W&L Presents Screening of the West End’s ‘The Playboy of the Western World’ The Oct. 20 screening brings John Millington Synge’s Irish dark comedy to modern audiences.

Nicola Coughlan in The Playboy of the Western World at the National Theatre. (c) Marc Brenner

Editor’s Note: This release was written by Lam Ha Nguyen ’28 for W&L’s Lenfest Center for the Arts.

The Lenfest Center at Washington and Lee University continues its National Theatre Live series with a screening of “The Playboy of the Western World” at 7 p.m. on Oct. 20 in Stackhouse Theater in Elrod Commons.

The screening of “The Playboy of the Western World” is the next installment of the Lenfest Center’s Outreach & Engagement (O&E) series. Tickets are required and available online or in person at the Lenfest Box Office.

John Millington Synge’s dark comedy sparked controversy when it premiered at the Abbey Theater in Dublin in January 1907, causing riots and protests among nationalist audiences who felt insulted by the Irish portrayals in the play. However, the work is considered an important piece within the Irish Literary Revival movement, having influenced many writers of that period and is now celebrated for Synge’s lyrical use of Hiberno-English (Irish English, influenced by Gaelic).

“The Playboy of the Western World” is set on the west coast of Ireland during the early 1900s and follows the character of Christy Mahon, a young man who stumbles into a local pub and claims to have killed his father. The villagers are quickly captivated by Christy’s story and make him a hero, but when Christy’s father shows up alive, he must find a way to live up to his myths. Featuring Nicola Coughlan, Éanna Hardwicke and Siobhán McSweeney, the play explores themes of identity, heroism, self-discovery and the power of storytelling.

Directed by Caitríona McLaughlin and filmed live from the Lyttelton Theater on London’s West End during its 2025 run, this production brings Synge’s dark comedy to a modern audience while preserving the play’s distinctive language, humor and social commentary.

Order your tickets online today or call the Lenfest Center box office at 540-458-8000 for ticket information. Box office hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. The cost is $20 for general admission and $8 for W&L students.

W&L’s National Theatre Live series features screenings of six top British theater productions, connecting university knowledge and art experiences on the W&L campus and beyond to the local community in a mutually beneficial partnership. Most recently, “All My Sons” was screened on Sept. 22; future screenings from the series include “Les Liaisons Dangereuses” on Nov. 10 and “The Misanthrope” on Jan. 12.

The National Theatre Live performances are sponsored in part by the Class of 1964 Performing Arts Fund.

For a full list of performances, visit the Lenfest Center’s website.