**Artistic Nerds 4 Theatre Inclusivity (ANTI) presents its spring production: Outside Mullingar, directed by UC Berkeley student Olivia Freidenreich and play written by John Patrick Shanley.**

This stunning one-act play, presented on the Durham Studio stage, centers on two neighboring families in rural Ireland who are finding their way through heartbreak and change. In Shanley’s brilliant portrayal of loss and yearning in this deeply moving and surprisingly hilarious story, we discover that it is never too late to take a chance on love.

One weekend only! Opening Night: Thursday, April 18th, 2024 at 8 PM. Friday, April 19th, 8PM: pay-what-you-can. Closing Night: Saturday, April 20th, 2024 at 8PM. Don't miss it!

Run Time: approx 100 minutes, no intermission. No late seating.

Open-seating – arrive early! Box office/lobby opens at 7 pm. House opens at 7:30 pm.

Crowdfunding donations

We are accepting donations for this performance to help bring this production to life. Donations will go towards

play rights (allows actors and production team – all students – to gain experience performing a professionally written play)
scenic elements and props
costumes

Any donations big or small is greatly appreciated!

Ticket Pricing:

Student tickets: $10 (for any student enrolled in a university or college and students ages 18 and below)

Non-student ticket: $15

Pay-as-you-can performance on Friday April 19th @ 8 PM:
A.N.T.I is committed to making theatre spaces more inclusive not only for performers and creatives, but also for audience members. We recognize how historically theatre spaces have systematically prevented certain groups from gaining fair access to these spaces. Thus we are reserving seats sold at "pay-as-you-can" rates for select performances this season specifically to ensure that ALL community members are able to experience this production without unjust financial burdens. Suggested donation is $1-$20. Any contribution helps make this and future productions possible.

CLICK THE "DONATE & TICKETS" BUTTON TO PURCHASE TICKETS OR DONATE TO SUPPORT THE PRODUCTION

Tickets can also be bought at the door, but space is limited so online ticket purchase is recommended!

We appreciate your support!

Return to this page next week for more information on casting and insights into the rehearsal process.

This production is proudly sponsored by the University of California Berkeley's Theater, Dance & Performance Studies department.

BEHIND-THE-SCENES

Riya Borde (she/her) Meet our Dialect Coach!

How did you get into dialect coaching?

I have always been fascinated with accents and dialects, and I noticed I had a pretty good ear for them from a young age. I spent a lot of time as a child obsessively consuming media and literature on how to do different accents for my personal enjoyment. Somewhere along the way, I picked up the tips and tricks that apply to learning any accent! I'm constantly learning new ways to teach different dialects, developing sound dictionaries for each accent and sourcing media to help actors understand the tone and personality of a dialect. I'm so glad Liv trusted me with this project, not only because the Mullingar accent is so much fun, but also because it's an opportunity for me to continue to hone my skills!

What aspects of the Mullingar dialect did you have to focus on specifically with this cast?

My biggest objective with this project was ensuring that the actors were able to develop accents that were precise and clean, without becoming caricaturish or overdrawn. We wanted to use the Mullingar dialect in a way that honored the culture of the play and its characters, so maintaining a respectful accuracy was crucial. The Mullingar accent has some similarities to the American accent that all the actors have. While that can be helpful to establish a baseline to work from, it can also pose its own challenges! I worked with actors to develop accurate "anchor sounds," or sounds that are distinct from their native accent that help them form a skeleton for the Mullingar accent. I then helped them fill in this skeleton with additional changes to vowel and consonant sounds so they could maintain their own personality and style, and implement their acting choices, while still producing an understandable accent.

How do you take individual characters into account when coaching dialects?

When developing dialects for Outside Mullingar, I considered the age and upbringing of each character. All the characters were raised in Mullingar, but every dialect changes with time. A character like Tony, who is older and spent his whole life farming in rural Mullingar, would speak in a rougher and more regionally accented dialect. In contrast, someone like Rosemary, who is fascinated by other cultures and is likely well-educated, would have a more modern accent with influences from other areas of Ireland.

What musical genres and artists did you and Ryan draw from to inspire the music in this production?

Our musical inspiration for Outside Mullingar started with the old Irish tune “Wild Mountain Thyme” which is included in the script. From there we explored traditional Irish session tunes, Celtic folk, and some American Irish folk.

Audience may be surprised to see the bigger role that music plays in A.N.T.I's production of "Outside Mullingar". How do you think music enriches this production's telling of the "Outside Mullingar" story?

Music can make us feel nostalgic and connected to each other like nothing else. Watching the characters share “Wild Mountain Thyme” invites us into their world.

ABOUT Artistic Nerds 4 Theatre Inclusivity(A.N.T.I.)

The vision behind A.N.T.I. is much broader than just providing a performance space to promote inclusivity. We stand to create an atypical platform for performances, allowing for students to create more devised or individual pieces, politically-charged or focused performances, and non-traditional classic theatre productions. From breaking gender roles in casting, to pushing away racial stereotypes, to even developing minority-based perspectives, A.N.T.I. strives to promote what a theatre company for actionable social change to the existing problems within the theatre industry can look like. While our goal for supporting inclusivity is related to many departments and clubs on campus, A.N.T.I. is different because our primary goal is to be inclusive and to create a theatre company on campus that specifically and primarily focuses on promoting the recognition of an individual's artistry, whether it be identity-based, politically-focused, or just artistic expression.

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Email: artisticnerds089@gmail.com

ANTI Presents: Outside Mullingar

By Artistics Nerds 4 Theatre Inclusivity

ANTI Presents: Outside Mullingar

Directed by Olivia Freidenreich, Written by John Patrick Shanley