George Shiels (24 June 1881 â€" 19 September 1949) was an Irish
dramatist whose plays were a success both in his native Ulster and at
the Abbey Theatre in Dublin. His most famous plays are The Rugged
Path, The Passing Day, and The New Gossoon.Shiels was born to Robert
Shiels and Eileen (née MacSweeney) in Ballymoney, County Antrim, and
emigrated to Canada as a young man. While working on the building of
the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1913, he was involved in a serious
accident that left him in a wheelchair for the rest of his life. He
returned to Ballymoney and started a shipping company with his
brother, and also began writing at this time. Starting with poems and
short stories, he soon progressed to plays, which he provided to the
Ulster Literary Theatre under the pen name of George S.
Morsheils.Starting with Bedmates (1921), his plays began to be
regularly accepted by the Abbey Theatre for production. His 1930 work
The New Gossoon was so well-received that the Abbey's touring company,
The Abbey Theatre Irish Players, brought the play to Broadway for
limited runs three times, in 1932, 1934, and 1937. In 1940, a
production of Shiels' The Rugged Path set an Abbey record by
attracting a total audience of 25,000 people over eight weeks.When his
success as a playwright allowed him, he left the shipping business and
moved to Carnlough on the coast of County Antrim, where he lived from
1932 until his death in 1949.
dramatist whose plays were a success both in his native Ulster and at
the Abbey Theatre in Dublin. His most famous plays are The Rugged
Path, The Passing Day, and The New Gossoon.Shiels was born to Robert
Shiels and Eileen (née MacSweeney) in Ballymoney, County Antrim, and
emigrated to Canada as a young man. While working on the building of
the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1913, he was involved in a serious
accident that left him in a wheelchair for the rest of his life. He
returned to Ballymoney and started a shipping company with his
brother, and also began writing at this time. Starting with poems and
short stories, he soon progressed to plays, which he provided to the
Ulster Literary Theatre under the pen name of George S.
Morsheils.Starting with Bedmates (1921), his plays began to be
regularly accepted by the Abbey Theatre for production. His 1930 work
The New Gossoon was so well-received that the Abbey's touring company,
The Abbey Theatre Irish Players, brought the play to Broadway for
limited runs three times, in 1932, 1934, and 1937. In 1940, a
production of Shiels' The Rugged Path set an Abbey record by
attracting a total audience of 25,000 people over eight weeks.When his
success as a playwright allowed him, he left the shipping business and
moved to Carnlough on the coast of County Antrim, where he lived from
1932 until his death in 1949.
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