September 11, 2001 attack on WTC play comes to town

“The Mercy Seat” by Neil LaBute, takes place on the day after the terror attacks in New York and tells the story of a man who worked at the World Trade Centre but was away from the office during the attack - with his mistress who is also his boss.

Expecting that his family believes that he was killed in the towers’ collapse, Ben contemplates using the tragedy to run away and start a new life with his lover.

Hollywood stars Sigourney Weaver (Alien, Ghostbusters) and Liev Schreiber (Scream, X-Men) starred in the 2002 debut of the play, which was instantly met with critical acclaim, selling out for the length of its run.

Now the Play will open at The Playhouse on Sunday September 11 2011, directed by local actor and writer Nathan McCartney and starring Greta McTague (‘Exodus Revisited’) and Shaun Coyle (‘We Were Brothers’, ‘The Tragedy of Dunkeer House’).

“The play is a nonstop output of high-octane emotion and has been a critical success since its debut” Áine McCarron, marketing officer said.

“It has become Neil Labute’s most celebrated and most controversial play. Critics have called it “the work of a master” (The New Yorker), “brutally honest… haunting” (TimeOut) and “the most compelling portrait of male inner turmoil” (Financial Times).”

‘The Mercy Seat’ by Neil LaBute will come to the Playhouse on Sunday September 11 at 8pm. Tickets are £10/£7 and can be bought online at www.derryplayhouse.co.uk or by contact The Playhouse Box Office on (028)71268027.