HOW TO CATCH A LEPRECHAUN Premieres December 12 at Keegan Theatre

Keegan Theatre is proud to present our first main stage family programming production: the delightful new children's musical, How to Catch a Leprechaun, by local playwrights Mario Baldessari and Ethan Slater. Based on the familiar Irish folktale, How to Catch a Leprechaun follows the comical adventures of the wistful minstrel Riley O'Really, who really wants to catch a leprechaun. He's got everything he needs for his trap: a pair of sharp eyes, a good Irish folk song in his heart and, most importantly, an irresistible pitcher of green lemonade. The wee leprechaun who Riley catches seems more than willing to give up his pot of gold - but is his offer a leprechaun trick or a leprechaun treat?

How to Catch a Leprechaun, which made its debut at the 2012 Kennedy Center Page to Stage Festival, launches Keegan's family-friendly theater program "Wee Keegan". Directed by Keegan company member Jon Townson, How to Catch a Leprechaun features actors Josh Sticklin, Brian Doyle, Sally Frakes Cusenza and Bradley Foster Smith.

Mark A. Rhea, Keegan's founder and producing artistic director, is extremely pleased to be launching family programing at Keegan. "For years, we've wanted to produce shows for younger audiences," he explains, "but space limitations precluded us from doing so. If there was a mainstage show in performance or in rehearsal, we simply didn't have space to rehearse a second show. Thanks to our renovated building (the theater reopened its doors in June after a year of extensive renovations, including the build out of a basement level with rehearsal space) we now have the space to accommodate rehearsals for two shows at a time - and so we can at last test the waters for family programming in Dupont Circle! We're hoping that family programming is as popular as we imagine that it could be - and these kid-friendly shows will bear Keegan's trademarks: the highest caliber talent, telling stories in a straightforward, accessible way. We think children are going to love this delightful musical, and we hope to make it a new holiday tradition at Keegan." holiday show. We hope to keep the tradition going for years to come, as the play speaks to everything Keegan is about."

How to Catch a Leprechaun opens December 12, 2015 at the Andrew Keegan Theatre in Washington, DC, and runs through December 27. For more information click here.