Actor Chris Walley, known for playing Jock in The Young Offenders, spoke to David Hennessy as he returns to the London stage in Lyle Kessler’s Orphans.
Olivier Award- winning actor Chris Walley is returning to the London stage as he takes on the part of Treat in Lyle Kessler’s Orphans at Jermyn Street Theatre.
Chris Walley is well known for playing Jock in RTE and BBC’s hit comedy The Young Offenders.
Other screen roles include Pixie, Lies We Tell, Bodkin and the recent Cork- based film, Christy.
It was in 2018 that Chris was part of the cast for a West End revival of Martin McDonagh’s The Lieutenant of Inishmore starring Aidan Turner. His turn as Davey in his West End debut would earn him a Critics’ Circle Theatre Award for Most Promising Newcomer as well as his Olivier Award for Best Supporting Actor. He was also nominated for Emerging Talent in the Evening Standard Theatre Awards.
Since then he has returned to the stage with the 2023 revival of Marina Carr’s Portia Coughlan at the Almeida where he played husband to Alison Olivier’s title character.
Chris said this reawakened his passion for theatre and that is evident in him returning in 2024 for Gielgud’s Juno and the Paycock starring Mark Rylance. The same year he also appeared in The Sugar Wife at Dublin’s Abbey.
Now Chris is joined by Forbes Masson and Fred Woodley Evans for a production of Kessler’s Oprhans directed by Al Miller.
Orphans is set in 1983 Philadelphia.
The story centres around Treat, played by Walley, and his younger brother Philip (Woodley Evans). Treat and Philip are two orphans and have always had to take care of themselves or perhaps more accurately Treat has always taken care of Philip.
Although Philip is 28 years old, he hasn’t stepped outside in years so they have survived on what Treat can go out and steal.
Then, one night, Treat drags in Harold, a stranger stuffed with cash and soaked in whiskey.
He looks like the perfect target but Treat may regret ever setting sights on him.
Chris took time out of rehearsals to chat to The Irish World.
Chris told The Irish World: “This has been my favourite play since I was introduced to it when I was 14 by my drama teacher so to be able to do it now is absolutely brilliant.
“I just remember reading it and it just was the most I ever connected with a play and I just became obsessed with it.
“I just loved it so much.
“When we were 18, myself and my friend Kev put on our own production of it for charity and we ran for three or four nights in the School of Music in Cork.
“But in that production, I actually played Philip and now I’m playing Treat which feels like a natural progression.
“But I still just have the same love for it now as I did then, just such a brilliant play.
“It hasn’t been done in the last ten years in London.
“I actually was trying to get it put on myself for a time.
“I got offered it out of the blue and it was very bizarre.
“I thought the director Al knew that I wanted to do it but it just turned out to be one of those strangely brilliant coincidences.
“I remember when I was younger, I used to just read this play for fun.
“I don’t know how many times I must have read it when I was in my teens but for whatever reason, I just was so drawn to it.
“All the plays I’ve done mean so much to me in different capacities but I suppose before even stepping foot into the rehearsal process, this is definitely the one, the text that meant the most to me.”
The play has been played by vastly different casts but they say its continued success is down to its ability to maintain its emotional pull no matter how it is approached..
“It’s an incredibly emotional story.
“This packs a punch unlike anything else I’ve ever read.
“I think it’s ultimately just about family and bonds.”
It’s in the title, isn’t it? Treat and Philip are orphans and it transpires Harold is also an orphan so it is what binds the three men onstage..
“Exactly and that’s sort of why he stays, because he feels sorry for them or at least that’s what you think.
“So much of it is open for interpretation.
“Even after seeing it, there are questions left unanswered but in a really brilliant way that it will definitely be one for the for the pub after for a conversation.”
With its themes of family, does the play bring up interesting conversations in the rehearsal room?
“I think why I really love this play is there are so many plays that are made now that have such big ideas in them beyond the text and they can become very intellectualised.
“I’ve always been drawn to plays that are all on the page between human beings interacting.
“You can read into that yourself after but at its crux, it’s a story about human beings and it doesn’t need to have metaphorical messages beyond that.
“It’s a very efficient play in that way that it’s kind of what you see is what you get but obviously there’s so much more behind all that and there’s all the subtext but it’s brilliant to play.
“I feel like this play is like an arrow.
“It’s very immediate. It’s a very immediate play.”
It will be interesting to see what it brings up in the audience, won’t it?
“And that’s what I love about plays like this as well.
“It’s like so many times theatre tries to impose something on you, it’s very specific what its message is trying to do but with this play, it’s just telling this story of these three people within this house. Everyone’s going to take something else away from it.
“They’ll take away what they want.
“We’re not trying to impose anything.
“There’s no specific message to go away with so as a result, I’ll be dying to hear what people take away from it because it will be a thinker.
“It will definitely stay with people after, I think or I hope, but in what capacity I’ll wait to hear.”
Treat has been described as brutal and violent, does he have those qualities?
“Yeah, he does.
“Ultimately he’s a young man who hasn’t really experienced love in his life and as a result of that, he doesn’t really know how to behave or to treat people.
“He mistakes control for care and he has this warped view of the world as a result of his troubled childhood.
“His intentions are good in terms of looking after his brother and caring for his brother but the way in which he cares for him is most definitely fairly warped, controlling and, at times, violent.
“He’s just very, very troubled.
“He’s grown up where he’s had to be the sole carer and basically the mother and father of the house from an incredibly young age.
“It’s not specified in the text but it’s hinted at that they have been alone since they were about ten and eight or even younger.”
He takes care of himself and his brother by stealing, isn’t that right?
“Yeah, he’s a petty criminal day to day just to make money to take care of him and that’s how Harold comes into the picture.
“Basically he’s out drinking one night, comes across Harold, thinks he’s a wealthy man and he thinks if he takes him home, he can hold him for ransom.”
You played an unpleasant character in Lies We Tell but have you played a character like Treat before?
“Not quite as extreme.
“I guess there are qualities in every character from other characters.
“I don’t think you can fully ever escape from yourself.
“You are a prism in which the character shines through so you’re always giving a part of yourself to the character.
“I guess there are parts of this that have been present in other characters and there will be parts of Treat that are in me but for the most part, he’s definitely unlike me and unlike other characters.
“I was taught that by a drama teacher before and I thought that was very interesting: You’re a prism and the character shines through you and if you don’t put a piece of you into the character, then what’s the point in you playing it?
“You have to give a piece of yourself and that’s what makes each person’s interpretation so interesting. Otherwise they would all just be the same.
“I had never seen anyone play Treat.
“I would love to but even doing this play in rehearsals now, I feel like this isn’t the last time I’m going to do it.
“We haven’t even gone up yet and I know I’m going to want to do it again.”
Would you like to play the remaining role of Harold one day?
“I’d love to play Harold when I’m older.
“I can’t wait to do to do this one.
“I just love it so much that I’m just going to want to do it again.
“But yeah, when I’m in my 50s, 60s, I would most definitely be wanting to play Harold.”
Does he have to be that old, could not be 40s or even 30s?
“No, I feel like he has to be that old.
“He has to feel like he’s lived a life.
“Maybe you could do it in your late 40s but to me, he feels 50 and above at least. He even could be into his 70s to be honest.”
Obviously, the part of Treat is a long way from Jock in The Young Offenders but I hear there is a new series on the way..
“We just shot a new series in June and July.
“I’ve seen some of it and very happy with it.
“It looks great.”
I bet you never thought when you started playing Jock over ten years ago now that it would go this far..
“I know, it’s mad.
“It’s definitely wild.
“It’s just an amazing thing to be a part of and to keep going back to.
“It’s the job that’s done so much for me and I’m very grateful for so to get back to it was quite surreal.”
We recently interviewed Brendan Canty about the film Christy which featured many from the Kabin Krew children’s hip hop studio in Cork. Yourself, Alison Oliver and Helen Behan also featured. There was a great ethos to that whole project, wasn’t there?
“Yeah, totally.
“It’s testament to Brendan Canty.
“He wrote this beautiful script that’s also a very important script and it’s an important story to be heard.
“And to have all the kids from the Kabin Krew: They’re some of the most talented people I’ve ever met and I sincerely mean that.
“I mean what they do with their music, their abilities on screen.
“They’re just such open individuals that have such a joy for life that’s just intoxicating to watch and be around so I was very, very proud to be a part of that film.
“I think it was a special, special Irish film that will kind of go into the lore of those films.”
It was very specific in its setting of Cork not toning down accents as it showed the north side of Cork..
“It’s inherent to it.
“It couldn’t be the story without it.
“It all goes into authenticity and these things can’t be what they are without every aspect of it so that Cork accent is essential to that story.
“It’s every aspect of it like the clothes, the haircuts, the style, the music. It’s what makes Cork Cork so they couldn’t shy away from any of that or else it wouldn’t be the brilliant film that it is.”
Speaking of Alison Oliver, you played her husband at The Almeida back in 2023. How did you enjoy that Portia Coughlan run?
“It was just a brilliant experience.
“I hadn’t done a play for seven years when I went back to do that, maybe less.
“It was just such an experience that I enjoyed so much that I was like, ‘Oh God, I need to do more plays’.
“I don’t know why I left it for so long.
“I think theatre is where I learn the most and I enjoy rehearsals so much so going into Portia was a real reminder of my joy for and love of theatre.”
The cast also included Kathy Keira Clarke, Sorcha Cusack, Mark O’Halloran and more.
“And what a company of actors. When you’re on stage with the likes of that cast, it makes it very easy in many ways to just be present and speak the words. It makes the acting part very enjoyable and easy.
“It was just a great company, great director, great place to work, great text.
“I’m really grateful for that show.”
So you’re consciously looking to do more theatre now?
“I’ll never go back to leaving it that long again.
“I think probably for a time there after Lieutenant I didn’t prioritise it and I never want that to be the case again.
“I enjoy it too much.
“It means so much to me.”
Does Orphans have some of the same dark humour as Irish plays like Portia Coughlan and Lieutenant of Inishmore?
“Yeah, it’s very funny as well.
“It’s very dark.
“I often struggle with any form of art if it’s dark without any levity because I just don’t believe that to be true.
“I’ve experienced and witnessed the saddest of situations and often the funniest of things comes out of that.
“I don’t think it’s a true depiction of the world we’re in if there’s not some form of levity within the darkness because that’s how people survive.
“They survive by making one another laugh and often that’s where the funniest things come from so there’s a lot of humour in it.
“And also Lyle Kessler’s writing is just very sharp.
“It’s very witty. It’s fast.
“There’s plenty of laughs.”
Mark Rylance, Liam Cunningham and Alec Baldwin are among the big names you have acted with, what is it like working with all these people?
“Totally, totally unbelievable.
“You learn so much from observing people and it is a craft.
“It is something that you work on and that always occupies your mind to some capacity and getting to work with all these people, you learn so much from them not just as actors but as human beings.
“I always think the people that are the best actors are the most interesting people.
“You don’t usually come across an amazing actor like the people you’ve mentioned and them not be also incredible company.
“They’ve all ended up being really good friends by the nature of them just being great people and then by the nature of them being great people, they’re brilliant actors or maybe the other way around.”
What’s next? What can we look out for you in?
“Young Offenders will be out next year (2026).
“Then I just did a film called Skintown which is about the rave scene during the troubles, a friendship and their desire to escape which I think will be a special film.”
Written by the actor Ciaran McMenamin and directed by Kieron J Walsh, the cast for Skintown includes Jamie-Lee O’Donnell and Tara Lynne O’Neill from Derry Girls, Roisin Gallagher from The Dry and Michael Smiley.
“I feel very lucky to be honest.
“It’s been a great year but to be a part of stories like that, they’re important stories for people to see.
“I think particularly a story about the rave scene during that time which was such a big part of the outlet for young people is something that I don’t know if we’ve particularly seen before.
“I realise I’m saying I’m very grateful to be a part of these things and I’m saying that a lot but I really am.
“And then next year I’ve written a film with my friend Frank Blake which we’ve had in development and been working on for the past five years but we’ve gotten production funding so we go to shoot that next year as well which I’m excited about in terms of being a labour of love for the past five or six years.
“It’s about two brothers in rural Ireland and an event that happens that sort of changes the course of their lives.”
Orphans is at Jermyn Street Theatre 5- 24 January.
For more information and to book, click here.