Goshen, N.Y. resident to perform in New York premiere of "Gathering Shells" at Abington Theatre Company in New York Dec. 3-5

HAMDEN, CT (11/25/2009)(readMedia)-- Dennis Mahoney of Goshen, N.Y., a student at Quinnipiac University, will make his New York stage debut when Quinnipiac's Theater for Community presents the original play, "Gathering Shells," from Dec. 3-5 at the Abingdon Theatre Company in New York City. Curtain time is 8 each night.

The play examines the emotional impact and the trauma of war on soldiers who fight, as well as their family and friends at home. The entire cast, artistic team and crew of the production team are composed of Quinnipiac University Theater for Community students and faculty members.

"Developing original plays concerned with social issues is a primary focus of the Theater for Community," said Crystal Brian, of Cheshire, theater professor and chair of visual and performing arts. "Providing our students with the opportunity to participate in the ongoing development process of a new work that explores the profound impact of post traumatic stress disorder on our veterans and their families furthers the mission of our theater program."

Brian and Vietnam veteran and poet Allan Garry co-wrote the original play, which Theater for community first performed in 2007 at the Long Wharf Theatre, Stage II, in New Haven.

The production is part of a growing partnership between the professional theater and Quinnipiac.

The Abingdon Theatre Company address is 312 W. 36th St., sixth floor, in New York City. Admission is free; seating is very limited. For more information and tickets, call 203-582-3500.

The guiding principle of the Theater for Community program is the conviction that theater can be a tool to foster student engagement with the local, national and global community. Students are introduced to diverse social issues and topics outside of their everyday experiences and, as a result, are forced to explore the topic from a different perspective.

Quinnipiac is a private, coeducational, nonsectarian institution located 90 minutes north of New York City and two hours from Boston. The university enrolls 5,700 full-time undergraduate and 2,000 graduate students in 52 undergraduate and 19 graduate programs of study in its School of Business, School of Communications, School of Education, School of Health Sciences, School of Law, and College of Arts and Sciences. Quinnipiac ranks among the top 10 universities with master's programs in the Northern region in U.S. News & World Report's America's Best Colleges. The 2009 issue of U.S. News and World Report's America's Best Colleges named Quinnipiac as the top up-and-coming school with master's programs in the North. Quinnipiac also is recognized in Princeton Review's The Best 371 Colleges. For more information, please visit http://www.quinnipiac.edu.