Kelly Gough told David Hennessy about returning to the stage as part of the new production of Eugene O’Neill’s Desire Under the Elms at the Almeida.
County Clare screen and stage actress Kelly Gough will star in Desire Under the Elms at The Almeida from next week until just before Christmas.
Gough, 39, plays ‘Abbie’ in Ebenezer Bamgboye’s production of Irish American Eugene O’Neill’s family drama.
She appears alongside Zackary Momoh, 38, Antony Byrne, 57, and fellow Irish actor Jamie Beamish, 50.
Eugene O’Neill (1888-1953) is the only playwright to have won four Pulitzer Prizes for Drama.
His Long Day’s Journey Into Night is often cited as one of the greatest American plays of all-time.
Another of his plays, A Moon for the Misbegotten, starring Michael Shannon and Ruth Wilson was staged at The Almeida last year.
Desire Under the Elms is the story of a farming family in 1850 New England.
‘Eben’ and his half-brothers ‘Peter’ and ‘Simeon’ toil on their family’s farm.
They have dreams for the future, but they must be put on hold until their father ‘Ephraim’ returns from his journey west to prospect for gold.
When he does return it is with his young bride ‘Abbie’.
Kelly Gough, from Ennis, is known to UK TV audiences from her roles in Marcella, Call the Midwife, Strikeback, Broadchurch, The Fall and others.
Her many stage roles include performances in Julius Caesar (RSC), House of Shades (Almeida Theatre), Harm (Bush Theatre), A Streetcar Named Desire, Don Carlos and Macbeth.
When The Irish World interviewed her last year – when she was starring in Chloë Moss’s Run Sister Run at the Arcola Theatre in London – she said she was stepping away from acting and she did…until this part of ‘Abbie’ enticed her out of semi-retirement.
The last time Desire Under the Elms was staged in London was in 2012 – when ‘Abbie’ was played by Kelly’s older sister, the award-winning screen and stage actor Denise Gough, 46.
Kelly spoke to The Irish World.
“It’s always lovely to work at the Almeida. Rehearsals are exhausting and the days are long, but I feel really blessed to be here – it’s a very creatively satisfying job.
“I’m workin’ with wildly talented, bloomin’ brilliant people on this one – buíochas le Dia (‘thanks be to God’).”
What attracted you to this role?
“I’m fascinated by Eugene O’Neill. His characters are knotty, gnarly, vivid and complex – the way all human beings are.
“Moreover, they make no apologies for their complexity.
“It feels like O’Neill’s characters climb up out of the earth and are spat on to the stage.
“O’Neill’s work fascinates me…there are no heroes or villains on the stage, just brutal, brilliant people.
“I often wonder if that’s why his work is revisited so regularly.
“We exist within a world where people are increasingly labelled ‘good’ or ‘bad’, and his writing rejects that narrative entirely.
“His parents sailed to America to flee the Famine.
“His mother was a morphine addict.
“He himself didn’t start writing until after a failed suicide attempt (his drinking buddies saved him).
“The man wrote longhand. He wrote Long Day’s Journey into Night while weeping, then put it into a sealed envelope, and ordered it not to be opened or staged ‘til after his death.
“His life began and ended in a hotel room.
“He alienated all of his children in his lifetime.
“All of his offspring – including his daughter Oonagh – suffered from the same addictions that blighted generations of the O’Neill clan.
“Love him or loathe him, as a writer, Eugene Ó Neill understood the complexity of people.
“It is possible, to argue, now more than ever, we need him.”
“Plus, I’m a huge fan of Ebenezer’s work. He makes me want to be a better actor-story-teller-human being. You can’t bottle what he’s got.
“I’m just happy to be part of the mischief.”
Desire Under the Elms was banned here for a long time…
“The history of the play is a huge part of why it’s so open to reimagining; since its first staging, Desire Under the Elms has challenged people.
“Ebenezer’s version reimagines the character of ‘Eben’ as a black man and sets the play in 1900s Louisiana.
“That heightens the stakes enormously and highlights the raw power of O’Neill’s characters and narrative.”
What is new about this production?
“This production is both bolder and fresher.
“The play is scored and choreographed – it’s loaded with music and movement – and is wonderfully theatrical.
“Ebenezer’s reimagining makes the whole thing feel contemporary and timeless – it’ll be a great night at the theatre.”
The story is rooted in ancient Greek dramas (such as Hippolytus and Phèdre) and set against the backdrop of the California Gold Rush. Does it have a timeless quality that speaks to today?
“The English teacher in me often wonders if we overlook the essential nature of stories – long before science, humanity had myth.
“Stories help us make sense of ourselves.
“What Ebenezer has done with the script really highlights the timelessness of O’Neill’s message – humanity is still grappling with desire.
“Who is allowed to desire, and who is not.
“What it means to desire something, and why we desire what we do.
“Desire Under the Elms explicitly explores how human beings shape one another, what desire is, and who is allowed to desire what.”
Greed, lust and pride are big themes of the play…
“Greed, lust, and pride do a lot of the heavy lifting, but I’d add fate, the supernatural, and motherhood – that’s O’Neill through and through.
“His family fled Ireland during the Famine, and he was quoted as saying he felt people underestimated the impact of his Irishness on his work.
“Though he never made it back to Ireland during his lifetime, he was raised by two people who were forced to flee their home, culture and language – there’s a relationship with land, especially stolen land, that hard to avoid.”
Describe ‘Abbie’, one of theatre’s great roles with its basis in Phaedra…
“The role of ‘Abbie’ is an underdog in the theatrical canon – it’s easy to overlook the demands of the part, or to make her smaller than she is.
“The character is the only female character we see on stage and functions as a catalyst for the action of the play.
“She puts her foot on the accelerator and drives the narrative forward – that’s always a challenge to play.”
‘Abbie’ comes in as the young bride of ‘Ephraim’ but is instantly attracted to ‘Eben’ and becomes the catalyst of the whole story…
“Definitely – the arrival of the character functions as the inciting incident in the narrative.
“Abbie’s complexity – and her refusal and/or inability to gentle that complexity – creates a tension that cannot be surmounted, only exploded.”
You’ve said there is a real Irishness to ‘Abbie’ and her story as so much of it is about desire and being allowed to desire?
“Any of O’Neill’s work could be set in Ireland.
“The relationship with land is cellular for these characters in the same way it is (consciously or subconsciously) for all Irish people.
“A version set in Ireland could be spectacular.”
The subject matter is very hard but there is a lot of humour, which is quite Irish…
“The humour lies in the wit of the characters – they’re sharp as knives and slow to censor themselves.
“It bubbles beneath each scene and lends a ferocity and a tenderness to events as they unfold.”
Is everyone yearning for something they don’t have?
“That’s one of the universal truths of the play: to yearn for something is to be human.
“Desire seems to drive most of us in one way or another; once adolescence strikes, yearning seems to spring to life.”
Is it difficult to build chemistry with your fellow cast members?
“Mercifully, once there’s trust between actors, chemistry between characters is easy to create. Chemistry on stage is stagecraft; chemistry is built.”
Is it tough doing a tragedy like this, night after night?
“Truthfully, being a teacher fundamentally changed my perspective on what ‘tough’ is – being a classroom teacher demands far more than any play ever could.
“If I get mired in imaginary tragedy, I do a huge disservice to the audience and to everyone living with real-life tragedy.
“That said, though I’m loath to admit, nightly shows take a toll.
“As Alan Rickman said (and Bessel van der Kolk confirmed), ‘The body doesn’t know you’re lying’. I’ll definitely have to look after myself.
“Eventually, even imaginary tragedies wear a body down, but I know there are far, far more challenging ways to make a living in this world.”
What is it like to take on a role that your sister Denise played, is it a first?
“It’s certainly a first for us, but I hope it’s not the last time. I’d love to see Denise play (A Streetcar Named Desire’s) ‘Blanche DuBois’, a role I’ve already played).
“Truthfully, they are very different productions of Desire Under the Elms.
“Ebenezer’s vision for the characters is very distinctive, and the script has been significantly reworked.
“Denise and I are two different performers in two very different productions.”
How does it feel to be back at The Almeida after being there in 2022 for House of Shades?
“In a word, fab – I love the Almeida. I’m not sure any other theatre could have lured me out of semi-retirement.
“As places to work go, The Almeida is a class act.”
It seems to be a great place for Irish actors with Paul Mescal, Alison Oliver, Saoirse Ronan, and of course, yourself, appearing there in the last few years…
“London is a great place for Irish actors at the minute. That said, Irish actors are great.
“We’re a wildly talented island of artists with a penchant for serious craic (ceol, rince, amhránaíocht, imríocht agus comhrá).
“Storytelling is in our blood and – for whatever reason – London seems to like us at the minute.
“Wherever we’re planted, we find our feet – that’s what artists (especially Irish artists) do.”
You are not the only Irish cast member, Jamie Beamish plays ‘Simeon’. What is he like to work with?
“Jamie Beamish is a legend. I can’t say enough great things about him. I love havin’ Irish people in the room, especially Irish people who are deadly serious about play.
“Jamie Beamish is deadly, and deadly serious about play.”
What is next? The last time we spoke you talked about stepping back from acting…
“Back to the classroom…I think.
“I’ve just hit send on an email thanking my British agent for looking after me for the last 10 years.
“The harder it is for me to return to stage/screen the better.
“The highs of acting are high, but the lows are low, and I don’t love that rhythm so much anymore.
“Le bheith macánta leat, I didn’t particularly miss acting, but the right role, with the right people, at the right theatre, came along.
“Plus, I’m an Early Career Teacher and the use of drama and storytelling as pedagogies fascinates me.
“Above all, young people need to encounter people who have worked within the arts because it helps them realise that they too can have a way in.
“I really value being that person.
“That said, I suspect my Irish agent (Lorraine Brennan) and I will be ride-or-die ‘til the end of time, so who knows where I’ll end up.”
Desire Under the Elms is at The Almeida Theatre from Tuesday 10 November until Wednesday 23 December.
For more information and to book, click here.