The Weir: A Play in a Pub

Our frequent readers know that I am a sucker for immersive theater. Yes, I love seeing plays in theaters big and small, but if audience and orchestra alike are forced to navigate the halls of the Basilica of Saint Mary for an opera, I will be smitten with that production. If theater goers are seated on poolside bleachers for the duration of a play, I might complain about a sore butt out of one side of my mouth, but you’re much more likely to hear me talk about the reverb and the smell of chlorine and that last splash when two actors hit the water as one. Whenever a play is performed in an unconventional locale – especially when that choice is made because the play is set in a similar location – I need to see that play.

So, it should come as no surprise that my interest was immediately piqued when I heard that this August, Out of the Mist Celtic Theatre is producing The Weir at two local pubs (Sweeney’s Saloon and The Local). Theater president Lissa Miller and director Michelle Schwantes were kind enough to tell me about Out of the Mist Celtic Theatre in addition to explaining what makes The Weir so special, leaving me more excited than ever to share this production with our readers.

Out of the Mist Celtic Theatre

Out of the Mist Celtic Theatre was formed in 2019 when The Celtic Collaborative, which was founded in 2011, decided to prioritize the performing arts and rebranded as a theater company. Miller explains further, “Out of the Mist Celtic Theatre has had several incarnations but the most recent, post-pandemic creation has centered on full length plays. We select plays that balance our season between standards and new material, always focusing on Celtic playwrights.” In the last two years, the company has staged plays by Oscar Wilde, Laura Lundgren Smith, Oliver Goldsmith, Marina Carr, and more.

The stories and storytellers that Out of the Mist Celtic Theatre feature reflect the hardships inherent to the human experience, always told through a Celtic lens. “In many ways, Celtic peoples have turned to literature as a manner of navigating trauma and maintaining cultural traditions,” says Schwantes. “Out of the Mist Celtic Theatre strives to explore the intersectionality of history, class, culture, religion, gender, trauma, imperialism, and poverty through the unique lens of Celtic literary tradition.”

The Weir

The Weir takes place in an Irish Pub much like the Local or Sweeney’s Saloon. A group of men sidle up to the bar one by one. After some casual gossip, they pivot to their best supernatural stories, clearly trying to make an impression on the young woman at the bar who has newly moved from Dublin. Little do they know that she has a haunting story of her own.

Conor McPherson is the award-winning, Irish playwright who penned The Weir, for which he received the Laurence Olivier award for “Best New Play”. “Conor McPherson is a unique contemporary playwright in that he focuses firstly on telling a good story. His characters are relatable, and we recognize pieces of ourselves reflected back towards us,” muses Schwantes. “McPherson possesses the incredible gift of entertaining and engaging an audience at the same time.”

The Weir is a prime example of that balance. “One of our actors has described the play as ‘a slice of life play in a country far away that expresses drama that could happen at any backyard party in Minnesota,’” says Miller.

“At its heart, this is a story about the nature of haunting,” Schwantes says. “This takes many forms. The ghosts are ever-present: the dead, the lost, the forgotten. These characters are haunted by their loved ones, regret, and the weight of history itself.”

That is not to say that the production is overwhelmingly dark, though. Schwantes continues, “In this pub, they find hope and community. Here they can crack jokes and laugh at the darkness, eternally hovering just beyond the comforting glow of the peat fire. They are lonely, but they are not alone.”

Blurring the Line Between Audience and Actor

“Our choice to present The Weir in an Irish pub was a natural extension of the play itself,” says Miller. “Pub staff will blend with our cast and serve our audience food and beverage throughout the show. Live music prior to the performance will invite people to socialize, order dinner, and even dance. The actors will mingle with the audience and include them in the story telling.”

Schwantes agrees. “What better way to engage these unique characters, but in their natural habitat?” she asks. “This immersive type of theatre allows you to fully experience the world of the show in a natural way. The traditional barriers between audience and actor have been removed. You can have a drink with the characters, truly experience the dynamics of storytelling, and engage with a show on your own terms.”

Tickets are $20, non-inclusive of dinner and drinks, and can be reserved ahead of time on the theater’s website, listed below. Tickets will be sold at the door if the show hasn’t sold out, but seating is limited (50 seats at the Local and 40 at Sweeney’s), so booking ahead of time is recommended. Both restaurants will be ready for theater goers an hour and a half before showtime so you can settle in with a meal and the provided live music before the show begins. Drinks are available throughout the evening.

As a note, entering Sweeney’s does require using a staircase, so patrons with mobility concerns might prefer to see the show at the Local.

Schwantes hopes that audience members leave with more than just leftovers to munch on. “I enjoy creating works that serve as a starting point for discussion; that do not provide an easy answer or promote my personal opinion, but rather present an experience that engages audiences to laugh, to think, to discuss, and to learn,” says Schwantes. “I firmly trust our audiences to arrive at their own conclusions.”

Come for the delicious feeling of eavesdropping on a conversation just down the bar from you. Come for the music. Come for the food and drinks. Come for the ghost stories. But most of all, come for a piece of modern Irish theater that will keep your group chatting into the wee hours about life and the supernatural while you pick at a dwindling basket of fish and chips and sip on the final dregs of whatever filled your pint glass.

Performances at the Local in Minneapolis (931 Nicollet Mall, Minneapolis, MN 55402) are as follows:

Aug. 23 at 7:30 PM
Aug. 24 at 7:30 PM
Aug. 25 at 2:00 PM

Performances at Sweeney’s Saloon (96 Dale St. N., St Paul, MN 55102) are as follows:

Aug 29 at 7:30 PM
Aug 31 at 7:30 PM
Sept 1 at 2:00 PM

outofthemistceltictheatre.com