Outside Mullingar

In a wee village in rural Ireland, two middle-aged souls take forever to realize they are meant for each other. This is the premise of "Outside Mullingar," the charming play that is now receiving its regional premiere at Watertower Theatre in Addison.

Everyone on stage and in the audience except Anthony realize that he and Rosemary belong together. Friends in childhood but only nodding acquaintances in church as middle-aged adults, both display a fierce Irish stubbornness.

Both Anthony's widower father and Rosemary's widowed mother know their adult children belong together. Both are elderly and near the end of their lives and worry that their adult children are too stubborn to see what is obvious to them.

Rosemary has been in love with Anthony all her life and is getting frustrated that Anthony doesn't have a clue. Or does he?

Despite telegraphing the ending of the short drama, playwright John Patrick Shanley manages to amaze the audience with two sweet, poetic and romantic aha moments that you won't see coming. These moments elevate "Outside Mullingar" from a good simple play to a simply great play.

Shanley has mined the middle-aged love story before. He won an Oscar for the screenplay for "Moonstruck." But "Outside Mullingar" has a rougher edge than "Moonstruck" and despite the common central love story, the two stories feel completely different.

Jeremy Schwartz is amazing as Anthony and Watertower vet Jessica Cavanagh is both fierce and vulnerable as Rosemary. Big props go to Cavanagh (and dialect coach Anne Schilling) for her surprising Irish brogue that she never drops once.

Rosemary's mother Aoife is the play's weakest drawn character but Gail Cronauer gives a memorable performance. But it's John S. Davies who nearly steals the show as Anthony's father. Davies plays the father as the archetypal crotchety old man but shows surprising depth and poignancy in his big scene in the middle of the play.

Michael Sullivan's set design perfectly drops us into a much lived in country cottage. The blend of isolated clutter and sparseness works well for the play. Rene Moreno directs.

"Outside Mullingar" only runs 90 minutes with no intermission but those 90 minutes are well worth your time.

"Outside Mullingar" runs through June 26 at Watertower Theatre, 15650 Addison Road in Addison. For information or tickets, call 972-450-6232 or visit [email protected]