Fringe Hit CIARA to be Presented as Finale of Traverse Theatre's 50th Year, December 3-21

Ciara, the award-winning monologue written by acclaimed playwright David Harrower (Blackbird, Knives in Hens), especially for one of Scotland's finest actresses Blythe Duff, is to be revived this Christmas. After capturing audiences' imaginations and winning Fringe Firstand Herald Angel Awards during its sell-out Festival run, the play has been chosen as the swansong for the Traverse's 50th anniversary year.

Orla O'Loughlin, Artistic Director comments "We are delighted to welcome back David Harrower's Ciara this Christmas, after its extraordinarily successful Festival run earlier this year. Starring the inimitable Blythe Duff, this co-production with Datum Point was the jewel in the Traverse's crown this August, and its revival will be a fitting end to a fantastic anniversary year."

The production will once again be directed by award-winning Traverse Artistic Director Orla O'Loughlin, designed by Anthony Lamble, with lighting and sound by Philip Gladwell and Daniel Padden.

Ciara's father Mick kept her as his treasure. His hidden treasure. He wanted his only daughter shielded from what he did. Now Mick is dead and his legacy, so bound up in the landscape of Glasgow, that infamous mean city, must be faced.

As Ciara builds her own empire with an art gallery, her world starts to shake. Marked by the deep contradictions of her father, the art world and the city that made them all, Ciara stands on a threshold. By facing the past, her future blows wide open. Ciara explores a world by turns, terrifying and exhilarating. An epic story for our times.

The actor-writer team achieved great acclaim for their 2012 collaboration Good With People, a Traverse Theatre Company production which toured to New York City to five-star rave reviews following a sell-out run in Edinburgh. Delighted to be back at the Traverse, Blythe Duff comments "Performing in the Traverse during the Festival, with an award-winning, critically acclaimed show is everything you could wish for as an actor. To have an opportunity to perform Ciara again is really exciting. I enjoy revisiting work, and Ciara still keeps me hanging on her every word. It's almost like spending some time with a close friend."

"Wry humour, pure tragedy and utterly compelling lyrical narrative" ~The Scotsman

"David Harrower might just have written his finest work yet" ~The Herald

"A complex and rewarding dramatic monologue" ~ The Independent

Booking on www.traverse.co.uk.

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