Founded in 1904 by W.B. Yeats and Lady Gregory, the Abbey is Ireland's national theater and remains a crucial promoter of established and emerging Irish playwrights. The theater's early years saw much controversy: the 1926 premiere of O'Casey's 'The Plough and the Stars' upset nationalist sensibilities and provoked Yeats to personally rebuke the audience, who felt offended by the depiction of the 1916 nationalist movement. Although generally less controversial these days, new Irish plays are still staged in the basement theater, the Peacock. The theater's Abbey Street premises has been open since 1961, but changes are afoot. The management is currently considering a move south of the river.