The Artistic Director of the Dublin Theatre Festival, Willie White, has said that audiences will get a "rare opportunity" to see Downton Abbey star Brendan Coyle perform on stage as part of this year's programme.
The actor, who was honoured with an Laurence Olivier Award in 1999 for his performance in Conor McPherson's The Weir, will be making a return to the stage in another McPherson play titled St Nicholas.
Meanwhile, Love/Hate star Aoibhinn McGinnity will be taking one of Marilyn Monroe's most iconic roles in a new adaptation of The Misfits from Annie Ryan, while Oscar-nominated Loving actress Ruth Negga will leading the cast of Hamlet in the title role.
Speaking to RTÉ Entertainment at the festival's launch, White spoke about the array of talent that will grace the stage during the festival's September 27 - October 14 run.
Watch our report from the launch of the Dublin Theatre Festival below.
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"The Dublin Theatre Festival is a celebration of theatre, it showcases brilliant work from Ireland as well as international productions that people won’t get a chance to see at other times of the year.
"It’s the only time people get to see, for now anyway, Ruth Negga on stage, in Dublin as Hamlet is at the Gate Theatre during our festival. It’s fantastic because Ruth as well as being very acclaimed for her film acting, is a wonderful theatre actor too."
He said of McGinnity taking on the leading role in The Misfits: "That’s really exciting, even again a person who’s a fine stage actor but maybe people know her better from television. So this is an opportunity to see her up close in Smock Alley Theatre during the festival."
"In fact another person who is a fine stage actor and will be on stage for the first time I think in 16 years is Brendan Coyle.
"Brendan Coyle, of course well known for Downton Abbey, he’s going to perform in a Conor McPherson play that’s never before been produced in Ireland called St Nicholas. So it’s going to be a rare opportunity for people to see Brendan Coyle on the stage in Dublin."
White said they have out together "a programme that’s appealing across the board for people from zero to 99 and beyond!"
"There’s a real buzz that comes from the different ways your mind is being thrown and pulled by the different types of theatre that are available", he added.
Actor and Druid Theatre co-founder Marie Mullen, who is starring in a production of Shakespeare's Richard III in the Abbey Theatre, was also full of praise for this year's festival.
"It’s a fantastic array, they always put a great programme together. Really exciting stuff, local and international. Everything that you could possibly think of, there’s something for everyone", she told RTÉ Entertainment.
The Dublin Theatre Festival runs from September 27 to October 14.
For further information, click here.
