The Acting – The Glass Mask Theatre, Dublin

Writer: Jarlath Tivnan

Director: Rex Ryan

Currently running at The Glass Mask Theatre, The Acting is a high energy piece written by and starring Jarlath Tivnan. Tivnan has an impressive career behind him so far, both as a playwright and actor, with his writing debut Pleasure Ground winning the Michael Diskin Bursary Award and several standout performances under his belt, including last year’s King on the Glass Mask stage in Eva O’Connor’s Horse Play. The Acting certainly has an autobiographical feel to it as it tells the story of Charlie, a Boyle native trying to make it as an actor in an Ireland that is increasingly hostile towards creatives. Shane O’Regan and Eva Jane Gaffney support as Charlie’s parents, but also dip in and out of several other characters that influence and affect Charlie’s life from his start in the school nativity and on through the rest of his acting journey.

In terms of plot there are not many twists to be found here, Tivnan paints a portrait that will be familiar to most who have an actor (or indeed anyone hoping to dedicate themselves to the creative field) in their lives, with the expected highs and lows and a few somewhat heavy handed but completely justified tirades against the impossibility of this career choice with the rising cost of living and the soul destroying process of grant applications. Recognisable though the story may be, the beauty here is in Tivnan’s ability to explore so many of these highs and lows in such delightfully jocular detail over only 85 minutes; particular kudos to the stalwart and his stalwart friend, and the short musical number featuring several aunts and uncles. There is a depth of humour in this writing that is commendable.

Tivnan’s performance is bellowing and vigorous, with some nicely contrasting moments of vulnerability, but it’s O’Regan and Gaffney who steal this show. This is a fantastic opportunity to see the character range of these two talented actors, with most of the truly laugh out loud moments coming from their variously strong and subtle physicality. Overall, it’s a fascinating watch as the three performers fly around the stage, utilising props and (mostly) simple costume changes to propel the scenes onward through living rooms, pubs, theatres, cars, and schools; it’s high octane but comes off very well.

Rex Ryan and the Glass Mask Theatre crew have incorporated a lot of music, sound, and light work into the show, with varying degrees of success. The projector work adds a lot to the humour, with words appearing on the backdrop to punctuate several of the jokes, and it is executed well, similarly the sound effects and the mike work add a campness to the performance that works perfectly with the tone of the play. However, the volume in the space needs some adjustment as the music has a tendency to blare over the actors at times, in a way that is both hard on the ears and distracting from the show.

All in all, this is another strong reason to visit the Glass Mask Theatre and a feather to add to Tivnan’s cap, who is absolutely one to watch.

Runs Until 19th October 2024.