'OUR FRIENDS THE ENEMY' to Play Two-Week Engagement at Lion Theatre in December

After an acclaimed run in London, the Edinburgh Fringe and two triumphant UK tours, Our Friends The Enemy, written by and starring Alex Gwyther with direction by Tom O'Brien, arrives in New York City to celebrate the holiday's for a strictly limited two week engagement at Theater Row's Lion Theatre (410 West 42nd Street). Performances run December 8th through December 20th, 2015. Tickets are $36.25 and can be purchased by visiting www.Telecharge.com.

Our Friends The Enemy is presented by David Adkin in association with NewYorkRep.

Our Friends The Enemy takes place on The Western Front during Christmas 1914, when not even a World War could destroy the soldiers Christmas spirit. Private James Boyce tells a very different kind of Christmas story, of how, on a frigid Christmas Eve of World War I, some British and German soldiers stopped their fighting and emerged from their trenches to spend Christmas together. They sang songs, exchanged gifts and even played a friendly game of soccer, Our Friends The Enemy takes us on a magical and haunting journey through the remarkable Christmas Truce.

"Our Friends The Enemy is a very relevant story of hope and humanity to which we can all relate. In the UK we grew up with this remarkable story of soldiers putting down their guns to exchange gifts and play football together on the battlefield and I am thrilled to bring this show to NYC and share it with US audiences. It is a story that we must keep alive," said producer David Adkin.

Our Friends The Enemy has been noted "A haunting and powerful work." Scottish Daily Mail; "Different and important and touching." Fringe Review; "If one of the purposes of theatre is to transport the audience into a different world, this is a perfect example of it." The Public Reviews; "Our Friends The Enemy gives an account which is unlike anything which you may have heard before. An account which is innovative and deeply affecting even in its simplicity." Broadway Baby; "Engaging and emotional" Scroobius Pip; "A strong performance and script from Gwyther, even-handed direction from O'Brien, and a timeless, deeply human message...an impressive hour of spirited drama." Everything Theatre.

Alex Gwyther (Playwright/Performer) is a published writer and spoken word artist. His poetical prose weaves down-to-earth tales of life in Britain to the poignant re-telling of the 1914 Christmas Truce during the First World War. His unique delivery and "tumbling urbane style" has seen him perform across the country at venues, festivals and events such as Oxford University, the Royal Festival Hall, Latitude Festival and The Mayor of London's Week of Peace in Trafalgar Square. Alex has been specially commissioned to write for a number of organisations, businesses and charities including: BBC Radio 1, MasterCard, Transitions Global, The Southbank Centre and The Book People. His first poetry collection was published last year on Luke Wright's Nasty Little Press. He has also been published by Burning Eye, in their 2012 anthology, Rhyming Thunder.

Tom O'Brien (Director) trained at Arts Ed, London, with Living Pictures and on the National Theatre Studio Directors course. Recent directing credits include: The Dogs Of War at The Old Red Lion (Nominated for 3 Off West End Awards), The Wedding Singer (The Lowry), Merrily We Roll Along (Crescent Theatre, Birmingham) and the 21st Anniversary Production of Philip Ridley's The Fastest Clock In The Universe which was selected to be filmed for the National Video Archive of Performance at the Victoria & Albert Museum. Further Credits Include: How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying (The Lowry), Our Friends, The Enemy (Edinburgh Festival/UK Tour), Coming Up (Soho Theatre), First and Last (Tristan Bates Theatre), Judy The Righteous(Trafalgar Studios/King's Head), Christmas is Miles Away (Hen and Chickens), Out of The Kitchen (Waterloo East). Tom has worked as an assistant director at Theatre Royal Stratford East, The Watermill Theatre and Clwyd Theatr Cymru. He is a creative projects associate at Royal & Derngate, Northampton and Artistic Director of TREMers, a London based company that produces provocative theatre that responds to the world today. tom-obrien.co.uk.