Denis Conway: 'I did part-time teaching to keep the wolf from the door'
Denis Conway is from Whitechurch in Co Cork.
When Cork-born actor Denis Conway first performed the role of the Earl of Tyrone, Hugh O’Neill, in the Brian Friel play, , in 1992 in Rome, he had an idea. If he ever had his own theatre company, he decided he would tour the play, following the path of the Flight of the Earls and ending in the Eternal City where O’Neill is buried having died there in penury.
With his now defunct company, Oubourous, Conway achieved his goal, touring the play across Europe in 2007/8, marking the 400th anniversary of The Flight of the Earls.
Now, the award-winning Conway is reprising the role of O’Neill at the Everyman, directed by the artistic director of the venue, Des Kennedy. Conway will play the older O’Neill while Aaron McCusker will play the younger version of the “complicated character.”
Conway says the play is hugely relevant today. “If you think about what’s going on in the world at the moment, who writes the history? In one hundred years time, what will be written about Ukraine and the Palestinian situation?”
One thing’s for sure, Conway, battle-hardened from the ups and downs of a lengthy career as an actor, is not hanging up his boots any day soon. Although close to retirement age, he says: “An actor never retires. You get respect from longevity. It can get harder to learn your lines but thankfully, I inherited my mother’s gift for retention.”
Conway’s mother (aged 94), couldn’t understand why her son chose to give up a good job lecturing science at the then Limerick Regional College for the precariousness of the life of an actor. But his father asked him if acting made him happy.
“I said I think it does. My father said to go for it. He told me he worked for forty-five years in CIE [as an inspector] and hated every second of it. But with thirteen children to look after, he didn’t have a choice. I’m glad I did acting,” says the Whitechurch-reared Conway.
He had a brief flirtation with the Presentation Brothers. “I was sure I wanted to be a brother. I ended up going to Mount St Joseph in Blarney where you went after leaving school to prepare to be a brother, before going to college. I lasted about three weeks. My mentor talked me out of it, saying I wanted to be a teacher and didn’t want to be a brother at all. I was naively religious and a goody two shoes.”
Conway went to secondary school at the former Coláiste Therese in Greenmount. “It was a novitiate for the brotherhood. The classes were tiny. There were only twelve in my Leaving Cert class, all groomed to be brothers. None of my class joined in the end.”
In terms of acting inspiration, Conway followed the careers of Donal McCann and John Kavanagh. “I was lucky enough to meet John Kavanagh who is now a friend of mine. We were in the movie [directed by Oliver Stone] together. I’ve always admired older actors. I wasn’t a huge film buff but obviously, I’m a big admirer of Al Pacino and Robert de Niro.
"But there are lesser known actors who make a living on the stage. They’re the ones I really admire. It’s a tough life in the sense that you’re never going to become wealthy but if you can enjoy it as long as I have and survive, that’s as good as you can do.”
Married with two children in their twenties, Conway admits that his first five years as an actor were very tough. “I always said I’d give it five years and see what happens. I did part-time teaching to keep the wolf from the door. I was close to giving up acting but then I got a role and never looked back.”
Conway has a couple of ideas for plays. He has researched and would love to write a play about the fit-up travelling theatre maestro, Anew McMaster, staging Shakespeare. “One of my favourite authors is Shakespeare and I’m not saying that casually. I love his poetry and I love doing Shakespeare on stage. There’s not enough of it. I tried to write the play idea but it’s not natural to me. I think what I need to do is have about two pints and record myself talking.”
Because of the tour of in the Noughties, Conway got to know Brian Friel who died ten years ago. “He told me he had a personal grá for the play.” Clearly Conway shares that passion.
- Making History is at the Everyman from April 11-26. www.everymancork.com.
