By Marty Hughley
The Oregonian
January 9, 2009

The Conor McPherson play, "The Seafarer," is set on Christmas Eve, concerns a boisterous gathering of family, friends and strangers, and suggests spiritual import amid spirited play. (That Artists Rep scheduled it for later in its season must be because the terrific new comedy "Holidazed" already held the December feel-good slot.) After all, what could feel more like Christmas than a tale of five titanically drunk Irishmen playing poker from afternoon till morning?

OK, so maybe that's not your typical holiday fare, is it? But McPherson -- acclaimed also for such earlier plays as "The Weir" and "Shining City" -- balances dark humor, a sense of gritty realism and stark religious inquiry, yet maintains an unexpectedly soft and hopeful heart about human nature.

Which probably is a good thing, considering that the mysterious stranger at the card table isn't really interested in the euros piling up in front of him. At least for a ne'er-do-well called Sharky, the stakes of the game are greater: his eternal soul.

Largely abandoning the aria-like monologues that characterized his earlier works, McPherson here has written a casually precise ensemble piece. Artists Rep artistic director Allen Nause directs an impressive cast, featuring Oregon Shakespeare Festival veterans Denis Arndt, Bill Geisslinger and Tobias Andersen, plus Todd Van Voris and Leif Norby.

Christmas may be past, but it's not too late for a shot of whiskey -- or a shot at redemption.