Magdalene
Magdalene
Written and Performed by Erin Layton
Directed by Julie Kline
Erin Layton’s solo show MAGDALEN returns to FSC in an encore performance. This powerful piece is a fictional exploration of the women and children who passed through the real-life Magdalene “Laundries” in mid-twentieth century Ireland, and of the complicity of church officials in hiding their stories. Also known as Mary Magdalene’s asylums, The Magdalene Laundries of 18th – late 20th century Ireland housed “fallen” women who were, in fact, mostly young unmarried mothers. Many laundries were effectively operated as penitentiary work-houses with conditions often more severe than in prisons.
Winner, Best Documentary Script, United Solo Festival 2013.
“The highest level of performance.”
–The Public Reviews, UK
“Layton’s physical transformations are a masterclass in acting, nuanced and complete.”
–Fringe Review UK OUTSTANDING SHOW
“A tight, well-structured script… marvelous performance.”
–The Scotsman
MAGDALEN debuted at the NY International Fringe Festival in 2012 and was called “the performance of the festival” (Huffington Post), Since then, MAGDALEN has been presented at Fringe Festivals in CA, Off-Broadway, and throughout the tri-state area including venues in Westchester, the Bronx, and Long Island. In August 2015, MAGDALEN premiered internationally at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
ERIN LAYTON (Playwright/Performer) is a Brooklyn-based award-winning solo performing artist, producer and playwright. NYC acting credits include MAGDALEN (Published by Indie Theater Now, Best Documentary Script, United Solo Festival 2013/2014, NYC/Santa Cruz Fringe, 59E59 Theatres, Edinburgh Festival Fringe, shortlisted for Amnesty International Award), a two-person adaptation of THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE (Off-Broadway Alliance Nominee), LET US GO THEN, YOU AND I (Undergroundzero Theatre Festival), WEIRD SISTERS (East Third Ensemble), PITCH (East Coast Artists, LaMaMa), and PEARL MERCHANT (Threads Theatre Company). Regional acting credits include CANDLES TO THE SUN (Actors Theatre of Louisville), SALTWATER (International Theatre Collective) and St Louis Shakespeare Company. Erin is a member of The Dramatists Guild and Artists Without Walls. www.magdalentheplay.com
JULIE KLINE (Developer/Director) is a NYC-based director, actor, and writer, whose productions include world premiere plays that have toured internationally, and community-based performances that theatricalize personal stories. Julie is proud to have collaborated with Erin Layton on MAGDALEN (Edinburgh Festival Fringe and theaters across the US) and IMMIGRANTS(Lyth Arts Centre, Scotland), and to have directed Franklin Stage Company’s production of DOUBT. Other directing credits include: RAISING JO (Theater Row), BOMBSHELL OF RHYTHM (Soho Playhouse), and JANE (Rattlestick Playwrights Theater), a benefit reading starring Cynthia Nixon, Ana Gasteyer, Monique Coleman, and Kathy Najimy. She has guest directed at Long Island University Brooklyn, NYU Tisch, and DePaul’s Theater School. Julie is also a practitioner and national trainer in creative aging (arts education for older adults) and creator of SENIORS AND THE CITY, an oral history theater project supported by NYC’s Department of Cultural Affairs and Department of the Aging. She was an inaugural grantee of the Victor/Weiss Cultural Entrepreneur Fund, awarded by the Brooklyn Arts Council for outstanding women arts leaders in the borough, and is an alumni of The Theater School/DePaul University in Chicago. www.juliekline.com
SHOWTIMES
Friday, July 25 @7:30 pm
Saturday, July 26 @7:30 pm
Sunday, July 27 @5:00 pm
Performance is approximately 80 minutes with no intermission.
Please arrive on time. Latecomers will be seated at the discretion of house management.
General Seating
FREE ADMISSION
Franklin Stage Company is an admission-free theater that depends on the generosity of our audience and donors. The suggested donation is $25/seat, but whatever donation you can afford, you are welcome here.