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It’s no secret among producers: Matthew Broderick means good box office. The mousy actor’s celebrity has kept many a production afloat, especially when he’s paired with Nathan Lane’s (such as in It’s Only a Play). For Broderick’s newest stage project, however, you won’t have to pay Broadway prices. In fact, you won’t have to pay Off Broadway prices (which are nearly as ridiculous). The Irish Repertory Theatre is opening its renovated space at 132 West 22nd Street with a great deal called 24 for $24. If you’re quick, you can get $24 tickets to any preview performance of Shining City (May 17 through June 8), in which Broderick stars. Get them here.
So the marquee name and the price point sound good, but let me put in a word for the play itself. This is a terrific drama by Conor McPherson, one of my favorite playwrights, last seen on Broadway at the Biltmore Theatre in 2006. It concerns a widower (Broderick) and a priest-turned-therapist he visits to deal with guilt following the violent death of his wife. It’s an eerie yet humane piece about ghosts, regret, forgiveness and healing. If you don’t know McPherson’s work, this is a great place to start. His last New York premiere was The Night Alive, presented at the Atlantic Theater Company. The Irish Rep has done right by McPherson’s older plays in recent seasons, with smashing revivals of The Weir and Port Authority. We certainly look forward to seeing this revival, and dearly hope that Broderick gets his Dublin brogue down by first preview.