Gabriel Byrne to Headline A Touch of the Poet at Studio 54

Gabriel Byrne will star in a revival of Eugene O'Neill's A Touch of the Poet at Studio 54 in the fall. The production, directed by Doug Hughes, is scheduled to begin performances on November 11 and open on December 8.

Byrne began his acting career with the Focus Theatre in Dublin and subsequently became a member of the famous Abbey Theatre. He made his Broadway debut in 2000 in another O'Neill play, A Moon for the Misbegotten. He most recently appeared on the New York stage in 2002 in The Exonerated. His film credits include Miller's Crossing, Polish Wedding, A Dangerous Woman, Point of No Return, Little Women, Into the West, Smilla's Sense of Snow, The Usual Suspects, The Man in the Iron Mask, Stigmata, End of Days, Ghost Ship, Spider, Vanity Fair, P.S. and Assault on Precinct 13. His book Pictures in My Head became a bestseller in Ireland and was published in the United States in 1998. He also starred in a short-lived ABC television series Madigan Men in 2000.

Set in a rundown tavern in 1828 New England, Touch of the Poet centers on Cornelius Melody Byrne, an Irishman who desperately holds on to the idea that he is a European gentleman despite his sad financial state. It focuses on his relationship with his daughter, Sara, who wants him to face the harsh realities of his life.

Byrne isn't the first name mentioned for Roundabout's A Touch of the Poet. We previously reported Liam Neeson was in talks to play the central role. At that time, Edward Hall who worked with Neeson's wife, Natasha Richardson, in the current Roundabout mounting of A Streetcar Named Desire was the projected director. Hall directed a Roundabout reading of the piece with Neeson, Fiona Shaw and Kaitlin Hopkins.

In addition to A Touch of the Poet and The Threepenny Opera which is set for Studio 54 in the spring, the Roundabout is also planning on presenting John Guare's The House of Blue Leaves at the American Airlines and Noah Haidle's Mr. Marmalade and Joe Orton's Entertaining Mr. Sloane at the Laura Pels as part of its 2005-2006 season.