Jeremy
Brett and Timothy Dalton made me want to act. They both had an incredible intensity
and truthfulness to their work which still rivets me.
When you
are performing, do you have a preference for acting technique or method or does
your development of character largely depend upon the role you are playing?
I have no
idea about acting technique… in fact for me, the more I think about and
analyse it, the harder it gets. I honestly couldn’t tell you how I act, I just do
it. Just tell the truth.
For some
years, you have been working as a playwright and performer. When did you
decide that you wanted to write plays?
In 2012,
when I went through a series of successive emotional shocks. My girlfriend and
I split after fifteen years, I ran out of work as an actor, my friend killed
himself… on and on it went. I experienced an agonising loneliness, and a
profoundly deep depression and hopelessness. Out of that pain came the desire
to create and connect, as the alternative was despair, and perhaps worse. I
finally felt that I had something to say, because of course, people who’ve lived
safe, unchallenging and emotionally avoidant lives don’t tend to write
interesting drama.
What are
the particular challenges that you face as a playwright who also performs his
own plays? I have noticed that you work with different directors (most
recently, Sarah-Louise Young on the play Jarman). Does working with a
director provide you with the mental space that you need to fully engage with
the creation of a character in whichever venue you find yourself in?
It’s much
easier, I think, if I’ve written it, because as the actor I know what the
writer is intending! But you still need a great director to bring out the
fullness of the words, because even the writer doesn’t always consciously
realise the full depths of what they’ve written. That’s especially true of Jarman, where my brilliant director Sarah-Louise Young brought me and the
play to life in ways I could never have envisaged.
Your plays
focus on extraordinary personalities; creative, unique, occasionally flawed
individuals but most importantly, they are based on real people. How do
you go about becoming these characters? From observing your work, I can
see that you must put a lot of work into their realisation and that a sense of
kindness and empathy surrounds your development of the characters. Have
you developed your performance of the roles at any point after receiving the
feedback of family members or friends of the personalities you portray?
Again, I
try not to think about it too much. I observe if the character has any distinctive
mannerisms, and whether it’s helpful or not to adopt those on stage (sometimes
they can get in the way). Far more important is to see where one coincides
emotionally with the character. So for example when I began playing Quentin
Crisp, I identified hugely with his loneliness and isolation, and that was my
way in to playing him. With Derek Jarman I identify with his emotional courage
and love of fun, and that’s been the key. Feedback from family and friends has
always been hugely encouraging.
In the four
plays that you perform in repertory, The Silence of Snow: The Life of Patrick
Hamilton, Quentin Crisp: Naked Hope, Howerd’s End and Jarman, you
directly engage the audience, incorporating them into the action. I have
been invited to read you questions on stage when you were Quentin Crisp and was
given a spotlight/torch to illuminate the action when you were Derek
Jarman. How do you select the audience members that you use and what are
the advantages of directly using the audience in this way? Your
engagement with the audience was slightly different when you were Dennis in Howerd’s End and when you were Patrick Hamilton but equally rewarding for the
audience.
I always
pick audience members at random… take the risk. Another example of why it’s best
not to over-think. All my characters speak directly to the audience because I
dislike the ‘fourth wall’ in theatre, and think it’s often a way for actors to
hide from the audience emotionally. Infinitely better to turn out front and
address people, make them realise this is about them. One of the reasons live
music and comedy are more popular than theatre is because music and comedy
engage the audience directly, and people love it. Yet still theatre stubbornly
refuses to recognise this, even though Shakespeare had characters talking
directly to the audience four centuries ago. My work is a one-man mission to
trample down the fourth wall and break into people’s hearts.
Please can
you talk about your motivations for producing works on the individuals that you
have chosen? Are they people that you have admired and/or do they
represent aspects of your personality either now or in the past?
Yes they
are all aspects of me. Patrick Hamilton is my reckless, egotistical side (which
I’ve tamed through therapy, but can still play on stage). Quentin is my
loneliness, my sense of being alone on the planet without companionship. Dennis
Heymer in Howerd’s End is my tenacity, my determination to connect with
people who are closed-off emotionally and Derek Jarman is my passion for
creativity, love, sex, adventure, colour, and my awareness of my mortality. A
human life is no longer than a lightning flash, so no excuses for not living it
to the full. Anything less is a straight-up tragedy.
You
produce four of your plays in repertory, which enables the audience to see them
all if they wish. From the perspective of a performer, what are the
advantages and disadvantages of staging the productions for short periods in
different venues?
To me
there are no disadvantages. It’s joyful! You get to switch characters all the
time, something actors rarely do now that the repertory system has died. True
actors are mercurial, so we love being different people at the flick of a
switch. Also when the challenge is so intense (especially with frequently
different venues), there isn’t time to worry about your lines or your
performance, you just have to get out there and be, and consequently feel all
the more alive and spontaneous.
Also does
the size and style of the venue alter how you perform the plays?
Not
remotely. You can be intimate and up close in a room of a thousand people. I’ve
never understood why anyone thinks otherwise.
Your most
recent play, Jarman encapsulates the life and works of a furiously creative
individual who worked in many mediums including film, videos for bands such as
Suede and The Smiths, art and sculpture. Do you also produce art works
outside of the world of theatre?
I don’t. I
can’t play an instrument, paint or draw. All my passion and energy go into
performing, and it’s something I want to continue doing for as long as I can. When you perform, time stops for you and the audience, and you connect most
fully with what matters in life: the truth of who you are. The rest of the time
people seem to spend merely avoiding themselves.
Finally,
what are your future plans and are you working on any more plays?
I’ve got
performance plans stretching a year ahead. No new plays in mind at the moment. I’m perfectly content if I never write another… maybe I’ve said all I need to
say? Equally, if a new idea occurs to me tomorrow or in five years’ time, I’ll
engage with it with all the gusto as if it was my last day on earth.
Thank you for allowing me to interview you, Mark Farrelly.
Barry Watt - 3rd July 2022.
Afterword.
Mark Farrelly has a website, which contains details of his work and performance schedule:
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? is a play by Edward Albee and remains one of the greatest plays of all time (in my opinion). A very successful film starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton is also worth seeing. I tend to try to see most London productions of the play.
Trafalgar Studios continues to stage varied and interesting productions. More information about their history and past productions etc can be found on this website:
Trafalgar Studios - Trafalgar Entertainment
Sarah-Louise Young is another talented and eclectic performer/producer. Please see her website and my previous blog interview with her:
Sarah-Louise Young (sarah-louise-young.com)
Suede are a band who rose to dominance in the 90s and continue to produce music that explores the myriad hues of the human condition. Their website is below:
The Smiths were a band that produced music and in many respects, a sensibility that still resonates today. They disbanded in 1987, although both Morrissey and Johnny Marr continue to produce their own music and tour separately. The other members of the band, Mike Joyce and Andy Rourke have also continued to work within the music and creative industries over the years.
The lives of Quentin Crisp, Derek Jarman, Patrick Hamilton and Dennis Heymer can be explored through the works of Mark Farrelly and through their own works. Please see below link to see an obituary for Dennis Heymer as he is slightly less well known than the other names mentioned:
Dennis Heymer; OBITUARY. - Free Online Library (thefreelibrary.com)
The photos at the start of the interview of Mark Farrelly as himself and as the aforementioned Patrick Hamilton, Quentin Crisp, Derek Jarman and Dennis Heymer have been kindly provided by Mark Farrelly and were taken by and are copyright to Jacky Summerfield.
Please check Mark Farrelly's website for the future schedule of his performances around the United Kingdom:
Mark Farrelly Schedule | MARK FARRELLY
BW.
Photos (The below photos have been kindly provided by Mark Farrelly and were taken by Jacky Summerfield who owns the copyright to the images).
 |
| Mark Farrelly as Derek Jarman |
 |
| Mark Farrelly as Quentin Crisp |
 |
| Mark Farrelly as Dennis Heymer |
 |
| Promotional image of Mark Farrelly as Patrick Hamilton |
