Set of Sisters like one big happy family

Actress Gerry McLoughlin has enjoyed rehearsals for dual role as siblings in Declan Hassett’s play, says Jo Kerrigan

THREE figures are essential to a theatrical production: the writer; the director, who interprets the script; and the actor, who puts his slant on the ideas of both. Three sets of ideas that don’t necessarily match. With Sisters, which opens at the Everyman on Monday, it’s been cooperative, playwright Declan Hassett sitting in on rehearsals while director Michael Twomey guides actress Gerry McLoughlin through the birth pangs of creating a character. Two characters, since Sisters is a challenging, shocking dual role of siblings whose lives have taken different paths.

The play was created for the late Anna Manahan, a friend of the playwright’s. “We’d often talked about my writing Anna’s biography,” says Hassett, “but there never seemed to be enough hours in the day. So one evening I said I’d write a play for her instead. I thought no more about it, but three days later she was on the phone, saying, ‘well, have you written it yet?’ And she kept at me until I did.” Sisters, directed by Michael Scott, premiered in 2005 and was a hit, in this country and abroad, selling out and gaining Manahan a Tony nomination in New York in 2006.

How does Hassett feel about a new production with a different actress? He loves it. “It’s been a total revelation, in fact. They let me sit in on rehearsals and it’s been a masterclass as far as I am concerned. Seeing Gerry and Michael bringing my words to life, evolving each scene, working out the best way to move, to interpret a line — that has been amazing,” he says. “I’d seen Gerry in The Year of Magical Thinking, and I knew then that she was perfect for the role. She’s a totally different Mart ha/Mary, and that has been a great experience for me.”

Michael Twomey was unfazed by the author’s presence at rehearsals. “Because you are working with him on a day-by-day basis, you can be sure that his intentions for the play come through clearly,” he says. But this is a new approach rather than a rerun of the original. “With a different director, a different actress, you will always interpret in another way. And that will be exciting for audiences too.” Manahan was almost 80 when she played the dual role, and Scott’s production allowed her to sit down. “With Gerry, we are able to have a more physical production, more moving around, which is better in any solo performance, as it holds the interest more,” he says.

The set, designed by Jim Queally, differs from the original too. “It’s not so abstract — it’s clear that the first act is taking place in the kitchen, which of course is totally Martha’s domain, and the second in the parlour, which is very much Mary’s. You see just one corner of the room in each case, and that is very effective in concentrating your attention,” he says.

McLoughlin says it was a challenge stepping into Manahan’s shoes, but she has seized it with alacrity. “When Anna was nominated for a Tony in the part, she lost out that year to Vanessa Redgrave in The Year of Magical Thinking, which of course was the part I played at Everyman last year. That has to be more than coincidence, surely?”

Having worked with Twomey many times, they trusted each other. “It’s good when you’re already old friends. It cuts down a lot of the explanation when you know each other’s way of thinking, and that leaves more time for developing the character,” she says.

Being younger than Manahan, McLoughlin says her interpretation is different, and that, in effect, creates a new play. “I give some lines quite an unexpected twist too, which will get audiences thinking,” she says. On opening night next Monday, McLoughlin likes to think that Manahan will be looking down, giving an approving little smile.

Sisters, Everyman Palace, Cork, August 8-20, 8pm nightly. Concessions available for opening night and students. Booking on 021-4501673 or www.everymanpalace.com.

Picture: Gerry McLoughlin