The Lonesome West

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Book cover
Book cover

The Lonesome West is a play by contemporary Irish playwright Martin McDonagh, part of his Connemara trilogy, which includes The Beauty Queen of Leenane and A Skull in Connemara. All three plays depict the shocking and violent goings-on in the non fictitious Western Ireland town of Leenane.

The Lonesome West features the constantly arguing brothers Coleman and Valene, whose father has just died in a shotgun "accident." Only Father Welsh, the alcoholic parish priest, attempts to fix their relationship, but his advice mostly goes unheard.

The play premiered in 1997 at the Druid Theatre Company in Galway, in a co-production with the Royal Court Theatre. The same four actors also appeared in the 1999 Broadway production, at the Lyceum Theatre. Brían F. O'Byrne played Valene, Maelíosa Stafford played Coleman, David Ganly played Father Welsh, and Dawn Bradfield played Girleen. Garry Hynes directed all three productions.

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Works by Martin McDonagh
The Leenane Trilogy: The Beauty Queen of Leenane | A Skull in Connemara | The Lonesome West
The Aran Islands Trilogy: The Cripple of Inishmaan | The Lieutenant of Inishmore | The Banshees of Inisheer
Other Plays: The Pillowman
Films: Six Shooter