Every now and then a performance comes along that lifts you up and out of yourself, and reminds you of the big and simple questions in life.

Ten years ago, the wonderful Mikel Murfi, well known for his award-winning collaborations with Enda Walsh and Cillian Murphy, invited me to meet him in Bewley’s Café Theatre in Dublin to share some scenes from a one-man show he’d developed called The Man in the Woman’s Shoes.

Within minutes I was carried away by the lovable and hilarious cast of characters he’d created, inspired by those he met in his native Sligo, whom his improbable protagonist, the wordless cobbler Pat Farnon, encountered in a day’s travels.

We couldn’t wait to bring The Man in the Woman’s Shoes, and eventually its sequel, I Hear You and Rejoice, which lovingly portrays Pat’s marriage to Kitsy Rainey, to Irish Arts Center. Both plays filled our home with laughter…and more than a few tears.

Early last year, we visited Mikel in Sligo, where he shared some news: the finale of his Pat Farnon trilogy was in the works. The Mysterious Case of Kitsy Rainey would be ready to premiere in autumn 2023.

The Mysterious Case lifts the veil on Kitsy’s past, while exploring—in Murfi’s extraordinary theatrical language, both bonkers and beautiful—the human condition. The characters from the first two plays—Huby, Jimmy, the Bishop, Tony Cleary the Amazing No-Instrumental Man, and of course Pat and Kitsy (and a few barnyard animals)—all make an appearance.

We are thrilled to be presenting all three shows in rotating repertory from October 24 through November 18. You really don’t need to have seen the first two to enjoy the finale. But if you can, I’d really recommend seeing all. Each runs just over an hour, and you can catch them on different nights or all in one day, with a meal break, on October 28 and November 11 and 18.

Each play will lift your heart and tickle your brain, and you’ll be experiencing one of Ireland’s very best theatre artists at the top of his form.

The Man in the Woman’s Shoes and I Hear You and Rejoice were both New York Times Critics’ Picks, and tickets are already flying, so book your seats today.

Invite a group of friends and join us in the Devlin Café before or after the show, or come on your own and make sure you say hello. You’ll find a familiar IAC face to welcome you there every night.

We can’t think of a better way to settle down on a crisp fall afternoon or evening.

See you at the theatre.