The Riverside Theatre in Haas Fine Arts Center will soon be home to the production “A Man of No Importance” at the end of the month.

Set in 1964 in Dublin, Ireland, the musical follows main character Alfie Byrne. Byrne, a fan of Oscar Wilde, puts on plays of Wilde with his church group. He chooses to do the play Salome, and after unfortunate events, the play is shut down, forcing Byrne to confront his sexuality.

Director Richard Nimke said he chose to feature this musical not only because he liked it, but because it easily fit into Riverside. The Riverside Theatre has surround-seat action, which can be different than what the audience is used to. This also poses for a different setup: the orchestra is also onstage with the actors.

Practices started Jan. 21, but Nimke said planning for this musical started well before then.

“The work started back in September with our first production meetings. We talked about the show and the concept and design. Then, we had auditions in November and put the cast together,” he said.

The audience can expect “A Man of No Importance” to be character-driven, but Nimke said his cast lives up to the expectations.

“I am enjoying the cast that I am working with,” Nimke said. “In the two weeks we’ve been working, they’ve been very diligent and hard working.”

Among the cast members, junior Seth Hale will be playing the role of Byrne. Hale said his character is a man of no importance. Byrne is an ordinary guy who everyone knows and loves, but is no one’s best friend. Struggling with his own identity, he finds himself living for his church’s theatre, but initially misses the idea of what life is about. However, Hale also said Byrne is a very identifiable man.

“There have been times where we’ve all felt like Alfie, like you’re working for something that someone doesn’t appreciate… struggling with ourselves,” Hale said.

Trying not to think about how his character is the lead, Hale has his mind set on preparing for his role instead. His tasks include score studying, memorizing the script and learning an Irish accent.

YouTube has provided Hale with plentiful lessons on how to perfect the accent. But even so, a lot of practice has gone into acing the accent.

“It’s going to be challenging,” Hale said. “It’s one of those things that some things come naturally, and some things that I don’t know what it’s supposed to sound like, but I know I’m getting closer.”

Along with the challenges, Hale finds great reward in playing the lead role. He describes Byrne as an “every man,” meaning he’s realistic, and trying to identify real human struggles.

Of course, Hale is also looking forward to performing in front of a live audience alongside his castmates.

“Performing in Riverside is going to be an awesome space to do a musical in,” Hale said. “To be able to do it in the intimate area of Riverside, that’d be really awesome.”

“A Man of No Importance” comes to the Riverside Theatre Feb. 20-22, 26-28 and March 1-2.