec. 24. There will be no 3 PM performance on Dec. 25.

Tickets are $35 and can be purchased by calling The Irish Repertory Theatre box office (132 West 22nd Street) at (212) 727-2737. For more information, visit www.irishrep.org.